Hospitalizations are reduced by up to 45% with the omicron variant, according to study

Hospital admissions of at least one night are reduced by between 40% and 45% among patients with the omicron variant of the coronavirus compared to the delta, according to a study published this Wednesday by Imperial College London.

From the analysis of 56,000 cases of omicron and 269,000 delta in England, the researchers conclude that people infected with the first variant have a 15% to 20% lower risk of being cared for in a hospital facility and less likely to be admitted for at least one night.

They also highlight that individuals who have already passed the coronavirus they have a risk between 50% and 60% lower of being hospitalized if they are infected with omicron compared to the rest of the population.

At the same time, scientists have found that “The risk of hospitalization is similar for omicron and delta in people who test positive for infection and had previously received at least two doses of the vaccine”, which “Reflects the reduction in efficacy of the omicron vaccines compared to delta”Imperial College said in a statement.

“However, the risk of hospitalization in vaccinated people continues to be significantly lower than for unvaccinated ones”, he emphasizes.

“Our analysis provides evidence of a moderate reduction in the risk of hospitalization associated with the omicron variant compared to the delta variant”said epidemiologist Neil Ferguson, one of the authors of the work.

He added that, “However, this appears to be offset by the reduced efficacy of vaccines against omicron variant infection. Given the high transmissibility of the omicron virus, the potential for health services to face an increase in demand remains if omicron cases continue to grow at the rate seen in recent weeks “.

The epidemiologist Azra Ghani declared for his part that, “While the reduction in the risk of hospitalizations with the omicron variant is reassuring, the risk of infection remains extremely high”.

“With the addition of the booster dose, the vaccines continue to offer the best protection against infection and hospitalization.”said the expert.

Another preliminary study, prepared by researchers from the Scottish universities of Edinburgh Y Strathclyde, estimates that the risk of hospitalization can be reduced by up to two thirds with the omicron variant with respect to the delta.

The authors analyzed 23,840 probable cases of COVID-19 caused by the variant omicron, among those who have counted 15 hospitalizations, when they would have expected 47 with the delta variant.

The study authors caution that data on the effects of omicron in populations older than 60 years and in unvaccinated people are still limited and that among these people the disease could be more severe.