Ômicron accounts for half of Covid cases tracked in one week in São Paulo

Preliminary data from a genetic sequencing carried out by the Municipal Health Department and by the Butantan Institute indicate a 50% prevalence for the omicron variant of the new coronavirus, considered to be more transmissible, in the capital of São Paulo.

The percentage of prevalence may be even higher, since the numbers, released this Tuesday (4), refer to the week of December 12th to 18th, according to the City of São Paulo.

According to the secretariat, genetic sequencing indicated that 52 samples related to the period were positive for omicron in the city.

Currently, the city counts 69 people who had the new variant of the coronavirus confirmed, according to the Ricardo Nunes (MDB) management.

The first case of the new variant was identified in Brazil in November, from a resident of Guarulhos, in Greater São Paulo, who passed through South Africa.

The city hall admitted the community transmission of omicron on December 15, which confirmed the infection of seven people who did not travel abroad and were infected when they had contact at a party with a 67-year-old elderly man, who had the disease.

Because of the omicron, the city hall canceled New Year’s Eve on Avenida Paulista, and the state government maintained the mandatory use of masks in public places.

On December 31, Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga said that the ministry is preparing a contingency plan in case a new wave of Covid occurs in the country and puts pressure on the health system due to the omicron variant.

Queiroga stated that the folder monitors the epidemiological situation in states and municipalities. For him, vaccination remains the main way to fight the Covid-19 variants circulating in the country.

Currently, the city of São Paulo has completed the vaccination cycle with two doses from adults. Among teenagers from 12 to 17 years old, 87% of them are fully immunized.

Data from visits to the municipal health network show that suspected cases of Covid-19 were triggered. In November there were 56,220 patients with symptoms. Last month, the number rose to 133,501 suspected coronaviruses, up 137%.

Hospitalizations for Covid-19 in the state of São Paulo rose again, according to specialists, surpassing the 1,000 hospitalizations last week.

The Director General of the WHO (World Health Organization), Tedros Adhanom, said that the “tsunami” created by the simultaneous circulation of the delta and omicron variants of Covid is bringing “health systems to the brink of collapse” in the world.

Infections caused by omicrons, however, represent less serious cases when compared to those caused by delta, according to an American study. The analyzes carried out show that, even in the elderly, the new strain represented a lower risk of complications from the disease.