Ômicron corresponds to 98.7% of Covid cases in Brazil, says study

The omicron variant already corresponds to almost all positive tests for the detection of Covid in Brazil, according to a survey carried out by laboratories in the country. The study was coordinated by ITpS (All for Health Institute) in partnership with CDL, Dasa and DB Molecular laboratories.

The investigation included the analysis of more than 8,000 RT-PCR tests carried out in the laboratory networks from January 2 to 8. It was thus found that 3,212 were positive for Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. Among these, 3,171 (98.7%) were infections caused by the new variant.

The study points out that, in relation to the previous survey, which analyzed data from December 26 to January 1, the number of states with indication of the omicron increased from 9 to 18 and the number of municipalities, from 80 to 191.

In addition to analyzing the incidence of the new variant, the research also showed the increase in cases of Covid. Between the last week of 2021 and the first week of 2022, positivity in exams jumped from 13.7% to 39.5%.

The omicron was initially sequenced in South Africa in November of this year. Preliminary data indicate that it is more transmissible than other variants, such as delta, although it does not develop serious conditions in many of those infected.

A report from leaf showed that positive tests rose again during the holiday season, according to monitoring by Abrafarma (an association that brings together large pharmaceutical networks).

The total number of positives jumped from 524 on December 1, when 10,000 tests were performed, to 5,334 on December 29, when there were 31,332 tests — equivalent to 5% and 17% of the total, respectively. The survey covers 3,000 pharmacies in the country.

Amid this explosion of new cases, patients have difficulty accessing emergency rooms that are overcrowded. In addition, people who are suspected of Covid-19 have difficulty performing the test in pharmacies.

Patients were having difficulty scheduling tests at pharmacies in the city of São Paulo due to the parties, the flu, and the increase in Covid-19 cases. Between December 29 and January 3, the leaf consulted the agenda of 40 drugstores of large pharmacy chains in the city. At the time, it was already possible to notice the increase in demand.

There are also establishments that have suspended the online scheduling of the Covid-19 test, in the case of pharmacies in the Raia Drogasil network. It will only be possible to schedule a test when the supply is normalized.

In the case of Brazil, data from this Tuesday (11) from the press vehicle consortium already show that the moving average of cases has now reached 44 thousand infections per day, a jump of 631% compared to the data of two weeks ago.