Emergence of Omicron was inevitable, says South African President
South Africa’s fourth Covid-19 wave was anticipated and the emergence of the new Omicron variant was inevitable, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said, terming the surge in infections a matter of "great concern".
The president said the number of daily infections has increased five-fold in the past week, with nearly a quarter of all Covid-19 tests now returning positive. Two weeks ago, only two per cent of tests were positive.
“While the surge in infections is of great concern, we should remember that we anticipated it. Disease modellers in our country have told us that we would likely experience a fourth wave around this time and that it was almost inevitable that new variants of the virus would emerge,” Ramaphosa said in his weekly newsletter to the nation on Monday.
"As the country heads into a fourth wave of Covid-19 infections, we are experiencing a rate of infections that we have not seen since the pandemic started. The Omicron variant that was brought to global attention by South African scientists nearly two weeks ago appears to be dominating new infections in most provinces,” he said.8 foreign returnees test negative for Omicron in Kerala
Eight out of the 10 samples of Covid-19 positive persons who arrived in Kerala from 'high risk' countries have tested negative for the Omicron variant of the virus, state Health Minister Veena George said on Tuesday. Results of two samples are awaited, she said in a release.
Besides that, another sample of a person, who arrived at Kozhikode from a high-risk country and tested positive for Covid-19, has been sent for testing.
The samples are being tested for Omicron at the Rajiv Gandhi Center for Biotechnology.Young people recover quickly from rare side effect of Covid vaccine: Study
Most young people under the age of 21 who develop suspected Covid-19 vaccine-related inflammation of heart muscle, known as myocarditis, have mild symptoms that improve quickly, according to a study.
Myocarditis is a rare but serious condition that causes inflammation of the heart muscle. It can weaken the heart and affect the heart’s electrical system, which keeps the heart pumping regularly. It is most often the result of an infection or inflammation caused by a virus, the researchers said.
“The highest rates of myocarditis following Covid-19 vaccination have been reported among adolescent and young adult males,” said Jane W Newburger, associate chair at Boston Children's Hospital, and the Commonwealth Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, US.
“While current data on symptoms, case severity and short-term outcomes is limited, we set out to examine a large group of suspected cases of this heart condition as it relates to the Covid-19 vaccine in teens and adults younger than 21 in North America," said Newburger, the study’s senior authorBengaluru doctor who recovered from Omicron tests positive for Covid-19 again
The city-based doctor, who had tested positive for Omicron variant of Covid-19 and reportedly recovered, has once again tested positive for the virus.
The doctor was among the first two persons to be detected with Omicron in the country. The other was a South African national, who was quarantined and later flew to Dubai.
"It is true that the doctor who was infected with Omicron variant has once again tested positive for Covid-19," a Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike official told
Requesting anonymity, the official said the doctor is under isolation, but he is asymptomatic.
Meanwhile, police have registered a case against the SA national, who is a Gujarati by origin, for flying without informing the authorities in violation of the quarantine norms. (PTI)Austria to lift lockdown, but Covid-19 measures to continue for unvaccinated
Unvaccinated individuals will continue to stay in lockdown even after Austria lifts its wider coronavirus measure for the general public on Sunday, Chancellor Karl Nehammer confirmed on Tuesday.Omicron in India Latest Updates: The tally of Omicron variant cases in India rose to 23 after two more positive cases of the new coronavirus variant were detected in Mumbai. Meanwhile, at least 109 out of 295 recent foreign returnees to Thane district in Maharashtra have gone untraceable. On the global front, British Health Secretary Sajid Javid has admitted that community transmission of Omicron variant is happening in ‘multiple’ regions of England. Stay tuned for latest updates on Omicron variant
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