Omicron not just a flu, warns health expert
January 07, 2022 17:40
Senior Director of Medanta Hospital Dr Sushila Kataria on Friday warned people not to "be complacent because the situation will worsen in the next two weeks" because the third wave of coronavirus disease has already hit India. She said it was not just a flu that will go away.
Speaking to ANI, Dr Kataria, who has treated many COVID-19 patients said, "One cannot be complacent because the situation will worsen in the next two weeks. COVID is not just a flu that will go away. We have already seen from January 4 that the third wave has already hit the country. The number of cases has almost increased five times in the last three days."
"No doubt it is increasing because Omicron variant is spreading across the globe. Another fact is that it is less severe than the Delta variant. But it cannot be dismissed completely because every 10th person was admitted to the hospital during the second wave," the expert said.
Dr Kataria further said, "Even every 50th or 100th person was dying due to Delta variant. The number of hospitalisation is just 50 per cent less in this case. Even these numbers are good enough, large enough, worrying enough to other girls in the healthcare system, which I am seeing right now.
She also said that the people are dying because of the Omicron variant, so more precautions need to be taken as of now.
"So this may be a mild virus good for us, but we can't be complacent that it will not cause anything. Let me tell you across the globe, people have died because of Omicron. One has to be careful all the time," she said.
On testing of the Omicron variant, Dr Kataria said, "Detection of COVID infection is only through RTPCR or antigen or rapid testing. So, in today's times if anybody has upper respiratory symptoms or diarrhoea or just a body ache, it is presumed to be COVID related, isolate and test yourself. The RTPCR can tell you this is COVID or not. To know whether it is Omicron or not, then you have to do some further testing. One is called S gene drop."
Differentiating between Omicron and Delta variant symptoms, she said, "As a clinician, the difference I am observing is people have a more scratchy throat, body aches, and shivering. Fever is not a common symptom. But in younger people, sometimes people are reporting 103-104 deg F fever, and there is disproportionate tiredness and headache."
"Earlier the cough was very dry. Now people are coming with more like a bad cough but it is very clear or whitish clear. These are the main symptoms we are seeing. They're seeing less of loss of smell and taste, but to say 100 per cent that it does not happen. I need some more experience clinically and maybe some more research," she added.
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