A total of 9,531 new cases have been recorded in India in the last 24 hours.
In view of the rise in COVID cases and infections, WHO's COVID technical lead, Maria Van Kerkhove has warned people of more transmissible variants in the future and has urged them to remain safe.
In a series of tweets, the epidemiologist has discussed the virus and the life saving interventions that can be done.
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Omicron BA.5 is the dominant circulating variant
Since the beginning of this year, Omicron has remained the dominant variant of the virus. This variant of concern has mutated itself to a number of sub variants like BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4 and BA.5. The subvariants of the Omicron are notorious for their immune evasion capacity.
As per the data shared by Maria Van Kerkhove, Omicron virus is prevalent in several countries worldwide, of which the BA.5 variant is dominant in 121 countries, and the BA.4 is prevalent in 103 countries. BA.4 and BA.5 are said to be the two most widespread subvariants of the Omicron virus.
On the Omicron subvariants, Dr Kerkhove says, "Omicron #BA5 is the dominant circulating variant of concern right now. However, reduced surveillance, testing & sequencing globally is making our ability to track known & detect new variants much more difficult."
There will be more variants with such intense circulation
The WHO epidemiologist has warned of more notorious virus variants in the future.
Ever since the pandemic started in 2020, the coronavirus has mutated several times. Of all the variants of the virus, the variants of concern or those which have driven waves of infection worldwide are Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron. The Delta variant was detected in India and was the most disastrous of all. It had almost crippled the hospital management in the country.
Dr Kerkhove warns of more serious variants in the future.
Future variants will be more transmissible
Currently, the Omicron is said to be the most transmissible variant of the virus. It was found in December 2021 and ever since has remained the most dominant strain of the virus. Though the symptoms associated with Omicron infection are mild in nature, the virus is said to have the highest potential for transmission.
The WHO has time and again warned of new variants in the future. Backing this, Dr Kerkhove has said, "future variants will be more transmissible, may have further immune escape but we do not know if they will be more or less severe."
Early testing is a life saver
The WHO has always emphasized on testing so as to detect the infection early and also to track newer variants if any.
Testing plays a key role in mitigating the risk associated with COVID infection. It enables a person to isolate early and thus cuts down the risk of transmission.
It identifies the infected individuals and provides surveillance to the health agencies to keep an eye on probable transmission.
Simple measures are the COVID mitigators
"There is no zero risk but we can live our lives while taking simple measures: get vaccinated with all recommended doses; wear a mask while indoors, spend time outdoors,ventilate, test, seek care," suggests Dr Kerkhove.
Vaccination is indispensable
Drawing attention towards the stagnant issue of COVID management, which is Vaccine Equity, Dr Kerkhove said: COVID-19 vaccines are working incredibly well at preventing severe disease. Get vaccinated and get all recommended doses when it’s your turn. Governments need to focus on reaching at missed risk people.
"Vaccination amongst those most at risk in all countries is not as high as it should be. #VaccinEquity is not just a hashtag," she adds in another tweet.
COVID status in India
India's active caseload currently stands at 97,648 COVID cases. 11,726 recoveries were seen in the last 24 hours. The recovery rate stands at 98.59%.
A total of 9,531 new cases have been recorded in the last 24 hours.