Headache, cold and other symptoms similar to those of a seasonal illness: according to the data available, still limited, the Omicron variant could cause a milder form of Covid-19 lasting a few days, especially in vaccinated people, compared to to the previous variants. Furthermore, the new mutation would be characterized by a high transmissibility.
After its discovery, which took place in Botswana and South Africa between 11 and 14 November 2021, the variante Omicron, which is a new mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus also called B.1.1.529, spread rapidly to other countries, including Italy, where the first case confirmed.
According to a report by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità dated 23 December 2021, in Italy the Omicron variant has come to represent 28% of total positive cases, with the number of infections that would tend to double in about 2 days, thanks to the national situation that sees many people with the primary vaccination cycle now completed more than 5 months ago, therefore with one minor protection towards a possible contagion.
But what are the symptoms that allow you to recognize the Omicron variant? According to reports in recent weeks, the new mutation would lead to forms of Covid-19 milder, probably also thanks to the coverage of vaccines, which often resemble the classic syndromes of cooling down typical of the winter months. Let’s see in more detail which signals to pay attention to and which are the main ones differences with the symptoms caused by the other variants, for example the Delta.
Symptoms
Despite the data still limited available, compared to other forms of the SARS-CoV-2 virus variante Omicron it would seem to cause milder symptoms, which at times might even be mistaken for a simple one cold.
To confirm this picture, there are also the statements made to Newsweek by the professor Tim Spector, scientist in charge of the ZOE COVID app, widely used in the UK to report manifestations of the disease: “At the moment it is clear that, looking at the areas with a high rate of Omicron variant infections, but also at a national level, we see a very similar picture, i.e. dominated by non-classic Covid symptoms“.
In particular, the 5 most common symptoms of the Omicron variant reported by the users of the app would be headache, a runny nose, tiredness, sneezing e sore throat. In the list, therefore, some rather frequent manifestations in the previous forms of Covid-19 would be missing, such as the loss of taste and smell, which however can still occur in some cases together with other symptoms such as fever, chills, He retched The diarrhea.
Furthermore, the Omicron variant would also have a incubation time minor and, when present, the disease would have a duration of few days just like a seasonal ailment, especially in vaccinated subjects.
However, these are not good reasons to underestimate this form of Covid-19, which is always capable of causing severe clinical pictures and, in the worst cases, lead to death, which is why it is essential to continue with the administration of third doses, which appear to be able to restore a good degree of protection even against Omicron.
How contagious it is
Since November 26, 2021, the World Health Organization has entered the variant B.1.1.529, known as Omicron, among the so-called Variants of Concern (VOC), or those mutations of SARS-CoV-2 deemed most worrying, a list that also includes the variants Alpha, Beta, Delta and Gamma.
In particular, since the first studies the Omicron variant has shown a greater transmissibility compared to the previous variants, as explained by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), which is why it is believed that it could become the dominant variant within a few months.
These suspicions have already been partially confirmed by data collected in Italy in recent weeks: the results released on December 23 of an ISS analysis based on about 2 thousand swabs performed in 18 regions suggest a strong growth of the Omicron variant, which would have come to concern about the 28% of total cases of Covid-19. Comparing these data with those of the beginning of the month, it emerged that the cases of this variant double in about 2 days, in line with what has already been observed in other European countries.
Second Silvio Brusaferro, president of the ISS, despite the fact that we are still talking about preliminary data “the estimate confirms the great speed of diffusion of the variant, which seems to give very widespread outbreaks in a short time and is about to become the majority in a short time, as is already happening in several other European countries“. That’s why, to reduce the high rate at which Omicron spreads,”the weapons available are vaccination, with the third dose timely for those who have already completed the first cycle, and individual and collective measures to limit the spread of the virus, from the use of masks to the limitation of contacts and gatherings”.
Sources | ISS; Ministry of Health
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