Information on omicron mutations is not yet clear, and various claims about mutations are emerging.
The basis of the current argument is the case of South Africa, where Omicron was prevalent. First of all, South Africa is currently experiencing a significant increase in the number of confirmed cases.
[한인섭 / YTN 남아공 리포터 (뉴스Q) : 어제 날짜로 4373명이 확진돼 전일 대비 2배가 증가됐습니다. 남아공 정부나 보건 관계자, 과학자들이 오미크론 변이바이러스로 추정하고 있는데요. 앞으로 사태를 계속 주시해서 봐야 될 것으로 알고 있습니다.]
It is estimated that Omicron’s radio wave power is quite strong, but opinions differ slightly about the fatality rate.
Professor Karl Lauterbach, a German public health expert, said that Omicron is highly contagious, but mutated in a less lethal way, making it a ‘Christmas gift’.
These characteristics are consistent with the way most respiratory viruses have evolved, the Daily Mail reported in the UK.
Medical staff in South Africa, who first discovered the omicron mutation, also said that the infected patients had only mild symptoms such as headaches and fatigue, and no one was hospitalized or died.
However, Dr Richard Russells of the South African Consortium for Consortium of Corona Virus Mutation Research said in an interview with The New York Times that most South African infections were mild because they were young and did not have time to worsen to severe disease.
Domestic experts also point out that the delta mutation is different from the common sense that the fatality rate is lowered.
This is the reason why we must do our best to prevent quarantine until the very end.
Listen for yourself.
[정재훈 / 가천대 의대 예방의학과 교수 (뉴스앤이슈) : 바이러스의 입장에서는 전파력이 높아지는 방향으로 진화하는 것은 어떻게 보면 당연합니다. 하지만 전파력이 높아지는 과정에서 숙주의 치명률이라든지 중증화율이 꼭 낮아지는 방향으로 변한다고 보기는 어렵고요. 대표적인 반례가 델타 변이바이러스입니다. 델타 변이바이러스 같은 경우는 전파력은 2~3배 이상 높아졌지만 치명률은 거의 그대로 유지가 되었었거든요. 그런 것들이 오미크론 변이에 있어서 꼭 중증화율이 낮아지는 방향으로 갈 거라고 기대하기는 어렵습니다.]
YTN Donggun Oh (odk79829@ytn.co.kr)
[저작권자(c) YTN & YTN plus 무단전재 및 재배포 금지]
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