The World Health Organization WHO said it is dangerous to think that the Omicron variant of novel coronaviruses is ''just a mild disease.
Infectious Disease Epidemiologist and WHO COVID 19 Technical Lead Maria Van Kerkhove said, Yes, oversimplified narratives can be dangerous. We see a lower risk of hospitalization compared to Delta, to suggest that Omicron is just a mild disease. Even with lower risk, we will see hospitals overwhelmed. It is important to be careful. The UN health agency has cautioned governments to accelerate measures against the new surge in COVID 19 cases caused by Omicron. The WHO had warned of a COVID 19 tsunami and asked for the gatherings and events to be cancelled.
More and more studies are showing that Omicron is infecting the upper part of the body. Unlike other lungs, the lungs would cause severe pneumonia, WHO Incident Manager Abdi Mahamud told Geneva-based journalists on January 4.
He said that it can be good news, but we need more studies to prove that.
The heavily mutated variant, as per the WHO data, has spread quickly and emerged in as many as 128 countries, posing a challenge for many nations and people trying to revive their economies after two years of COVID - 19 related disruptions.