New research coming from the Kaiser Permanente Southern California health care system, which operates 138 medical offices and 13 medical centers, and is affiliated with up to 37 community hospitals in Southern California has found that the Omicron variant of COVID is far milder than the previous Delta variant.
The research, which was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that patients infected with the Omicron variant of COVID were 91% less likely to die versus those who contracted the Delta variant.
According to The Blaze, the clinical study involved analyzing 52,297 Omicron cases and 16,982 Delta cases in Southern California recorded between November 30, 2021 and January 1, 2022.
Researchers found that COVID patients who were infected with the Omicron variant were 53% less likely to have symptomatic hospitalization and were 74% less likely to enter the intensive care unit or ICU. Moreover, the Omicron patients also had a 91% lower risk of death versus patients with the Delta variant.
Research found that only one person among more than 52,000 had died with an Omicron infection, versus 14 among almost 17,000 who passed away with the Delta variant. Moreover, researchers found that patients who were infected with the Omicron variant did not require mechanical ventilation.
"Hospital admissions occurred among 235 (0.5%) and 222 (1.3%) of cases with Omicron and Delta variant infections, respectively," researchers wrote. They found that patients who had the Omicron variant had a median duration of hospital stay of three less days than those who contracted the Delta variant.
"During a period with mixed Delta and Omicron variant circulation, SARS-CoV-2 infections with presumed Omicron variant infection were associated with substantially reduced risk of severe clinical endpoints and shorter durations of hospital stay," the researchers concluded. The CDC-funded study has not yet been peer-reviewed, nor has disclosed the ages and vaccination status of those who perished.
Earlier this month, a World Health Organization (WHO) official remarked that there is growing evidence that the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is causing milder symptoms because it affects the upper respiratory tract, unlike previous strains that caused pneumonia, Al Jazeera reported. WHO Incident Manager Abdi Mahamud said, "We are seeing more and more studies pointing out that Omicron is infecting the upper part of the body. Unlike the other ones, that could cause severe pneumonia."
According to a recent study that has yet to be peer reviewed, the Omicron variant was faster at getting into the upper airways and lungs, but was slower at attacking the lung tissue compared to previous strains of COVID. Another combined U.S. and Japanese study, which is currently under peer review, found that rats infected with the Omicron variant of COVID had less lung damage and were less likely to die from those infected with the Delta variant.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky took to Twitter to share results of the CDC-funded research and remind the public to be vigilant and continue practicing COVID precautionary measures. During a White House Covid-19 Response Team briefing on Wednesday promised that public health officials are monitoring "deaths over the next several weeks to see the impact of Omicron on mortality."
