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Van Gucht: ‘Already 41 percent corona infections caused by omikron’

About 41 percent of the infections in Belgium are now caused by the omikron variant of the corona virus. Virologist Steven Van Gucht announced this on Friday at the press conference of the National Crisis Center.

Converted, this means that last week about 3,000 people were infected with the omikron variant, last week there were only 700, or about 6 percent. “Omikron will be dominant in Belgium within a few days, probably already this weekend,” predicts Van Gucht. The virus has quadrupled in a week. The changing of delta’s watch by omikron is coming.’

People in their twenties and thirties in particular become infected with omikron, can be deduced from the infection numbers. Those numbers are still falling at the moment, but the emergence of the omikron variant could lead to a new increase, according to the virologist, possibly as early as January. A booster shot offers 75 percent more protection against an omikron infection, says Van Gucht.

Preliminary results of research in Denmark, the United Kingdom and South Africa show that the chance of hospitalization with an omikron infection is on average 50 percent smaller than with the delta variant. ‘That in itself is good news’, says Van Gucht, ‘but because omikron causes ten times more infections, many people still end up in hospital’.

Van Gucht notes that there is currently no flu epidemic in Belgium. “The flu virus is circulating at a low level,” it sounds. The virologist sees that there is a flu epidemic in some Eastern European countries. ‘We may have to deal with a flu and an omicron epidemic next year.’ The flu vaccine and the corona vaccine can easily be given side by side, which poses no threat to public health, Van Gucht emphasizes.

donate blood

Finally, Van Gucht makes an appeal to donate blood to the Red Cross, because there are major shortages. ‘If the operations, which are now being postponed due to the pressure on care, can take place again later, a lot of blood will be needed,’ he explains.

After the delta variant and the omikron variant, soon also the chick variant? Kamagurka looks to the future.

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