The Omicron variant

Perseverance The Second · 21-12-2021 3:37pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356551#Comment_118356551

Omicron infection mostly stays in the nose.

The Virus is not as harmful if it reaches the lungs. It does not cause issues such as pneumonia at the rate Delta did.

Spreads faster due to very short incubation period.

is_that_so · 21-12-2021 3:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356551#Comment_118356551

It spreads fast and can be found in large numbers in the upper parts of the lungs but less able to get into the deeper parts to cause severe COVID.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 4:15pm

I don't really get Omicron stops at the bronchi. Going back to leaving cert biology, the 2 bronchi enter the lungs, bronchioles, alveoli etc.

Would it not seem logical that if the bronchi are infected the virus could travel deeper in some people. Obviously I don't want that to happen but the virus hardly stops at a red light.

I think scientists and twiterati, for want of a better word, are as inclined to post what backs up what they want to hear. On the optimistic and negative sides there's an equal amount of shite from this 'expert' and that 'expert'.

Not that many middle ground posts, you won't get attention for that. It's either extreme, going to collapse various countries' health service, or it's a sneeze, 'let it rip'.

There are a lot variables. Christmas interaction will determine our max case numbers, hospitalisations etc. I don't think you can curtail this. We're social beings.

I'm gone to the stage I trust a scientist, speaking on preliminary covid findings, as much as a politician! They have big egos often enough. Want to be the first with their opinions.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 4:48pm

We're looking up Prof. Francois Balloux's findings. We know little about him.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, some poor fecker in France is after googling Sam McConkey, who is equally well qualified. And he's after posting his thoughts on boards.fr 😂😂

17larsson · 21-12-2021 4:51pm

How many have died from Omicron in Ireland so far?

quokula · 21-12-2021 4:52pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356785#Comment_118356785

It's not as simple as the virus not being able to get that far, it's that the structures of the cells are different in the bronchus and the lungs and the virus' ability to attach to those cells and replicate are different. Omicron has only been known about for a matter of weeks, which means that studies into it are very early and not yet peer reviewed but any I've seen tend to be clear and level headed, usually stating "this is what we've observed" as a simple matter of fact, either from data that exists from human infections or more applied science involving lab cultures, without trying to claim anything that they don't have data for. I haven't seen any scientists making either of the extreme claims you mention. It's news articles and people on social media who pick and choose bits of different articles out of context to support one opinion or another that skew things.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 4:53pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356965#Comment_118356965

0.

Infection, hospitalisations then death. Only 10 days ago 1% of the population had Omicron. Thankfully we don't go to death that quickly. Hopefully we'll have small numbers. Who knows.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 5:00pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356970#Comment_118356970

I understand the cell structure. But in weaker immune systems, as always they'll be more vulnerable. Many such people, who avoided Covid up to now, could catch Omicron.

I've seen a few at either end of the spectrum. Dr. Coetzee for example, doesn't seem to understand the differences between South Africa and Northern Europe at this time.

I never heard of a flu pandemic being particularly virulent here in June and July. SA are in hotter summer weather than we'd ever have, Vitamin D, young population exposed to other variants.

niallo27 · 21-12-2021 5:04pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356785#Comment_118356785

Nearly all of the updates here have been optimistic, little to no extremes on either side. If you don't trust experts or the politicians, why bother even posting here if you don't believe anything they say. I don't know would you be as quick to downplay bad news if it was coming in.

deholleboom · 21-12-2021 5:10pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356970#Comment_118356970

Well done. Kudos to you!

Mind you, i think official health bodies as well as politicans quite often mislead the public and at times bluntly lie. For the good of the people no doubt.😉

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 5:11pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357020#Comment_118357020

A free discussion board. I'm a freeman I'll post away.

Whether I believe scientists or not doesn't determine whether I can post here. Stop your attempts at modding and get lost with the passive aggression.

All I'm saying is we'll see in January and February. Suppose what you like. But there are a lot of posters who can't handle any bad news, if Podge and Rodge made a positive statement about Omicron it would get 20 thanks. They need their comfort blanket.

quokula · 21-12-2021 5:12pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357004#Comment_118357004

I'd have question marks over Dr Coetzee who is no doubt under political pressure as the South African economy is dependent on other nations opening their borders back up.

However the study above that you were responding to seemed sound. It didn't make any overall claims about the severity of the virus, just made the observation that the virus replicates far more in the upper respiratory system and far less in the lungs. This was also seen in another study from Hong Kong I saw a couple of days ago so it does seem to be a consistent observation (though again, it's early days and none of these studies are peer reviewed yet)

This doesn't mean it can't or won't be serious for some people though, certainly, and I don't think any of these studies are trying to say that.

corkie · 21-12-2021 5:12pm

https://twitter.com/UKHSA/status/1473324700860399620

15,363 additional confirmed cases #Omicron. UK now total 60,508.

^^^ Up from yesterdays 8,044 weekend low figure.

UK PDF: - Omicron daily overview: 21 December 2021

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-omicron-daily-overview

dominatinMC · 21-12-2021 5:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357055#Comment_118357055

And equally there are posters who, as a famous TV character put it, "love the misery".

After 2 years of this shitshow, I don't see the harm in some people clinging to a bit of hope. Hardly a reason to be castigated. Particularly when more and more evidence seems to be tipping the scales in the favour of positivity.

niallo27 · 21-12-2021 5:19pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357055#Comment_118357055

Downplaying any positive news is not healthy for yourself. Bad news sells, you must know this by now.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 5:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357089#Comment_118357089

I'm grand thanks, very happy 😊

ceadaoin. · 21-12-2021 5:25pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118355906#Comment_118355906

Seems like he had pretty severe underlying conditions, given that he had also previously been infected. This could also be the first confirmed case of a death after previous infection? Perhaps these conditions could also be part of the reason he wasn't vaccinated. We don't know what they are.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 5:39pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357089#Comment_118357089

You, on the other hand, were saying yesterday you haven't been feeling well for 2 years. Comparing your low spirits, to the scientifically proven long covid? When it was just low mood.

Kinda ironic you're giving health advice a day later, to someone like me, who's ultra positive and resilient 😆

Scuid Mhór · 21-12-2021 5:57pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356571#Comment_118356571

What is the implication of this for people with asthma?

deholleboom · 21-12-2021 6:12pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357302#Comment_118357302

Bronchi regulate the airflow between the lungs and the windpipe. So they need to be open. People suffering from bronchitis have a lower capacity transferring oxygen so blocked bronchi due to infection (fluids) is a type of congestion which non bronchitis people usually can deal with but can easily cause real difficulties in bronchitis patients (breathing problems.) It is usually called 'asthmatic bronchitis'. Asthma is a tightening of the muscles around the airwaves due to inflammation with swelling.

That is where the danger lies w Omicron. Higher levels of inflammation in the bronchi compared to Delta. But less in the lungs themselves so less of the organising pneumonia (lungs) we saw w the wild type (Wuhan) which caused the large majority of Covid deaths.

But like everything, it is a matter of scale..

RavenBea17b · 21-12-2021 6:37pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357302#Comment_118357302

Exactly, that is what I was wondering. Population make up of Ireland - I read somewhere Ireland is the 4th highest prevalence of asthma. c500k diagnosed - 1:8 people. In the UK, over 8 million people, or approximately 12% of the population, have been diagnosed with asthma. However, some may have grown out of the condition, and 5.4 million people are receiving asthma treatment. Scotland alone is 6.5% of the total.

Lumen · 21-12-2021 6:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118356785#Comment_118356785

Are you seriously arguing that your leaving cert biology makes you more qualified than an up to date medical scientist, or for that matter even Leo Varadkar?

ginoginelli · 21-12-2021 6:45pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357089#Comment_118357089

He is questioning it. That's a good thing. Any new data needs to be scrutinized and verified. Its constructive.

Unlike the scared shitless posters, living in denial, who prefer to wrap themselves in cotton wool, and indulge in relentless and deluded Pollyannaisms throughout the pandemic.

Tom_Crean · 21-12-2021 6:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357522#Comment_118357522

No. That's you trying to make a bollix of me. The way posters twist things for a few thanks.

I spoke about the bronchi's closeness to the lungs. Yes a lot has to do with cell structure and attachment. However, I've often seen milder doses have worse effects on the immunocompromised.

As I said Prof McConkey is as qualified as your hero Prof. Ballaux. And who'd quote the former.

Scuid Mhór · 21-12-2021 6:56pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357372#Comment_118357372

Thanks for the information, that was very comprehensive. My generalist understanding is that asthmatic bronchitis is nowhere near as serious on a statistical scale as pneumonia so would this not be good news overall? Like one of the big risks for asthma sufferers originally was the development of pneumonia from covid.

deholleboom · 21-12-2021 7:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118357522#Comment_118357522

You actually do not have to be that well qualified to make proper inferences. If and when medical experts start misleading or lying to the public it is better to hold on tight to your skeptical hat and do some digging.

I have seen many statements about 'two vaccinations do not protect you from Omicron but three will' which IS a lie not only perpetrated by the media but also allowed and promoted by politicians and medical experts. They know they are lying and doing it willingly. I think because they feel the need to hammer in the message and make the ignorant jump at getting a booster which DOES help, except not in preventing infection. So, if people think they wont get it w a booster and think their mask is a proper safeguard they will stand in line. It clearly IS working so i understand the process..