The Authentic Eclectic
New COVID Variant Hits the US
What Does it Mean for You and Your Family?
In one word: Nothing
First of all, you may be hearing that BA.2 is being called the “stealth” variant. It’s not. The media is being, well, the media.
Omicron is one half of a twin. BA.1, the strain that has been ravaging the US, was easy to track because, when you looked under a microscope, you could see that it was missing one of three target genes used in PCR tests. Omicron’s other half, BA.2, doesn’t have the same missing target genes. This means it looks similar to the Delta strain of COVID when looking at it under a microscope.
Denmark, which is weeks ahead of the US in dealing with Omicron, has been dealing with a huge increase in BA-2 infections. Their officials estimate that BA.2 is 50% more infectious than BA.1, but they do not believe that it causes more severe illness in those it does infect.
If you have received your vaccinations, then you should be fine. Of course, there are always breakthrough infections. But, what I have consistently seen in my patients is that the symptoms in those cases seem to be less severe and don’t last as long in those that have been vaccinated than in those that have not.
It is time that everyone gets used to COVID being around permanently. It is never going to go away. Just like humans, it too is always changing and evolving in order to survive. There is no getting past this. We are not going to be able to mask and socially distance forever. Vaccinations and herd immunity are our best hope.
