Two Omicron sub-variants driving South Africa COVID-19 spike — WHO

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Two new Omicron sub-variants are driving an increase in reported COVID-19 cases in South Africa, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, stressing the importance of testing to monitor virus mutations and spread.

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The heavily mutated and highly transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19, which was first detected in southern Africa in November last year and rapidly spread globally, is now the dominant variant, accounting for almost all new cases.But now the South African scientists who first identified Omicron are pointing to two other Omicron sub-variants, BA.4 and BA.5, "as the reason for a spike in cases" in the country, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference.

However, he said, "early data suggest vaccination remains protective against severe disease and death." In early April, the country lifted all COVID-19 restrictions, but since then, cases have surged back up, jumping by close to 50 percent in the past week, according to WHO data."The best way to protect people remains vaccination, alongside tried and tested public health and social measures," Tedros insisted Wednesday.

But Tedros warned that "these trends, while welcome, don't tell the full story," pointing out that reported cases were rising in the Americas and Africa, "driven by Omicron sub-variants."

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