Omicron, one of the variants of the coronavirus, continues to spread rapidly all over the world. The variant, which first appeared in South Africa, is causing people to worry while causing case records to be broken in many countries. However, scientists also make comforting statements by stating that the disease has been overcome with mild symptoms.
Last week, a member of the scientific board expressed his views on Omicron and noted that there could be two positive or negative scenarios. In addition, in a news we shared yesterday, we reported that deaths caused by Omicron are 8 times less than the Delta variant. Now, Chest Diseases Specialist Prof. Dr. Ahmet Rasim Küçükusta, in an article he wrote about Omicron, stated that the variant could end the pandemic.
‘Optimistic data emerge’
In the article published in Independent Turkish, the famous professor stated that the data obtained about the Omicron variant is optimistic. Emphasizing that the hospital depending on the variant, the need for intensive care and deaths are very low, Küçükusta cited a study conducted in the United Kingdom as an example. In this study of people with the Omicron and Delta variants, it was determined that about 15% of those with Omicron needed ‘less hospitalizations’.
In addition, the famous professor emphasized that the number of deaths in the United Kingdom, which broke a record by reaching 100,000 cases per day, continued in a similar way to the previous months and remained around 140. Küçükusta also made statements about the effects of Omicron on children and the data from hospitals. Emphasizing that Omicron has a milder course in children than Delta, the professor stated that in the first three days of the disease, a decrease of 29% in admission to emergency services, 67% in hospitalizations and 68% in intensive care units was observed.
‘Fear and anxiety should not be created’
Kucukusta’s article also mentioned the anxiety and panic among people. Stating that the society is fully and accurately informed, the famous professor said that exaggerating the data and pumping fear does not work. Küçükusta also noted that the anxiety and panic caused by this fear weakens the immune system and harms people.
Küçükusta stated that he supports the idea of sharing the available data ‘as is’, giving examples from the words of other experts and stating that he thinks that intimidation of the society may cause problems in social, economic and public health issues.
Adding that the United Kingdom should be an example to the whole world, Küçükusta said that with very strict measures, restrictions and obligations, one cannot get anywhere. Drawing attention to Boris Johnson’s decision to lift all bans (including masks) in the UK, the professor said that he thinks the Omicron variant can bring an end to the epidemic.
‘Accelerating the spread could end the pandemic’
The 67-year-old professor also stated in his article that he supports some different ideas. Kucukusta, citing an example from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), stated that he was warm to the idea that instead of slowing down the spread of Omicron, accelerating it could work in ending the pandemic. In the WSJ article, efforts to slow Omicron could create a more contagious and more resistant supervariant; Therefore, it was also mentioned that the policy of ‘accelerate the spread’ for the lightly migrated Omicron variant may be the right move.
The famous actor Erdal Özyağcılar’s post-infection statement, “It’s not bad news, it’s good news in a way. I had become two sinovacs, two BioNTechs. Kucukusta, who cited the expressions “I have had the fifth vaccination naturally with Omicron,” as an example, added that antibodies, cellular and local immunity developed thanks to Omicron are stronger than vaccines.
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