I understand that there is greater transmissibility with Omicron, but have there been studies that show a booster taken at 3 months offers a greater level of protection than a booster taken at 6 months?
not sure but I just heard a recommendation that if you are two months out from receiving the J&J vaccine you should get a Pfizer or Moderna booster.
Good information. I'd like to know specifically about the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, as they seem to be the more effective (longer lasting) of the bunch. They're also the ones that were recently recommended to get boosters for after 6 months. I'm curious if there is now scientific data that says 3 months is better than 6 months on those two in particular.
This wave, what is it, 3rd, 4th? This one I know far more people getting it than the previous year. It's not surprising though considering no one wear masks anymore and congregate in masses.
I’m also guessing vaccines are giving a false sense of security for those who have them. If you got it in the first round or 2, it has faded by now if you haven’t received the booster.
This wave, what is it, 3rd, 4th? This one I know far more people getting it than the previous year. It's not surprising though considering no one wear masks anymore and congregate in masses.
I’m also guessing vaccines are giving a false sense of security for those who have them. If you got it in the first round or 2, it has faded by now if you haven’t received the booster.
agreed...and I'm wondering now if I was at risk because of taking the J&J in March. I probably should have gotten a booster in June instead of October.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Chicago; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
This wave, what is it, 3rd, 4th? This one I know far more people getting it than the previous year. It's not surprising though considering no one wear masks anymore and congregate in masses.
I’m also guessing vaccines are giving a false sense of security for those who have them. If you got it in the first round or 2, it has faded by now if you haven’t received the booster.
agreed...and I'm wondering now if I was at risk because of taking the J&J in March. I probably should have gotten a booster in June instead of October.
Yes but I'm not sure a J and J booster is any less effective. I think the J shot was less effective because it was only one dose and now they believe it should have been two. So in theory a booster of J should be just as good as the others since they are all one shot, smaller dose.
This wave, what is it, 3rd, 4th? This one I know far more people getting it than the previous year. It's not surprising though considering no one wear masks anymore and congregate in masses.
I’m also guessing vaccines are giving a false sense of security for those who have them. If you got it in the first round or 2, it has faded by now if you haven’t received the booster.
I think that is a large part of the reason we are seeing spikes again. Several people I know that have had Covid recently are ones that have procrastinated getting the booster. Still, since they had the prior rounds, they don’t seem to be getting severe cases. I think the waning antibodies mixed with booster hesitantly is a major issue. Those that were on the fence about the initial vaccines, but still followed through, are complacently not getting boosters. Not sure if is denial, burnout, or? There is very little masking going on around here or any safety precautions for that matter, so I was not hesitant in the least to get the booster.
Just like Ontario. The fat premier botched about wanting some travel ban a few weeks ago but did fuck else…then all of a sudden these overpaid clowns are in full panic…
Lmfao.
they are trying to cover their incompetence for underfunding and poorly managing our healthcare system…
here a suggestion mandate vaccines in order to go have a job…simple. Employers are expected to act in the best interest of their employees and are expected to provide a safe work environment…this should include vaccines.
This wave, what is it, 3rd, 4th? This one I know far more people getting it than the previous year. It's not surprising though considering no one wear masks anymore and congregate in masses.
I’m also guessing vaccines are giving a false sense of security for those who have them. If you got it in the first round or 2, it has faded by now if you haven’t received the booster.
agreed...and I'm wondering now if I was at risk because of taking the J&J in March. I probably should have gotten a booster in June instead of October.
Yes but I'm not sure a J and J booster is any less effective. I think the J shot was less effective because it was only one dose and now they believe it should have been two. So in theory a booster of J should be just as good as the others since they are all one shot, smaller dose.
we got the moderna booster only because some news came out stating that J&J followed by Moderna resulted in slightly higher protection.
But yeah....people are hesitating to get the booster for whatever reason and we are seeing the result
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Chicago; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
We are about 2 or 3 weeks ahead of usa on this. Its unbelievable how many and how fast this is happening . Within days whole families positive. My family so far are mainly vaxxed and mild to moderate. But now some elders are getting positive . I will keep you posted of severity. But o thought delta spread fast . This is so much faster
brixton 93
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
I love how these clowns running the show ask people like me (who have done everything I was asked to do) to keep doing more…here is a fucking idea…remove the unvaccinated assholes from as much of society as possible…if those fuckers lose their jobs and end up in a box in an alley…that’s freedom…that’s their choice.
Give Peas A Chance…
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 36,382
edited December 2021
so my doctors practice owner said at 6 months immunity levels drop to roughly 60%.
so logic says at 3 months, that would put levels at roughly 75% or so....
and single dose j&j has shown less effective than a 2 dose regimen. iirc their reasoning for single dose when they did was get it out sooner and that 2 dose studies were continuing after the emerg use approval for one.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
I'd say thats an understatement. Its serious here. Not in way of severity but its spreading so so fast its uncontainable now already. In 1 week its gone from 200 cases of omicron to every fucker has it . And i mean everyone knows someone with it. No need for panic but be prepared for unstoppable spread.
brixton 93
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
Experts in Germany say we're unprepared for the inevitable: Hundreds of thousands of omicron infections per day. That is how infectious the new variant is.
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
Experts in Germany say we're unprepared for the inevitable: Hundreds of thousands of omicron infections per day. That is how infectious the new variant is.
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
I dodged a Covid bullet. I was supposed to go to my friend's apartment on Sunday night to order food and watch the Succession finale. I ended up doing several hours of work, and was not that motivated to go out. I asked him if we could postpone getting together, which we did. Monday morning he called me and said that he woke up with a slight fever and body aches. His rapid test came back positive, and he just got his positive PCR results. He is fully vaxxed, but not boosted yet. He is starting to feel better today. His main symptoms were low fever (around 100.5), body aches, sore throat, and fatigue. He said it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be in terms of his symptoms - he said it felt like a milder case of the flu - likely because he is vaxxed. I haven't seen him since before Thanksgiving, and am glad I did not go over to his place on Sunday. I already have my booster - but who know what would have happened had I gone over there. I think with Omicron we may all end up getting it at some point. I am going to look at the glass as being half full and hope that this will mainly be mild cases - which could lead to more herd immunity.
Experts in Germany say we're unprepared for the inevitable: Hundreds of thousands of omicron infections per day. That is how infectious the new variant is.
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
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mickeyrat
up my ass, like Chadwick was up his Posts: 36,382
meanwhile in the land of guns and freedumb, I plan a walk in on dec 23rd at the same location as my 2 dose sticks......
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
so my doctors practice owner said at 6 months immunity levels drop to roughly 60%.
so logic says at 3 months, that would put levels at roughly 75% or so....
and single dose j&j has shown less effective than a 2 dose regimen. iirc their reasoning for single dose when they did was get it out sooner and that 2 dose studies were continuing after the emerg use approval for one.
I wouldn’t think so. I don’t think the effectiveness drops off in a linear scale. I would guess stays at max effectiveness for a few months then tapers faster the longer put you are.
we've heard the doom and gloom before. the imminent collapse of health care, etc etc. while of course that's certainly a possibility, it's by no means certain. just be vigilant, get your boosters, and don't be an idiot.
Experts in Germany say we're unprepared for the inevitable: Hundreds of thousands of omicron infections per day. That is how infectious the new variant is.
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
Experts in Germany say we're unprepared for the inevitable: Hundreds of thousands of omicron infections per day. That is how infectious the new variant is.
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
Comments
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Chicago; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
Lmfao.
they are trying to cover their incompetence for underfunding and poorly managing our healthcare system…
here a suggestion mandate vaccines in order to go have a job…simple. Employers are expected to act in the best interest of their employees and are expected to provide a safe work environment…this should include vaccines.
But yeah....people are hesitating to get the booster for whatever reason and we are seeing the result
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Chicago; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
astoria 06
albany 06
hartford 06
reading 06
barcelona 06
paris 06
wembley 07
dusseldorf 07
nijmegen 07
this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
COVID: Omicron is unstoppable now
So, that's that: It won't be a Merry Christmas after all.
It's only a matter of time before we're hit by the full force of omicron infections — a case of, "not if, but when." And that when won't take long. That's what three of Germany's top researchers said during a virtual nationwide press briefing Wednesday (15.12.2021).
Christoph Neumann-Haefelin , an immunologist at the University Medical Center Freiburg, said omicron will likely become the dominant variant of the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, by mid-January — superseding the delta variant, which until now has been one of the most infectious strains since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Neumann-Haefelin predicts that infection rates will shoot up dramatically — possibly to hundreds of thousands per day.
Coronavirus
That dark prognosis is based on international data that German researchers have been studying. Take for instance the United Kingdom, where omicron infection rates are doubling every two to three days.
Dirk Brockmann , a physicist at Humboldt University of Berlin, says that's a factor of three-to-four-times higher than infection rates with previous variants.
Experts in the UK estimate new omicron infections could shoot up to as many as 400,000-to-700,000 cases per day.
They think it's possible that 20-34 million people could become infected with omicron between now (December 2021) and April 2022 — that's about half of the UK population — despite reinforced rules on social distancing, medical masks, school closures and more.
"I'd be surprised if we didn't see a similar situation here in Germany," said Brockmann.
Governments must act now
Brockmann says politicians have to act immediately, setting up emergency plans for a range of scenarios and then putting them into action.
"We have to slow the spread of the virus to limit the damage," according to Brockmann. But, he admits, it will be impossible to stop it outright.
Germany's experts say communities will have to reduce social contacts and people's movements drastically, similar to what they did in the very first lockdowns.
"But we'll have to do a whole lot more given the speed with which this variant is spreading," Brockmann said.
At risk even if you're boosted
Omicron is not only more infectious than other variants of the coronavirus, it can also evade our human immune responses — what experts call "immune escape."
That means people who are double jabbed and even those who have had booster shots, can still get infected.
A booster jab will pump up your protection to 70-75% and it will also reduce your risk of a severe infection but that could also lend you a false sense of security, said Sandra Ciesek , director of the Institute of Medical Virology at the University Hospital Frankfurt.
Ciesek said while it was important to get the unvaccinated vaccinated, first jabs would not be enough to fight off omicron.
"It takes many weeks for the immune system to develop a defense," she said. "The virus moves faster than that."
Omicron more dangerous than people think
Ciesek went on to say that omicron was likely to be just as dangerous as other variants of the virus — despite some reports suggesting it may only cause mild infections.
Initial data from the UK and Denmark show that hospitalization rates for people infected with omicron are not much different from those infected with the delta variant.
At the start of the omicron wave, reports from South Africa gave hope that the variant was less dangerous than delta, as many people there experienced only mild infections.
But since then, an increasing number of people infected with omicron have had to be hospitalized. The UK was the first country to report a death with omicron.
Ciesek said it was hard to compare the European situation with that in South Africa, where the population is on average younger, and where many people have had a previous coronavirus infection.
Health systems may collapse
Experts also warn that if infection rates continue to rise dramatically, health systems may well collapse.
Take, for example, the UK again: Estimated hospitalizations of between 3-5,000 people would put a strain on the "entire machinery," said Brockmann.
Many hospitals are struggling as it is and they won't be able to accept many more patients, especially as more patients mean higher risk of medical personnel getting infected as well.
Brockmann said we could see a cascade of effects, not all of them predictable. So researchers are calling on politicians to act decisively — "Time is running out," said Brockmann.
Ciesek, too, said she felt that Germany was ill-prepared, adding that she was very concerned about the situation.
Granted, these are worst-case scenarios but the three experts agreed it won't be enough to just hope omicron shows itself to be less dangerous than other variants.
Neumann-Haefelin said such wishful thinking would be akin to "walking into a catastrophe with open eyes."
https://m.dw.com/en/covid-omicron-is-unstoppable-now/a-60148548
There are no kings inside the gates of eden
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
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You were probably on the "just a flu" bus at the beginning of this pandemic.
I will continue to listen to the experts. No fear here, just prepared.