Can ‘Omicron’ Covid Variant Be Detected Using PCR Testing? WHO Says…

While PCR tests can descry infection with Omicron, studies are looking to whether the Covid-19 variant of concern has any impact on other test types, the WHO said Sunday. 

“The extensively- used PCR tests continue to descry infection, including infection with Omicron, as we’ve seen with other variants,”the World Health Organization said in an update on what’s known so far about the new variant. 

” Studies are ongoing to determine whether there’s any impact on other types of tests, including rapid-fire antigen discovery tests.”

 The WHO on Friday declared Omicron, first detected before this month in southern Africa, to be a variant of concern. 

 The bracket put Omicron into the most disquieting order of Covid-19 variants, along with the encyclopedically dominant Delta, and its weaker rivals Nascence, Beta and Gamma. 

 Omicron spread across the globe on Sunday, shutting borders and renewing checks as the EU chief said governments faced a” race against time”to understand the strain. 

 The variant has cast mistrustfulness on global sweats to battle the epidemic due to fears that it’s largely contagious, forcing countries to reimpose measures numerous had hoped were a thing of the history. 

 In its update, the WHO said it was”not yet clear”whether Omicron spreads more fluently from person to person, or whether infection with the variant causes more severe complaint compared to other strains. 

“There’s presently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those from other variants,”the UN health agency said. 

 While primary substantiation suggests there may be an increased threat of people who preliminarily had Covid being reinfected with Omicron, information is presently limited. 

The WHO said it was working to understand the implicit impact of the variant on beingcounter-measures, including vaccines. 

 As for treatments, the organisation said corticosteroids and IL6 receptor blockers would still be effective for managing cases with severe Covid-19– while other treatments would be assessed to see if they’re still as effective against Omicron. 

The WHO has said studies into colorful aspects of the new variant would take several weeks to reach conclusions. 

“WHO is coordinating with a large number of experimenters around the world to more understand Omicron,”it said.