Omicron responsible for 31% ICU cases in Karnataka

Preliminary findings reveal the variant may not be mild as expected

For much of the third wave, the Delta variant of the novel coronavirus was responsible for nearly all cases of disease severity. However, an ongoing preliminary study has determined that Omicron, too, could be causing people to turn gravely ill.

On Sunday, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had issued orders to all private and government hospitals to start subjecting their ICU cases to ‘S’ Gene Target Failure (SGTF) testing to determine how many are suffering from Omicron.

Also Read | Karnataka logs 16,436 new Covid cases, 60 deaths

Out of the 28 such samples from ICU cases given to the BBMP so far, officials were surprised to discover that 31% (or nine cases) actually had Omicron, according to Dr Thrilok Chandra, BBMP Special Commissioner (Health).

“We are now trying to find out why this is so. We are looking into seeing if they are vaccinated or not. This information is pending,” Dr Chandra said.

RT-PCR kits use a combination of two or more primers to target the nucleic acid of the virus at two more genes or sites. The novel coronavirus has several genes: M, N, E, ORF1a, Orf1b, and S, which encodes the spike protein, the virus’ protruded area that helps it enter the human body.

However, Omicron’s spike protein is severely mutated. Kits that use a primer code to detect the S-gene will deliver a negative result, which is an indication that the positive test subject has been infected with the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Dr A S Balasundar, Chief Health Officer, BBMP, added that the preliminary findings fly in the face of expectations that Omicron is mild. “However, the rate of hospitalisations has been low, with less than 2%,” he said.

The information on many of these Omicron cases is sketchy. But in the case of one person, Dr Balasundar said details are available.

This individual is an accident victim with head trauma. He is actually in coma. For whatever reason, he was tested and was found to be positive. In this particular case, the finding of Covid is incidental.

“We do not yet know if the other cases are like this. We will find out more in the next week or so when more samples come in. At the moment, we cannot come to any specific conclusion,” Dr Balasundar said.

Check out DH's latest videos: