WHO Warns Against Omicron Sub-Variant As BA.2 Cases Rise In Denmark And UK

WHO on Omicron: WHO said an increase in the number of Omicron sublineage BA.2 cases were being witnessed across the world.

The Omicron variant led to the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic (Getty Images)

New Delhi: Even though Omicron cases are on the decline across the world, the World health Organisation (WHO) has raised concern over the BA.2 sub-strain of the Omicron variant.

Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's Covid-19 technical lead, said at a recent briefing that an increase in the number of sublineage BA.2 cases were being witnessed across the world.

In the last week alone, almost 75,000 deaths from #COVID19 were reported to WHO.

Dr @mvankerkhove elaborates on Omicron and its sub-lineages transmission and severity ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/w53Z25npx2

— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) February 17, 2022

The video of the briefing was posted on Twitter by the WHO. Kerkhove said it was incredible to see "how fast the Omicron has taken over Delta".

"The virus is evolving and Omicron has several sub-lineages that we are tracking. We have BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2 and BA.3. We are seeing an increase in proportion of sequences of BA.2," she said.

What Is BA.2 Sub-Variant Of Omicron?

The WHO offical said BA.2 was more tranmsissible than BA.1. "Now, among all subvariants, BA.2 is more transmissible than BA.1. However, there is no difference in terms of severity," Kerkhove said.

The BA.2 sub-variant of Omicron has been detected in multiple countries such as Denmark and the UK. It now accounts for roughly one in five new Omicron cases recorded across the world, the WHO said.

A yet-to-be peer-reviewed study, posted on BioRxiv, said the BA.2 sub-variant was not only faster at spreading, but might also cause more severe disease.

It has been found that BA.2 may have features that make it as capable of causing serious illness as older coronavirus variants.

Kerkhove cautioned that Omicron was not mild but less severe than Delta and should not be taken lightly. 

"We are still seeing significant numbers of hospitaliations of Omicron. We are seeing significant numbers of deaths. It is not the common cold, it is not influenza," she said.

The WHO said that almost 75,000 deaths from Covid-19 were reported last week.