Recent research data show that the omicron strain has become easier for other variants of the coronavirus to enter the human body through the mucous membrane of the eye. This was told to Lente.ru by an ophthalmologist, doctor of medical sciences, expert of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection Tatyana Shilova, commenting on the words of geneticist Andrei Isaev about the appearance of a “gate” for the penetration of omicron into the body.
“Recent data suggests that omicron is more contagious in terms of the mucous membrane of the eye,” Shilova said.
At the same time, she stressed that information about the ability of coronavirus to enter the body through the mucous membrane of the organs of vision appeared at the very beginning of the pandemic. At the same time, the first recommendations arose to wash hands and not touch eyes.
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At the same time, the omicron does not have any special mechanisms that facilitate infection through the visual organs, Shilova noted. Its ability to overcome the mucous membrane of the eye is primarily associated with a general increase in infectivity.
In addition, Shilova stated that there is no direct correlation between the route of infection and the overall severity of the disease. “It’s just a way to get in. At the beginning of the pandemic, there were figures of five to seven percent attributable to infections through the membrane of the eyes, ”added the ophthalmologist.
Earlier, geneticist Andrey Isaev called the eyes a “gateway” for the omicron strain. According to him, a new version of the coronavirus has become more likely to infect through the visual organs. The first symptom of such infections is conjunctivitis, he added.
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