High infection pressure, omicron subtype increases

The number of corona cases in Germany is declining. If you take a closer look, something new is already building up below the falling wave of the Omicron sub-variant BA.1.

Berlin – Despite the peak of the omicron wave, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) continues to see a very high infection pressure in the population.

This is also shown by the continued high proportion of positive PCR tests, writes the authority in its weekly report. This was the case with almost every second such test last week. The report assumes that an estimated 1.4 to 2.3 million people in Germany contracted acute respiratory symptoms from Covid-19 last week. In this context, the RKI calculates around 380,000 doctor visits.

Omicron subvariants

As analyzes of virus variants show, the omicron sub-variant BA.2, which is probably even easier to transmit, is continuously spreading in Germany. According to the most recent available data for the week ended February 13, the proportion of BA.2 in a sample of positive findings was just under 24 percent, according to the report. The development in the weeks before went from 5 to 11 to 16 percent. Modelers expect the trend to continue.

In a report published on Wednesday, a team from the TU Berlin wrote that the number of infections was expected to increase again from the end of February because of BA.2. Reference was also made to developments in Denmark. Because BA.2 is easier to transfer, “a significantly slower decrease or renewed increase in the number of cases cannot be ruled out,” says the RKI. The further development also depends heavily on the development of contacts as part of the planned easing.

In Germany, the omicron subvariant BA.1 has so far dominated. Their share is declining in the RKI evaluations and is now 75 percent. “In populations with high immunity from vaccinations or previous infections, no differences in the severity of the diseases were found between BA.1 and BA.2,” says the weekly report.

In addition, the report shows that Omikron is increasingly reaching older people: “While the seven-day incidences fell in all age groups up to 69 years of age, there was a further increase in those aged 70 and over in the past week,” says it. There are also increasing outbreaks in old people’s and nursing homes. However, the level here is significantly lower this winter than last.

In schools, on the other hand, outbreak reports in the wake of the omicron wave have risen to peak values ​​since the beginning of the pandemic, the report shows. The maximum value was therefore reached in the third week of January, with 1089 outbreaks reported so far. In children and adolescents from 5 to 14 years, the number of infections recorded is still by far the highest among all age groups. “The high number of outbreaks can be related to the omicron variant, which has been circulating dominantly since 2022, the temporarily expanded test activities and the differently well-established protection concepts in the school setting,” the RKI explains. dpa