The cases of COVID-19 Omicron variant have been detected in 89 countries and the variant is doubling every 1.5 to 3 days, said the World Health Organization.
It said Saturday that the cases are spreading in places with community transmission and not just infections acquired abroad.
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The WHO however said that it remains unclear if the rapid growth of Omicron cases is “because the variant evades existing immunity, is inherently more transmissible than previous variants, or a combination of both.”
The health agency said that other major questions about omicron remain unanswered, including how effective “each of the existing Covid-19 vaccines are against it.”
“Conclusive data also does not exist yet on how ill omicron makes COVID-19 patients.” (AW)
