WHO Warning: Next COVID-19 Variant Could Be More Infectious, Deadlier

New Delhi: Omicron is not the end of COVID-19. Experts have warned that the next variant will be more transmissible, and perhaps, more deadly than its predecessors.

In a recent press briefing, World Health Organisation (WHO) epidemiologist and technical lead on Covid-19 Dr Maria Van Kerkhove said that the pandemic is far from over and future variants will be in some way more virulent than Omicron is now.

“The next variant of concern will be more fit, and what we mean by that is it will be more transmissible because it will have to overtake what is currently circulating. The big question is whether or not future variants will be more or less severe,” Dr Van Kerkhove said.

She warned that the next variant could more easily evade immunity, rendering vaccines less effective. However, she doubled down on the imperativeness of getting the jab as it protects against severe illness and death, as exhibited during the Omicron wave.

“We expect that with the right interventions, the circulation of COVID-19 will be low. But even within those circulations, there will be flare-ups among people who are not protected by the vaccine or those who have waning immunity,” added Dr Van Kerkhove.

There is hope

The silver lining is a study conducted at Steve Biko Academic Hospital Complex in South Africa. It offers a possibility of COVID-19 ending in the near future.

“Omicron may be a harbinger of the end of the epidemic phase of the Covid pandemic, ushering in its endemic phase,” researchers suggested based on the result of the study.

These studies are, however, only indicative and conditional to the emergence of new variants.