The number of cases of the Ómicron variant in Portugal rises to 14
Portugal now has 14 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, considered of concern, announced this Wednesday the European Center for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC), speaking of a total of 59 people infected with this strain in Europe .
In an epidemiological update published in the early afternoon, which is based on data provided to ECDC by the Member States of the European Union and European Economic Area (EU / EEA) until 12:00 (Brussels time, minus one in Portugal), this European agency reports that “15 additional cases of the Omicron variant of concern have been confirmed, bringing the total to 59”.
Specifically, “cases were reported by 11 EU/EEA countries: Austria (3), Belgium (2), Czech Republic (1), Denmark (4), France (1, in Réunion), Germany (9), Italy (4), the Netherlands (16), Portugal (14), Spain (2), and Sweden (3), according to information from public sources, “according to the ECDC.
This means that Portugal, now with 14 cases of the Ómicron strain, is the second country in the EU / EEA with more cases.
The European center explains that “the majority of confirmed cases have a history of travel to southern African countries, with some flights connecting to other destinations between Africa and Europe”.
In addition, “all the cases for which there is information available on severity were asymptomatic or mild”, highlights the European body, stressing that, “to date, no serious cases or deaths have been reported among these cases”.
To these are added “several probable cases from across the region, but they are still under investigation”, concludes the ECDC.
Outside the EU/EEA, 12 cases were detected in territories such as Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, according to the same epidemiological update from the center of Europe.