Omikron is the dominant variant in Ticino
It’s official in Ticino: Omikron is now the “predominant variant”. The canton doctor Giorgio Merlani told the Italian-speaking radio RSI. “The scientific data have aroused strong suspicions of the so-called immune evasion, i.e. the ability of the virus to implant itself in people who have been vaccinated,” says Merlani. “Now we have concrete evidence.”
Within a family, an infected person would often infect other members – even if they are vaccinated. Anyone who has not yet received a booster dose must therefore be quarantined if they have close contact with a person who has tested positive.
The good news is that the booster is working. Because for those who have received the booster vaccination, the situation is changing. “This is because this additional dose increases the rate of antibodies, which reduces the risk,” says Merlani.
Rapid development in Ticino, Geneva and Zurich
According to the radio report, 51 percent of the sequenced corona tests in Ticino were Omicron cases last week. On Wednesday the value rose to 85 percent.
According to Gladys Martinetti Lucchini from the laboratory of the cantonal authority, Eolab, Ticino is one of the cantons where Omikron is expanding the fastest. The case is similar in Geneva and Zurich, but genomic sequencing is carried out more frequently than in the rest of Switzerland. (gbl)