The<unk>  variant (B.1.1.529) is a variant of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) that was first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) from South Africa on 24 November 2021.<unk>  multiplies around 70 times faster than the Delta variant in the bronchi (lung airways) but evidence suggests it is less severe than previous strains, especially compared to the Delta variant.<unk>  might be less able to penetrate deep lung tissue.<unk>  infections are 91 percent less fatal than the delta variant, with 51 percent less risk of hospitalization. However, the estimated difference in the intrinsic risk of hospitalization largely decreases to 0–30 percent when reinfections are excluded. Overall, the extremely high rate of spread, combined with its ability to evade both double vaccination and the body's immune system, means the total number of patients requiring hospital care at any given time is still of great concern. Vaccines continue to provide protection against severe disease and hospitalisation especially after a third dose of an mRNA vaccine is given. Early figures suggest that double vaccination offers 30 to 40 percent protection against infection and around 70 percent protection against hospitalization. A recent third vaccine dose boosts effectiveness against infection to around 75 percent, and 88 percent for severe disease. __TOC__
SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant
SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant
SARS-CoV-2 Epsilon variant
SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant
SARS-CoV-2 Gamma variant
SARS-CoV-2 Eta variant
SARS-CoV-2 Lambda variant
SARS-CoV-2 Mu variant