Zitat:
Discussion
Since mid-December, 2021, most new SARS-CoV-2 cases in England have been caused by the omicron variant. Our results suggest that confirmed omicron cases had a 59% lower risk of hospital admission, a 44% lower risk of any hospital attendance, and a 69% lower risk of death than that of confirmed delta cases. We found strong evidence of age-dependence in the magnitude of this risk reduction. In those over 20 years of age, we estimate a significant reduction in the risk of hospitalisation for omicron compared with delta. In cases aged 50 years and above, the estimated reduction in the risk of hospitalisation is 50–75%, depending on the endpoint examined. The magnitude of severity reduction is lower for those older than 80 years, but still over 50% for most endpoints. In individuals aged 0–9 years with a confirmed infection, for whom the risk of disease sufficiently severe to result in death is very low, we estimate that the risk of hospitalisation from omicron infection is not significantly different from that of delta infection.