Of the new cases, 625 were confirmed and 218 were probable. When I think about things that keep me up at night, it's the next wave of the delta variant. A day after the omicron variant of the coronavirus was confirmed in the Houston area, the Austin area's top public health official said it is likely that omicron will soon be confirmed in other counties in the state.. For the previous 14-day period, the average was 130. Early data suggests that omicron is less severe than the delta variant, but is much more transmissible. All adults should remain up to date with recommended COVID-19 vaccination to prevent critical outcomes of COVID-19. Additional reporting by Houston Public Medias Matt Harab. Here's what our leaders and doctors know: Omicron has been labeled a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization. The high positivity rates haven't yet translated into more deaths or dramatic numbers of hospitalizations in Texas, but some states that saw a surge in COVID-19 cases in November and early December are near or have surpassed record hospitalizations from the virus. World rushes to learn more as new Follow the latest updates on All authors have completed and submitted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. Questions or messages regarding errors in formatting should be addressed to
Scientists are learning more about the variant everyday Among monovalent-vaccinated patients, the median interval from receipt of last dose to illness onset was 248 days (IQR=138378 days) (Table 2). Over the past week, Parklands COVID-related hospital admissions have nearly doubled with most of the patients being unvaccinated. Effectiveness of Monovalent mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination in Preventing COVID-19Associated Invasive Mechanical Ventilation and Death Among Immunocompetent Adults During the Omicron Variant Period IVY Network, 19 U.S. States, February 1, 2022January 31, 2023. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff says it's unclear how destructive this variant can be towards the community and hope it doesn't cause another coronavirus peak. The best way to prevent severe illness from any variant of COVID-19 and avoid overwhelming the states medical resources, said Shuford, remains vaccinating as much of the states eligible population as possible. Come on folks! said Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley. The sharp increase in positive cases has been at a level most communities had not yet seen in the pandemic, including in the Houston area, where they went from several hundred two weeks ago, to more than 5,000 average daily cases, according to Dr. Esmaeil Porsa, president and CEO of Harris Health System. Delta's been the king of all variants. Michael D. Williams is a reporter covering breaking news for The Dallas Morning News. The agency speculates that these are omicron cases, due to how quickly the virus is spreading but how mild the cases are. Surging COVID-19 infections have already impacted holiday travel. Adit A. Ginde reports receiving grants from NIH, DoD, AbbVie, and Faron Pharmaceuticals, outside the submitted work. The latest developments highlight the urgent need for vaccinations and booster shots ahead of the Christmas holiday. Given the increase we are seeing in omicron, we could very possibly be at 100 percent omicron by January, said Dr. Wesley Long, medical director of diagnostic microbiology at Houston Methodist. But U.S. health officials said Sunday that while the omicron variant is rapidly spreading throughout the country,early indications suggest it may be less dangerous than delta, which continues to drive a surge of hospitalizations. Dr. Peter Hotez, epidemiologist with Baylor College of Medicine, said omicron is a variant of concern. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2022;71:143641. World rushes to learn more as new omicron cases pop According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, its the same statewide. 1National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, CDC; 2Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee; 3Baylor Scott & White Health, Temple, Texas; 4Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Temple, Texas; 5Baylor Scott & White Health, Dallas, Texas; 6University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado; 7University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa; 8Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, Winston-Salem, North Carolina; 9Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland; 10Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota; 11Montefiore Healthcare Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, New York; 12University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington; 13Baystate Medical Center, Springfield, Massachusetts; 14Intermountain Medical Center and University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah; 15University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, Michigan; 16Oregon Health & Science University Hospital, Portland, Oregon; 17Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia; 18Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio; 19Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California; 20Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, California; 21University of Miami, Miami, Florida; 22Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri; 23The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio; 24University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan; 25Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts; 26Henry Ford Health, Detroit, Michigan; 27Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut. "They are going up but they are not going up proportionally to the number of cases.". Updated: 10:06 PM CST December 6, 2021 HARRIS COUNTY, Texas A woman in her 40s has tested positive for the omicron variant of COVID-19, according to As concerns with the omicron variant rise, so too has the demand for COVID-19 testing. ACROSS TEXAS The omicron variant has overtaken the delta coronavirus variant, including in Region 6 Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and We are interested in disease severity," Walensky said. Health officials worry holiday gatherings and travel could lead to the spread of the omicron variant. To find a list of pop-up clinics, visit sanantonio.gov or call 3-1-1 and select option 8. The increasing number of cases in the community have also impacted the state's elder care and Texas' criminal justice facilities, where infected staff and visitors can transmit the virus into areas where people often live more closely. ABC Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Jen Ashton spoke with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky about the new variant and what doctors are hoping to discover. Before joining the staff, she reported for the Chicago Tribune and KTSM, the NBC affiliate in El Paso. If you want to plan the perfect spring picnic, food and drink are important, but its certainly not the only factor to consider. She also stressed other public health precautions proven to work since the onset of the pandemic last year, such as social distancing, wearing masks in crowded spaces, getting tested for the virus before attending holiday gatherings, and regular hand washing. Report from a meeting of the World Health Organization. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, omicron accounted for approximately 25 percent of cases state-wide the week of December 11. Bowling says it remains to be seen whether or not Omicron will overtake Delta in the U.S. Among immunocompetent adults aged 18 years admitted to 24 hospitals in the IVY Network in 19 U.S. states, receipt of 24 monovalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine doses provided substantial protection against COVID-19associated IMV and in-hospital death during the Omicron variant period. "The difference with this surge is because this is so infectious and everyone is getting sick, everyone is calling out sick," McDeavitt said. VE was calculated as (1 adjusted odds ratio) x 100%. Within each interval since receipt of last monovalent dose, VE estimates did not differ significantly by number of doses received. The daily average of positive cases in the Texas Medical Center more than tripled last week, from 232 to 721, and Houston Methodist on Tuesday recorded nearly five times the number of positive cases in its system compared to the previous week. Jacob notes that one in three residents in the city are not yet fully vaccinated. Effectiveness of mRNA vaccination in preventing COVID-19associated invasive mechanical ventilation and deathUnited States, March 2021January 2022. Results of genetic sequencing this week showed that the infection was caused by the Omicron variant strain. If you were at last week's UTSA game, that means roughly 10,000 people in that building were likely unvaccinated. They reported mild symptoms. COVID data tracker: demographic trends of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the US reported to CDC. You can review and change the way we collect information below. According to the latest CDC guidance, some groups should get a booster, and some groups may get a booster based on their individual risks. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Among 362 case-patients with IMV or in-hospital death, 146 (40%) were unvaccinated, 216 (60%) were monovalent-vaccinated, 293 (81%) received IMV, and 156 (43%) died in the hospital within 28 days of admission. XBB.1.16 dubbed Arcturus on social media is another descendant of omicron. It was first detected in early January and the majority of cases have been seen There's been a surge in coronavirus testing as the omicron variant takes hold in North Texas. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. Dec. 6, 2021 The first known Texas case of the COVID-19 B.1.1.529 variant has been identified in a resident of Harris County. Harris County's new COVID threat levels will focus on new cases, not hospitalizations, As Texas kids return to school, routine vaccination rates still haven't recovered from the pandemic, Inside a Houston brain bank, researchers explore drug addiction, Texas Childrens ER visits spike for kids in mental health crisis, Houston event to address lack of diversity in clinical trials, MD Anderson to use AI to develop cancer drugs. Bowling says it's not a question of if it will hit the U.S., but when. Will it overtake delta here in Texas? XBB.1.16, or arcturus, was responsible for nearly 12% of new COVID-19 cases this week up from 7% of infections last week and nearly 5% the week before Some workers at a Far North Dallas testing site quit their jobs out of exhaustion, KDFW-TV (FOX4) reported. He notes it's also important to get the booster vaccine to optimize immunity. Dr. Robert Rogers, past president of the Tarrant County Medical Society, says even though omicron spreads fast, it seems to pack less of a punch than feared. You've got to protect yourself and protect other people at the same time. So I think that's one to keep things in perspective. Jennifer DeCuir, MD, PhD1,*; Diya Surie, MD1,*; Yuwei Zhu, MD2; Manjusha Gaglani, MBBS3,4,5; Adit A. Ginde, MD6; David J. Douin, MD6; H. Keipp Talbot, MD2; Jonathan D. Casey, MD2; Nicholas M. Mohr, MD7; Tresa McNeal, MD3,4; Shekhar Ghamande, MD3,4; Kevin W. Gibbs, MD8; D. Clark Files, MD8; David N. Hager, MD, PhD9; Minh Phan, MS9; Matthew E. Prekker, MD10; Michelle N. Gong, MD11; Amira Mohamed, MD11; Nicholas J. Johnson, MD12; Jay S. Steingrub, MD13; Ithan D. Peltan, MD14; Samuel M. Brown, MD14; Emily T. Martin, PhD15; Arnold S. Monto, MD15; Akram Khan, MD16; William S. Bender, MD17; Abhijit Duggal, MD18; Jennifer G. Wilson, MD19; Nida Qadir, MD20; Steven Y. Chang, MD, PhD20; Christopher Mallow, MD21; Jennie H. Kwon, DO22; Matthew C. Exline, MD23; Adam S. Lauring, MD, PhD24; Nathan I. Shapiro, MD25; Cristie Columbus, MD4,5; Robert Gottlieb, MD, PhD4,5; Ivana A. Vaughn, PhD26; Mayur Ramesh, MD26; Lois E. Lamerato, MD26; Basmah Safdar, MD27; Natasha Halasa, MD2; James D. Chappell, MD, PhD2; Carlos G. Grijalva, MD2; Adrienne Baughman2; Kelsey N. Womack, PhD2; Jillian P. Rhoads, PhD2; Kimberly W. Hart, MA2; Sydney A. Swan, MPH2; Nathaniel Lewis, PhD1; Meredith L. McMorrow, MD1,; Wesley H. Self, MD2,; IVY Network (View author affiliations). Wednesday, Wise Health System, the only hospital in the county, reported that its Medsurge/ICU units were at 100% capacity. However, the COVID expert placed it as his second biggest concern, behind the continuing delta wave in Texas. It has now been detected in all but 17 states and accounts for 2.9 percent of the countrys cases, a jump from 0.4 percent last week. Texas surfer pushed offshore by strong winds rescued by Coast Guard Tornado flips cars, downs trees after touching down in South Florida Shaquil Barrett's 2 Ayass Bioscience Vice President and Principal Scientist Dr. Lina Abi Mosleh said they process about 1,500 COVID-19 PCR tests for more than 30 area doctors, urgent care clinics and hospitals every day. Tarrant County Public Health later confirmed this information to NBC 5. Texas health officials are ramping up efforts to identify and track cases of the COVID-19 omicron variant, which was confirmed in Harris County on Monday. Abhijit Duggal reports grants from NIH/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and consulting fees from Alung Technologies, outside the submitted work. Nearly three days after the storm hit, nearly 15,000 AEP Texas customers in Hidalgo County still are without electricity. The variant now makes up roughly 32 percent of cases in the hospital system, up from 13 percent on Saturday. About 60 percent of the country is fully vaccinated, of which 27 percent have received a booster dose, according to the CDC. Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. The investigation by EIS officials found that, from 2015 to 2021, Clark County averaged about four such cases a year. In Bexar County, a third of the population is unvaccinated with at least 78 percent with at least one dose, according to city leaders. It is now the dominant variant in the state and the Dallas-Fort Worth area as well, according to the scientists at UT Southwestern. The data is from Friday to Tuesday. Its just the magnitude of it and the duration thats in question.. Michelle N. Gong reports grants from NHLBI, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), speaking at medicine grand rounds at Yale and Westchester Medical College, travel support from the American Thoracic Society (ATS) and serving on the ATS board, DSMB membership fees from Regeneron and the Replenish Trial, and participating on the scientific advisory panel for Endpoint, outside the submitted work. The latest COVID-19 data available were Thursday totals as public health offices close for the holidays. Hall noted that the largest number of cases over the weekend came from prisons in Anderson and Fort Bend counties, which both have seen an increase in cases over the past two weeks. 3 Pl. The individual is a Lamoille County resident in their 30s. Its a younger population and their vaccination coverage looks different than ours.. Omicron variant is already in Texas and maybe spreading in communities, said Chief State Epidemiologist Dr. Jennifer Shuford. Patients were most commonly excluded because of receipt of a bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine dose (446 [23% of excluded patients]), receipt of a non-mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (392 [20%]), or receipt of only 1 monovalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine dose (260 [13%]). That total is about double most of the one-day case counts recorded last week. On Monday, Dec. 13, the University of Texas at Austin Health Services notified Austin Public Health (APH) of preliminary lab results indicating the presence of the COVID-19 omicron variant in three individuals in Austin-Travis County. Officials prepare for fast peaking of COVID-19 as the state, North Texas see an increase in cases, said this week that the variant accounted for 73% of new coronavirus infections, We cant imagine whats coming: Dallas sees uptick in COVID-19 testing heading into the holidays, Dallas Countys COVID-19 threat level will stay at orange. You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link. Genetic sequencing identified the new variant in a specimen collected on December 8, 2021. Omicron already accounts for 94% of new cases in Texas, experts say. The numbers bring the countys case total to 380,558, including 312,656 confirmed and 67,902 probable. Kevin W. Gibbs reports grants from NIH and DoD, as well as support for travel to the 2022 Military Health System Research Symposium from DoD, outside the submitted work. This is the first time since earlier this year that a variant, other than delta, has been detected by their scientists. part 46.102(l)(2), 21 C.F.R. All three had a Delta variant infection followed by [Omicron] BA.1 infection with intervals of 45, 68, and 83 days, " the authors wrote. Carlos G. Grijalva reports grants from NIH, AHRQ, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Campbell Alliance/Syneos Health; receipt of consulting fees from and participation on a DSMB for Merck, outside the submitted work. San Antonio leaders also held a news conference on Tuesday, November 30, reminding residents to stay vigilant and get vaccinated when it comes to new variants like Omicron. The current analysis expands on these findings by reporting monovalent mRNA COVID-19 VE against IMV and in-hospital death for a full year during the Omicron variant period. Updated: Dec 6, 2021 / 10:32 PM CST. The variant, which is now known to be more transmissible than delta and the original virus strain, has also led to the state's highest rate of positive cases with more than 1 in 5 COVID-19 tests reading positive. Demographic and clinical data, including receipt of IMV and in-hospital death within 28 days of admission, were collected through electronic medical record (EMR) review and patient or proxy interview. *** A total of 1,933 immunocompetent patients were excluded from the analysis for the following reasons (not mutually exclusive): illness onset occurred after hospital admission (82), patient enrolled >7 days after hospital admission (239), inability to obtain an upper respiratory sample for central laboratory testing among controls (149), SARS-CoV-2 test >3 days after hospital admission (33), SARS-CoV-2 testing indeterminate (65), case-patient received a positive influenza test result (21), control patient received a positive influenza test result (29), influenza testing indeterminate or not done (83), case-patient received a positive respiratory syncytial virus test result (27), verified and self-reported vaccination history missing so that vaccination status could not be assigned (57), non-mRNA vaccine received (392), partial vaccination (260), bivalent vaccination (446), received COVID-19 vaccines outside of CDC guidelines (144), last monovalent dose received <14 days before illness onset if primary series or <7 days before illness onset if booster (55), and withdrew (12). It was first detected in early January and the majority of cases have been seen in India so far. The numbers bring the countys overall case total to 424,077, including 357,430 confirmed and 66,647 probable. According to the state, 1,712,207 people in Dallas County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 1,468,071 59.7% of the countys population 5 and older are fully vaccinated. This conversion might result in character translation or format errors in the HTML version. Nearly 60 percent received both doses and 8.3 percent had the Omicron booster, per NMDOH. Traces of omicron are also being detected at a growing number of citys wastewater treatment plants. Vaccine 2022;40:351627. XBB.1.16 dubbed Arcturus on social media is another descendant of omicron. All rights reserved, Texas Man Kills 5 Neighbors After They Complained of Gunfire, Colin Allred to Challenge Ted Cruz for Senate, DMN Sources Say, Aerosmith Kicking Off Farewell Tour in September, One Dead, Standoff With Barricaded Person Ends in Kaufman County, Authorities Widen Dragnet for Suspect in Texas Shooting That Left 5 Dead, Post-Military Life Can be Challenging for Texas Veterans and Their FamiliesThese Resources Can Help. Kelli covers public safety and the Dallas Police Department for The Dallas Morning News. The original omicron variant, called BA.1, now represents only about 3% of cases in the United States, according to Centers for Disease Control data. Upstate New Yorks ongoing COVID-19 surge offered a case study in the rapid rise of a new subvariant, called BA.2.12.1, which is now poised to outcompete prior strains. County health director Philip Huang said on Tuesday that Dallas Countys COVID-19 threat level will stay at orange, but he called the rapid spread of the omicron variant very scary.. They are, however, growing more confident of an imminent swell of sickness. BURLINGTON, VT The Vermont Department of Health announced today it has confirmed the states first case of the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus. I just thought Id rather be safe than sorry, Thomas said. Again, it's about your family.". Conroe ISD secures campuses amid manhunt for alleged mass shooter, Houston Methodist Hospital confirms 9 omicron COVID-19 cases, Woman tests positive for omicron variant in NW Harris County, judge says, 8 of 39 Houston wastewater plants detect COVID omicron variant, How severe is omicron? But this more infectious variant is having a major impact on hospital staffing, said Dr. James McDeavitt, the executive vice president and dean of clinical affairs at Baylor College of Medicine. According to Shuford there is some encouraging news from South Africa that the omicron variant may cause less severe illness than previous variants, such as delta. GETTING VACCINATED: Houston hospitals see uptick in demand for booster shots as omicron spreads in Texas, Were going to have a wave. (Photo by Xie Chuanhui/VCG via Getty Images). These senior authors contributed equally to this report. Delta still currently accounts for more than 99 percent of cases of coronavirus that are genetically sequenced in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We've done a terrible job vaccinating the state of Texas.. Together, these results suggest maximal benefit of COVID-19 vaccination during the first 6 months after receipt, which should be considered along with trends in COVID-19 incidence and risk factors for severe disease when planning COVID-19 revaccination schedules. The original omicron variant, called BA.1, now represents only about 3% of cases in the United States, according to Centers for Disease Control data. Much remains unknown about Omicron, like its symptoms or whether it is more transmissible. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. Sect. It's the first case of the rapidly spreading strand of the virus identified in Texas. What are the implications for public health practice? Steven Y. Chang reports consulting fees from PureTech Health and Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals, and participation as a Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) member for a study at UCLA, outside the submitted work. Skarbinski J, Wood MS, Chervo TC, et al. Rodriguez, Beltron and Thomas each said finding a place to get tested was simple and easy. Other race, non-Hispanic includes American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander categories, which were combined because of small counts. "That number is closer to 98% for critical care, and around 60% for those on ventilators.". We need to be aware of it. According to Ayass Bioscience, the omicron variant has 60 mutations, with 30 on the spike protein, reportedly enhancing its ability to infect people. They run COVID samples through large machines, giving them a printout that reveals any differences in the genetic code. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. For the previous 14-day period, the average was 2,306. Rosenblum HG, Wallace M, Godfrey M, et al. WebJan. In Collin County, the average number of new daily cases in for the last two weeks is 252. Vaccine effectiveness (VE) against IMV and in-hospital death was 62% among adults aged 18 years and 69% among those aged 65 years. I mean, what could be worse than the fact that we've had 20,000 unvaccinated Texans since June 1 needlessly lose their lives out of vaccine defiance and refusal? Hotez said. During February 1, 2022January 31, 2023, a total of 6,354 immunocompetent control patients and COVID-19 case-patients with IMV or in-hospital death were enrolled in the IVY Network. Federal health officials said this week that the variant accounted for 73% of new coronavirus infections last week. In South Africa, Bowling says cases could be rising because it has about 25 percent of its population fully vaccinated. Joseph Leahy anchors morning newscasts for NPR's statewide public radio collaborative, Texas Newsroom. Patients were included in the analysis if they 1) received zero COVID-19 vaccines doses (unvaccinated) or 2) received 2, 3, or 4 monovalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine doses (monovalent-vaccinated), with the last dose received 14 days before illness onset for a primary series dose or 7 days before illness onset for a booster dose. Some experts offer cautious optimism despite the bleak outlook. On April 18, 2023, bivalent mRNA vaccines became the only mRNA COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the United States. Only 42% of adults aged 65 years have received a bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccine dose and are up to date with COVID-19 vaccination (1). In stratified analyses, VE appeared to correlate more closely with time since last dose than with total number of doses received. CDC. According to Ayass Bioscience in Frisco, genetic sequencing tests confirmed two cases in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex over the weekend. Here's how side effects compare to the original shots. "We are going to see outbreaks because when you have high levels of community spread in the surrounding community, you're going to have a positive case," Tilton said. That's more youth cases than the agency registered over the past nine months and the largest single-day positive rate since the summer of 2020. Earlier in the day, Houston Methodist Hospital confirmed nine cases of the variant. Logistic regression models for VE of 4 monovalent doses were restricted to patients aged 50 years admitted during April 5, 2022January 31, 2023, and were adjusted for continuous age. That's your choice. Bowling says it remains to be seen whether or not Omicron will overtake Delta in the U.S. Other includes patients who self-reported their race and ethnicity as Other and those for whom race and ethnicity were unknown. Within the next month, said Shuford, the scientific and medical communities should have a better understanding about omicrons transmissibility and potential for causing severe illness. "Things are changing rapidly again, Rogers said. The agency also recorded 23 positive cases among staff that weekend, including 10 at the McLennan County campus where all but one of the youth cases originated. Head coach, several players out at Albany Empire after pay issues, USS Slater kept afloat by shrinking number of volunteers, Saratoga Springs firefighters want chief out, Three more Rensselaer County officials charged in FBI probe, Nearly five years later, Schoharie limo families ready for trial. No other information on the woman and her case was reported. In 2016, he took on a similar role as the local Morning Edition newscaster at KUT in Austin, before moving over to the Texas Newsroom. In order to track the variant in Texas, Dr. Shuford said DSHS has established genetic sequencing partnerships with the University of Texas School of Public Health, as well as other academic medical centers and commercial labs across Texas.
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