The following is a summary of some recent studies on Covid-19. They include research that warrants further study to corroborate the findings and that has yet to be certified by peer review.

Omicron infection induces a limited immune response

Unvaccinated people infected with the Omicron variant are unlikely to develop immune responses that protect them against other variants of the coronavirus, a new study suggests.

Unlike antibodies induced by Covid-19 vaccines or infections with previous SARS-CoV-2 variants, antibodies induced by Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 variants do not neutralize other versions of the virus, researchers found when they analyzed blood samples obtained. after Omicron Infection. People with “breakthrough” Omicron infections after three doses of the mRNA vaccines designed to neutralize earlier versions of the virus had high levels of neutralizing antibodies against both Omicron variants, although the efficiency was lower than in earlier versions of SARS- CoV-2, according to a peer-reviewed report in Nature Portfolio and published in Research Square https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-1536794/v1. But among those whose immune systems were not primed to recognize the virus by vaccination or by natural infection, antibodies after Omicron infection “were very specific for the respective Omicron variant, and we detected almost no neutralizing antibody targeting non-Omicron virus strains.” “, said Karin Stiasny and Judity Aberle of the Medical University of Vienna, Austria, in a joint email.

ALSO READ: 30% of Covid patients develop Covid for a long time, says US study

BA.2-induced antibodies appear to be particularly unlikely to defend against any other variant, they added. The study “emphasizes the importance of booster vaccines for immune protection.”

Hospital deaths from Covid-19 rise on weekends

The average number of global deaths from Covid-19 was 6% higher on weekends compared to weekdays during the pandemic, according to statistics reported to the World Health Organization between March 2020 and March 2022.

The https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-Obm6guXk51m1g6qrQvGSAI13fomSWg1/view survey, scheduled for presentation this month at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, found that worldwide there were, on average, 449 more COVID deaths on weekends than weekdays (8,532 vs 8,083). The biggest absolute increase in Covid-19 deaths over the weekend was in the United States (average of 1,483 weekend deaths versus 1,220 weekday deaths), followed by Brazil (1,061 versus 823), the United Kingdom (239 versus 215 ) and Canada (56 versus 48 deaths). Only Germany reported significantly fewer average deaths on weekends compared to weekdays. The rise in Covid-19 deaths over weekends may reflect delays in reporting, but is also likely due to hospital staffing levels and other organizational factors, the researchers said in a statement.

ALSO READ: Covid-19: No Masks Required on Planes and Trains, US Federal Judge Rules

The data do not take into account individual patient risk factors, local policies, and public health interventions, which could have affected outcomes. “Further studies with detailed clinical data are needed to investigate the factors and causes of risk of death on weekdays and weekends from COVID-19,” the researchers said in the statement.

Follow more stories at Facebook and Twitter

This story was published from a news agency feed with no text modifications. Only the title has changed.