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Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
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Mar 16 • 10 tweets • 5 min read
. @WHO has updated its variant tracking system and working definitions for SARS-CoV-2 variants as part of our ongoing work to improve #COVID19 surveillance
1/9
who.int/news/item/15-0…
Omicron is the most genetically diverse variant of concern to date, and when it emerged was a game changer for the #COVID19 pandemic.
 
Since Feb 2022, Omicron and its many sublineages have almost completely replaced other variants. 2/9
. #Omicron viruses are now the background genetic pool from which new variants will most likely emerge. @WHO & TAG-VE will use the updated system to monitor #Omicron sublineages independently & consider their classification as variants of interest or concern, as needed.
3/9
An important caveat: the emergence of a completely new variant outside of the Omicron family still remains possible and we must remain vigilant.

Though the virus has been circulating for 3+ years, we cannot fully predict how it will evolve nor assume we know everything. 4/9
So simply, the emergence and continued circulation of #Omicron shifted the variant landscape and @WHO has updated our system to reflect this.
 
Find more information here who.int/publications/m… 5/9
According to our updated system, Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Omicron parent lineage (B.1.1.529) are classified as previously circulating variants of concern.

Going forward sublineages will be assessed independently as VUM, VOI, or VOC, as needed.
6/9
With updated tracking system, XBB.1.5 is classified as a variant of interest.

Read WHO’s assessment of the risk this variant poses: who.int/docs/default-s… 7/9
Before I end, I want to address something important. Does this mean that #Omicron is no longer a threat? No, absolutely not.

Cases have increased in 3 of 6 WHO regions over the last 4 weeks and thousands of people are dying each week.

More in this ⬇️
8/9
. @WHO will continue to refine the system to track this virus to ensure that it is fit for purpose so that we can optimize the response to #COVID19.

9/9
More info here 👇

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More from @mvankerkhove

Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Mar 11
So where exactly are we now in the #COVID19 pandemic and where are we going?

Long thread ⬇️
@DrTedros @DrMikeRyan @WHO
3 years ago @WHO described the situation of #COVID19 as a pandemic, but it was 6 weeks earlier - on 30Jan20 - that @DrTedros declared the evolving situation as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), our highest alarm to the world.

From 1 Jan 20 to that point, @WHO had issued EISs, DONs, comprehensive technical guidance, a global strategy to suppress transmission & save lives, sent officials to China to learn, started daily pressers warning the world to take action in the hope we could prevent a pandemic…
Read 24 tweets
Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Mar 2
🧵As an American myself and directly involved in the response to #COVID19 pandemic and in the origins studies since day 1, comments by @MarshaBlackburn, @SenatorRisch and others about @WHO and our work are deeply hurtful and inaccurate.
As the #COVID19 health operations & technical lead, my role has been to convene the world's expertise & consolidate that knowledge into actions that save lives. As the responsible technical officer for advancing our understanding of this current pandemic to prevent future ones…
I am deeply frustrated at the lack of additional information from the US reports assessing #COVID19 origins, which have not been shared with us and from investigations in China that can actually further the technical, serious discussions.
Read 5 tweets
Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Jan 19
New @WHO-led analysis shows that hybrid immunity provides higher protection, demonstrating the critical importance of vaccination even after people have had COVID-19. thelancet.com/journals/lanin…
These are the findings of a systematic review: One year after developing hybrid immunity, a person has >95% lower chance of getting severe #COVID19 or needing hospitalization compared to unvaccinated and uninfected individuals.
No, this at all promoting infection! I have said it many times before and I will keep saying it: do what you can to avoid infection/reinfection
Read 4 tweets
Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Sep 14, 2022
Today @WHO issued 6️⃣ #COVID19 policy briefs outlining essential actions national policy makers can implement to end the COVID-19 emergency worldwide.

“We have never been in a better position to end the pandemic” - @DrTedros

More on each brief👇🧵

who.int/emergencies/di…
1️⃣ Testing: It remains critical to continue to test for #COVID19 to reduce morbidity and mortality through linkage to prompt care and treatment, reduce onward transmission and track the evolution of the epidemic and the virus itself.

who.int/publications/i…
2️⃣Clinical care: Establish & sustain clear pathways to clinical care for #COVID19. Integrate COVID into primary care systems. Provide access and follow up care for #LongCOVID. Utilizetherapeutics for those at risk. Plan for surges.

who.int/publications/i…
Read 8 tweets
Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Aug 20, 2022
Millions have died from #COVID19 since the start of this pandemic and 15000 are still dying each week.

15000 mothers, daughters, fathers, sons, brothers, sisters, friends… people we love.

I know we are tired, but when did this become acceptable?

A short thread…
Globally, over the last 4 weeks, 26,722,228 new cases and 62,892 new deaths were reported to @WHO. That’s a 15% ⬆️ in new cases & a +35% ⬆️ in new deaths over the reporting period.
We expect cases to continue to occur given the limited use of public health and social measures🌎, but #COVID19 hospitalisations, deaths & #LongCovid can be minimised.

Efforts need to be made to strengthen the use of life saving interventions. We can do this AND live our lives.
Read 9 tweets
Maria Van Kerkhove Profile picture
Aug 7, 2022
The next weeks & months are critical to be vigilant for #COVID19

As individuals: get vaccinated and take measures to reduce risk of (re)infection. Mask indoors when around others outside your immediate family. Distance. Test. Ventilate. Wash hands. Live life safely. Be kind.
1/
Governments: reinforce surveillance, testing, sequencing, access to treatments & O2, vaccinate all at risk, surge capacities and PPE, invest in ventilation & in a strong protected work force. Ensure policies are agile to deal with epi, capacities & financial needs…
2/
…continue to invest in research of this virus and its many variants and continue to develop new tools; support patients with Post COVID-19 condition (#LongCovid); fight the infodemic and misinformation; communicate regularly and openly and rebuild trust; share successes.
Read 4 tweets

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