The numbers of COVID patients at The University of Kansas Health System have risen since our last show on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. 21 with the active virus are being treated, up from 17. Only seven are vaccinated. Seven of those patients are in the ICU, the same as last week. Four are on ventilators, up from one. 15 other patients are still hospitalized because of COVID but are out of the acute infection phase, down from 16. That’s a total of 36 patients, up from 33. Of more concern is HaysMed with 15 active and 12 recovering COVID patients, for a total of 29. Doctors agree that many COVID patients could put a strain on the hospital, which has a much smaller capacity.
News of the omicron variant of the coronavirus dominated today’s Morning Medical Update. Steve Stites, MD, chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System, and Dana Hawkinson, MD, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control, broke down the facts, dispelled rumors and answered questions about this latest variant.
Doctors showed graphics demonstrating the delta variant is still the dominant strain in the U.S. A few weeks ago, the hotspots were in the Mountain West, but it’s making a comeback in Kansas, as noted by the HaysMed numbers. Missouri is hot again with delta and it’s spreading east.
They explained that omicron broke out in the HIV population of South Africa, it’s spreading rapidly and appears to be highly transmissible. The symptoms are nausea, dizziness, dry cough, lightheadedness and fatigue. So far people have not lost their sense of taste and smell or had the severe respiratory illness of delta. It has not caused a spike in hospitalizations and death in South Africa. The doctors agreed that could be good news if omicron replaces delta as the dominant variant. They stressed, however, that it’s still too early to draw any definite conclusions and it may be six to eight weeks before we have enough data to know the severity of omicron and whether it will replace delta as the dominant strain. They did point out that it arose in a province that is 75 percent unvaccinated and in a younger population.
To a viewer who asked whether they should wait to get a booster until the current formula can be adjusted, they said definitely not. They said the current vaccines should give protection from omicron and that natural immunity from a previous strain probably won’t help. They agreed that we still need to be more focused on delta as it’s still out there and seems to be making a resurgence in our country. The unvaccinated are 12 times more likely to die from delta and are six times more likely to spread the disease.
Doctors also commented on some schools making masks optional for older students saying, from a strictly medical point of view, they are better off right now continuing with masks. They were glad to see Wyandotte County extended its mask mandate. They also advised being careful with large Christmas gatherings, even if all are vaccinated. Chances are still good someone in the group could spread the virus, but being vaccinated will make it less severe if you get it. They say the best thing we can do right now is continue to wear a mask, socially distance and get vaccinated or boosted as soon as possible. The same rules will work with omicron. The changes we read about may be new to us, but they are not new to science, medicine or our health.
Tuesday, November 30 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. It's been 40 years since we first learned about another virus across the world, HIV and AIDS. Tomorrow we will observe World AIDS Day 2021, plus show how COVID has helped in finding possible treatments for HIV. Three infectious disease doctors will be with us to discuss this and the new variant.
NOTE: Journalists should rejoin the Morning Medical Update at 8am as doctors are growing too busy again for individual interview requests. Please bring questions or send to medicalnewsnetwork@kumc.edu until further notice. Thanks for all you do and helping to keep the community safe with your reporting.
ATTENTION: media procedure for calling in:
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