The risk of needing to stay in hospital for patients with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is 40% to 45% lower than for patients with the Delta variant.
Overall, evidence has been found of a reduction in the risk of hospitalization for Omicron relative to Delta infections, averaging over all cases in the study period.
A South African study on Wednesday found that people diagnosed with Omicron in South Africa between October 1 and November 30 were 80% less likely to be admitted to hospital than those diagnosed with another variant in the same period.
However, they added that the reductions in hospitalization must be balanced against the larger risk of infection with Omicron, due to the reduction in protection provided by both vaccination and natural infection.
