Omicron patients showing mild symptoms, no need for critical care yet: LNJP doctor

“Omicron patients have mild symptoms, stable oxygen rates and no need for ICU,” said Suresh Kumar, medical director at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital in Delhi.

A day after Delhi’s first Omicron patient was discharged, a top medical expert in the city said on Tuesday those found infected with the new strain of Covid-19 were having “mild” symptoms and did not need admission in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Omicron patients did not need intensive care and showed mild symptoms, a LNJP doctor said. (Representational image)

Suresh Kumar, medical director at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital, said that the first patient returned home “completely healthy” 10 days after testing positive for the virus.

“The Omicron patient discharged today came from Zimbabwe on December 2 and had a slight throat discomfort and weakness initially, but returned completely healthy after 10 days. Omicron patients have mild symptoms, stable oxygen rates and no need for ICU,” Dr Kumar was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Several health agencies such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have also said there was no evidence to show that Omicron causes more severe ailment but have also warned that more data was needed to ascertain the severity and transmissibility of the variant.

The first patient to be discharged in Delhi was a 37-year-old man from Ranchi, Jharkhand, and had tested positive on December 2 after arriving at the national capital from Tanzania.

Meanwhile, four more persons tested positive for the new variant in Delhi on Tuesday. However, all were found asymptomatic, Dr Kumar said. “The four new Omicron patients are asymptomatic, two came from the United Kingdom and the other two were their close contacts,” he said.

He also said that at least two more Covid-19 patients of the remaining 38 were being discharged from the hospital during the day. “Two to three more Covid-19 patients, of the 38 in LNJP, will be discharged today. Currently, we have 50 dedicated beds and will increase the same if required,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain said all the four new Omicron patients had travelled to foreign countries, adding the remaining patients in the hospital were stable.

Noting that the Delhi government was prepared to tackle the spread of the variant, he said, “All necessary steps are being taken to stop the spread of the new Omicron variant. The Delhi government is keeping a sharp eye on the new cases and contacts of Omicron-infected patients are being traced.”

Delhi reported 45 new Covid-19 cases and no new deaths in the last 24 hours as the city’s total caseload reached 14,41,793 cases and death toll remained at 25,100, according to latest data.

(With agency inputs)