What Is Delmicron? Is The Double COVID-19 Wave A Cause Of Concern?

What is Delmicron: As medical experts everywhere warn caution against COVID-19 with cases on the rise once again, the combined fear of Delta and Omicron, dubbed Delmicron, is sweeping countries in the West. The United States and European nations are facing what health professionals are calling the Delmicron wave.

Both variants are also present in India.

"At present, Delta derivatives, descendants of Delta, are main variants in circulation in India. Omicron is fast replacing Delta in other parts of the world, but there is no way to predict how Delta derivatives and Omicron would behave," Shashank Joshi, member of the centre's COVID-19 task force, was quoted saying in a media statement.

Delmicron, he said, had triggered a "mini tsunami of cases" abroad.

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Delmicron results from a twin spike of COVID-19's Delta and Omicron variants. A co-infection is possible in people with weak immune systems and comorbidities, with the importance of vaccination and boosters in this situation being highlighted.

Omicron, the newer of both variants in India, has atleast 236 recorded cases in the country, as of Thursday afternoon. The medical fraternity has issued warnings following the loosening of COVID-19-appropriate protocol such as distancing and masking.

While Omicron was flagged as a milder variant than Delta in earlier reports as the variant was just emerging, a new study by the Imperial College London appears to refute that claim saying there are no signs to prove it. There is "no evidence of Omicron having lower severity than Delta" but with the former variant, the risk of reinfection is five times higher than the latter, the study notes.

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The Delta variant has been around in India, where it was first detected in October 2020, longer than Omicron by over a year and has been exposed to a larger population. The medical fraternity says more information is required to understand better how co-infections would behave in such a context.

Dr Randeep Guleria, the director of Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), said this week "we need more data" and should be prepared for any eventuality, simultaneously marking the serious COVID-19 situation in the United Kingdom, where Omicron and Delta are spreading rapidly.