"From the data we see" on Omicron, "licensed vaccines are effective and continue to save people from severe disease and death. Even as the new variant spreads more, the vaccines we have will continue to provide protection." These are the words of the executive director of the EMA (European Medicines Agency), Emer Cooke, in a hearing in the European Parliament, insisting however on the need to make the recalls, given that the coverage of the serums weakens over time.

THE RECOMMENDATION - Faced with the Omicron variant "we must work even harder than in the past to increase the vaccination rate in the EU, especially in Member States where the rate is dangerously low," continues Cooke. "This is particularly important as we learn new ones. aspects of Omicron, "he added.

If to address Omicron "we had to adapt the vaccines", then came the clarification, we are in a position to approve them "in three to four months". But first it is necessary to establish "if adaptation is needed".

A message that seems to reassure, therefore, in the face of the new cases declared of the dangerous variant of South African origin, which went from 1% to 30% of cases in less than two weeks.

DIAGNOSIS - And to confirm it is also Walter Ricciardi, advisor to the Minister of Health Roberto Speranza. "The positive aspect is that it does not seem to evade the tests - he explains - so we are still able to diagnose it and presumably, if this works for the tests, it should also work for the vaccine".

The contagiousness of Omicron, continued Ricciardi, "is a very worrying element because not even the Delta variant, which was even more contagious than the original one, had taken so little to become dominant: it had taken 6 weeks".

CLINICAL COURSE - As for the clinical course, "it is important to know that with this variant there is no worsening, but it must be borne in mind that the South African country in which it was identified and on which this evaluation was made has a population of 90 % under the age of 25 ", therefore it is not demographically comparable with that of a country like Italy.