New York [US], November 12: Infants too young for vaccination were hospitalized with COVID-19 more often than any age group other than the elderly in the United States during the Omicron BA.5 wave over the summer, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Hospitalizations among infants younger than six months surged elevenfold from April through July this year when Omicron BA.2 and subsequently BA.5 were the dominant variants circulating, CNBC reported Thursday, citing a CDC report.
The average weekly hospitalization rate among young infants during this period was about 13.7 per 100,000. This was about the same as patients ages 65 to 74 at 13.8 per 100,000.
"It was more frequent than all other children and adults younger than 65," the CDC report was quoted as saying.
Fortunately, the surge in hospitalizations among young infants was not associated with increased severity. In fact, the length of hospital stay and the proportion of admissions that needed intensive care was actually lower during Omicron than when the Delta variant was dominant, the report added.
Source: Xinhua
