São Paulo detects first case of BA.2 sub-lineage of Omicron variant

The Municipal Health Department of São Paulo confirmed on Monday (Feb. 7) the first case of BA.2, a sub-lineage of the Omicron variant, which is considered even more transmissible and has become dominant in several countries, such as Denmark and India. So far, there are no indications that BA.2 is more severe than other variants.

The BA.2 sub-lineage was identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) on December 7 and has about 40 mutations in relation to the Omicron BA.1 variant.

According to the secretary, the patient is a 22-year-old man from the municipality of Santo André, who was treated at a health unit in the capital. The patient had received two doses of the vaccine against COVID-19, but is not yet able to receive the booster dose. He said he has mild symptoms and was in self-isolation as soon as symptoms started. None of the man's relatives became ill, and he reported not having traveled.

The genomic monitoring based on samples that has been carried out up to now has shown that 100% of the positive cases in the city of São Paulo are related to the Omicron variant.