MAP – Now in the majority in 23 departments of France on December 28, the share of the Omicron variant even reached 60% in 10 departments, including one in Nouvelle-Aquitaine
This Tuesday, December 28, a record number of Covid-19 contaminations was recorded with nearly 180,000 cases in 24 hours.
In France, screening, that is to say the analysis of tests to determine the variant at the origin of the infection, makes it possible to monitor the proportion of variants. Since the beginning of June 2021, during the screening three mutations of interest have been sought: the E484K mutation (Beta and Gamma variants), the E484Q mutation (very rare) and the L452R mutation (specific to several variants including the Delta variant ).
The absence of this last mutation (L452R) indicates that the type of variant is unknown but, since the end of November 2021, with a strong suspicion that it is the Omicron variant. It is therefore possible, department by department, to see where the Omicron variant is gaining ground over the Delta variant, and where it is and is still very little present.
Two departments in New Aquitaine where Omicron reaches 50%
For the period between 19 and 25 December 2021 (latest data available), the share of the Omicron variant among the tests screened amounts to 30.2% on average in France.
The share of the Omicron variant among the tests screened is equal to or greater than 50% in 23 departments, including Deux-Sèvres and Charente, in New Aquitaine. In 10 of them, it is even greater than 60%:
– Paris 66.6%
– Deux-Sèvres 66.7%
– Haute-Savoie 73.3%
– Aveyron 80%
– Savoie 90%
– Ardennes 100%
– Upper Corsica 100%
– Maine-et-Loire 100%
– Mayenne 100%
– Tarn-et-Garonne 100%