2 imported cases of new Omicron subvariant BA.2.75 reported in Singapore

SINGAPORE: Two imported COVID-19 cases with the Omicron subvariant BA.2.75 have been found in Singapore as of Thursday (Jul 14), said the Ministry of Health (MOH). 

In response to CNA's queries, MOH said that both individuals had recently travelled to India and had immediately self-isolated after testing positive for COVID-19.

They have since fully recovered, added the ministry.

The BA.2.75 subvariant, which is nicknamed Centaurus, was first detected in India in early May.

Since then, there have been cases reported in nearly 10 other countries, including the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Germany and Canada.

"There is currently no evidence to indicate that BA.2.75 has substantially different virulence or severity compared to its Omicron predecessors," said MOH on Saturday.

It added that as of Thursday, the World Health Organization (WHO) has classified BA.2.75 as an Omicron subvariant under monitoring.

WHO's chief scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan said there were not yet enough samples to assess its severity, as reported by The Guardian. 

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control designated the BA.2.75 variant as a "variant under monitoring" on Jul 7.

This means that there is some indication that it could be more transmissible or associated with more severe disease, but the evidence is weak or has not yet been assessed.

Singapore reported 9,153 new COVID-19 cases as of noon on Saturday, comprising 8,691 local infections and 462 imported cases.

There were three fatalities, taking the death toll from coronavirus complications to 1,450.

On Saturday, a total of 771 patients were in hospital, according to the latest infection statistics on the MOH website. Ninety-eight patients require oxygen supplementation.

Seventeen patients were in the intensive care unit. 

The week-on-week infection ratio was 1.03. A number above 1 indicates that the number of new weekly COVID-19 cases is rising.

Singapore has recorded 1,589,099 COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic.