552 COVID-19 Cases Reported on 5 Dec With 1 Preliminarily Positive for Omicron

With both good and bad news yesterday (5 Dec), it was hard to know how to feel.

Our daily caseload and ICU utilisation rate went down, but the number of fatalities increased significantly from the day before, and our weekly infection growth rate rose.

What’s more, another COVID-19 case had tested “preliminarily positive” for the Omicron variant.

If you missed the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) COVID-19 update yesterday, here’s everything you need to know:

1 More Imported Cases Tests Positive for Omicron Variant

One more imported COVID-19 case has tested preliminarily positive for the Omicron variant, MOH said.

The 37-year-old man is currently recovering in an isolation ward at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) with mild symptoms.

The Singapore permanent resident arrived in Singapore on 1 Dec from South Africa on a Singapore Airlines flight.

The man, who is fully vaccinated, was on the same flight as the two previous cases who tested preliminarily positive last week.

Interestingly, his pre-departure test came back negative. Even after his arrival, his two tests during his quarantine at a dedicated facility came back negative as well.

But he then developed a fever and sore throat on 4 Dec, and was taken to NCID, where he tested positive.

“He had not interacted in the community, and there is currently no evidence of any community transmission from the case,” the ministry said.

13 COVID-19 Fatalities 

Sadly, 13 more COVID-19 cases succumbed to the virus, bringing our death toll to 759.

Aged between 52 and 96, all of them had various underlying medical conditions.

552 New COVID-19 Cases

552 new COVID-19 cases were reported yesterday (5 Dec), a decrease of 191 from the previous day’s tally.

The cases comprise 523 infections in the community, 14 in migrant worker dormitories, and 15 imported infections.

Among the local cases are 89 seniors above 60.

MOH Closely Monitoring Large Cluster at Nursing Home

MOH said it’s closely monitoring a large cluster at THK Home For Disabled, located in Sembawang.

With 25 new cases, the cluster now has 44 infections, comprising 43 residents and one staff member.

The cluster has already been ringfenced through tracing, testing, and isolation, it said.

863 COVID-19 Cases in Hospitals; 58 in ICU

At the moment, there are 863 COVID-19 cases warded in hospitals, most of whom are well and under observation.

155 serious cases require oxygen supplementation and 58 are in the intensive care unit, comprising six cases who are unstable and under close monitoring, and 52 who are critically ill and intubated.

Our ICU utilisation rate is currently at 51.2%, a slight increase from Saturday’s 54.7%.

Currently, 87% of our population has been fully vaccinated and 87% have received at least one dose. 28% have received their booster shots.

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MOH: Clinical Observations Show Omicron May Be More Transmissible, But Mild

In a separate update on the newly-discovered variant, the health ministry noted that early clinical observations show that the Omicron strain may indeed be more transmissible.

It may also present a higher risk of re-infection, it said.

However, cases detected around the world have mostly been mild, and no Omicron-related deaths have been reported so far.

It added, however, that it is too early to “conclude on the severity of the disease.”

It said that while studies are ongoing, there is an emerging belief among scientists that existing COVID-19 vaccines will still work on the Omicron variant, especially in protecting people against severe illness.

Antigen rapid tests, known for their quick delivery of results, also seem to be an effective method of detecting the Omicron variant, in addition to the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test.

“We expect to see more Omicron cases being reported globally in the weeks to come, and we must expect to detect more cases at our borders and, in time to come, also within our community,” MOH said.

It once again urged those who are eligible to get vaccinated, or receive their booster shot.

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