Jeremy Olson writes in a recent Star Tribune article that there was 72% increased Omicron BA.2 subvariant in the Twin Cities Sewage water sampling.

“Sampling at the Metropolitan Wastewater Treatment Plant in St. Paul over the past week found that BA.2 made up 72% of the viral load in Twin Cities sewage. The total viral load increased 53%, but it remains at far lower levels than earlier this winter during the delta and omicron COVID-19 waves,” writes Olson.

We will see an increase in cases in many parts of the United States, but it’s not thought to result in a large surge like we experienced in January or early February of this year.

– Matthew Binnicker, director of clinical virology at Mayo Clinic in Rochester (source: Star Tribune)

Both the Omicron and BA.2 variant are labelled as “stealth” variant because of their rapid transmission and ability to evade immunity. Dr. Binnicker told Star Tribune “Stealth variant really implies that it’s going undetected, that we’re missing it. It was wrongly given that name … The PCR tests and the antigen tests are still able to pick up BA.2, similar to BA.1 and all of the other prior COVID variants.”

Dr Binnecker told Olson that that there is some concern on BA.2 subvariant because of its slower virus buildup in nasal cavity (commonly used sampling location for early detection), however it’s still with PCR tests but at-home antigen tests may miss its detection.

“If you’ve been exposed or you have symptoms and you test negative, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are in the clear with regards to COVID infection. You may need to perform a follow-up test in a few days.”

– Matthew Binnicker, director of clinical virology at Mayo Clinic in Rochester (source: Star Tribune)

• Omicron ‘stealth’ subvariant takes over in Minnesota
• COVID-19: Here’s what experts say to expect as BA.2 omicron subvariant spreads across Florida
• Should you get a second COVID-19 vaccine booster?

Quoting The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Washington Olson writes “state estimates that around 70% of Minnesotans have some level of COVID-19 immunity right now, but that this protective rate will decline this spring”.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urged people last week not to confuse questions about a second booster with the proven benefits of COVID-19 vaccination. “People who were boosted during the omicron wave were 21 times less likely to die than unvaccinated people”.

There does seem to be some advantage to getting the repeat booster, although the biggest benefit is seen when you go from unvaccinated to vaccinated. The boosters are really providing an additional benefit on top of that.

– Dr. John O’Horo, a Mayo Clinic infectious disease specialist (source: Stat Tribune)

Dr. Malini DeSilva, a HealthPartners coauthor of the national study, told Star Tribune “We don’t know what’s coming next. It’s still really important to get vaccinated if you haven’t yet.”