Omicron cases are growing in Pennsylvania. Here's what we know

The omicron variant has overtaken delta as the leading COVID strain, accounting for nearly 58% of new cases sequenced in Pennsylvania and surrounding states.

Here's the latest on the variant that's spreading rapidly across the country.

What do we know about omicron?

The World Health Organization dubbed omicron a "variant of concern," and studies suggest it's more likely to cause reinfection than the delta variant.

The bad news is, that could mean "breakthrough" infections even in people who are fully vaccinated.

The good news is that so far, early data points to less severe infections, although more research is needed.

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Where has omicron been reported in Pennsylvania?

The state's first case was confirmed earlier this month, in Philadelphia. Since then, at least two more cases have been confirmed in the city as of Friday, Dec. 17, the state Department of Health said.

In addition, two cases were announced in the Lehigh Valley by St. Luke's University Health Network. The Department of Health said a sixth case was in the northeast region of the state, and a seventh case was announced last Friday by officials in Montgomery County.

"The CDC has been notified, and all appropriate measures, including isolation and contact tracing protocols, are being followed in these cases," department press secretary Mark O'Neill said in an email. No further information, including whether or not the patients were vaccinated, was released.

"As the omicron variant is becoming more pronounced around the country, including states in the Northeast, we expect the number of cases linked to the omicron variant to continue to increase in the weeks ahead," O'Neill said.

The true number of omicron cases likely is much higher. St. Luke's alone said it had 30 suspected cases of the variant waiting to be confirmed.

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What are the symptoms of omicron?

Most people with omicron have reported mild symptoms, and they are similar to the main strand of COVID or the delta variant, which has been the dominant variant for the past several months.

Omicron symptoms include:

• fever

• runny nose

• sore throat

• coughing

• general fatigue

Those symptoms mirror that of a cold or flu, but there's one symptom that may point to COVID-19: the loss of taste or smell.

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Do Moderna and Pfizer vaccines protect against omicron?

Regardless of what perceptions about current vaccine effectiveness against the omicron variant, which appears to spread quicker than other variants, health experts recommend that everyone get vaccinated and for those who are already vaccinated, to get the booster.

The CEOs of the two companies behind the biggest vaccines differ on how effective their products will be against the new variant.

BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin told The Wall Street Journal that the Pfizer vaccine has been effective against other variants of coronavirus and will likely be effective against omicron, emphasizing the importance of getting the booster shot.

A study released earlier this month by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech showed that a third dose of their COVID-19 vaccine boosted neutralizing antibodies against omicron more than 25-fold.

Meanwhile, the first data available for Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine suggests a third booster dose also will be effective against omicron.

Moderna said early Monday that in a lab study, blood from 20 people who received the 50-microgram Moderna booster had 37 times the number of neutralizing antibodies as compared to blood from the same number of people who only received two shots.

A group that received a third shot of the higher, 100-microgram dose saw an 83-fold jump in neutralizing antibodies against omicron.

What are the restrictions in Pennsylvania due to the omicron variant?

There have been no new statewide restrictions announced in Pennsylvania due to the COVID variant, and it's unlikely there will be.

Gov. Tom Wolf told USA TODAY's Pennsylvania Network recently that he had no plans to issue new mask mandates due to rising cases of COVID in the state.

"I don’t see any mask mandate coming back," Wolf said. "Vaccines are our strategy. They are working."

In Philadelphia, residents and visitors will need to provide proof of vaccination for indoor dining starting in January.

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This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: What we know about omicron cases in Pennsylvania