British scientists are to investigate whether higher doses of dexamethasone, a cheap and widely used steroid, might work better for patients with severe Covid compared to standard low doses.

The large trial, dubbed Recovery, will compare a higher dose of 20 mg of dexamethasone given once daily for five days, followed by 10 mg once daily for an additional five days, to the usual low dose treatment given for up to 10 days. days, website showed.

A study published in February found that in people hospitalized for Covid, dexamethasone use resulted in lower 28-day mortality in those who received either invasive mechanical ventilation or oxygen alone, but not in patients. who were not receiving respiratory assistance.

Israel is moving forward with a second Covid booster – a fourth dose of vaccine – for people with weakened immune systems, a senior government health official said, although a final decision on wider use has not yet been confirmed.

Earlier this week, an Israeli hospital administered a fourth vaccine to a test group of health workers, in what it called the first major study to determine whether a second round of boosters will help eliminate the variant coronavirus. Omicron.

The results are expected within two weeks.

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the board of the British Medical Association, said there were concerns about a “significant increase” in the number of people hospitalized with coronavirus.

Speaking to Sky News, he said: “What is concerning is that we are seeing a significant increase in the number of people hospitalized.

“In fact, as of yesterday the number of people admitted and also the number of hospitalized patients is at as high a level as during the lockdown at the beginning of the year in the spring, in February / March.

“Now that is a significant number and it is increasing, so while the proportion of people who end up in hospital because of Omicron is smaller, we are certainly seeing significant increases.”

Dr Nagpaul said 25,000 patients were admitted with Covid-19 in a four-week period leading up to Christmas and argued that these new admissions were keeping the six million people on the NHS waiting list from d to be processed.

When asked if those 25,000 people had been admitted to hospital due to their coronavirus symptoms rather than other health reasons and “turned out to have Covid”, he replied: “It ‘ is a very good question and in fact it is data that I don’t have and data it is really important that it is available because I totally agree we have to differentiate between the two . “

Boris Johnson’s decision not to apply restrictions on New Year’s gatherings in England is “quite risky” given the high rates of infections, according to Dr Azeem Majeed, head of primary care and public health at the ‘Imperial College London.

“It’s quite risky considering that we are now approaching 200,000 cases per day – there is a high infection rate in the community,” he told Times Radio.

“So if you attend an event in a crowded indoor location, there’s a good chance that someone there has been infected, and they may not know it and that person may be infecting people. ‘others.

“If you are attending an event you should keep in mind that you are doing so with some risk to yourself and that you can infect other family members who may be more vulnerable, such as your parents. and your grandparents. “

South Africa has passed peak of its fourth wave of Covid driven by the Omicron variant, a government statement said on Thursday

The country was able to lift the midnight to 4 a.m. curfew on the movement of people with immediate effect following the positive data, officials said.

The country has made the changes depending on the trajectory of the pandemic, immunization levels and available capacity in the health sector, according to a press release issued by Mondli Gungubele, a minister in the presidency.

South Africa, which was one of the first countries to detect the Omicron variant, is now at the lowest of its five Covid-19 alert levels.

Boris Johnson will also use his New Years message to announce that the country has reached its goal of offering all adults the opportunity to receive a booster vaccine by the end of the year.

The Prime Minister will say in a social media post on Friday that seven in ten eligible adults in England have now received their booster shots, with eight million more vaccines delivered since the target was bought back on December 12.

Boris Johnson said the UK was in a “incomparably better” position than at this time last year – while urging the country to remain “cautious”.

In a New Years message, he will say, “Whatever challenges fate continues to throw at us and whatever worries we may have about the weeks and months to come, especially about Omicron. and of the growing number of hospitals, we can say one. thing with certainty, our position on December 31 is incomparably better than last year.

But in a word of warning, he will add, “Although I should of course urge everyone to be careful and take a test if you go out and remember the importance of ventilation.

“Follow the rules whether you are in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. “

The Prime Minister added: “And I want to speak directly to anyone who has not yet been fully vaccinated.

“People who think the disease can’t hurt them, look at people going to the hospital now, it could be you.

“Look at the intensive care units and the miserable and needless suffering of those who haven’t been recalled, it could be you.

“So make it your New Year’s resolution, much easier than losing weight or keeping a journal, finding a walk-in center, or making an appointment online. “

New Years celebrations across the country will remain muted on Friday as authorities put in place different sets of restrictions in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

While Mayor Sadiq Khan has canceled the Trafalgar Square event due to the increase in Omicron cases, events in Scotland will have a social distance of one meter and will be limited to 100 people standing inside, 200 people seated inside and 500 people outside, with a physical distance meter in place in all indoor reception and leisure areas.

Here’s how the restrictions compare across different countries in the UK, reports Catherine Lough.

Sydney, Australia’s worst-hit city, to host New Years Eve with public celebrations as authorities have asked people to come out and enjoy it, even as the city’s Covid-19 cases mount sharply.

The first country to introduce the New Year will have thousands of them out in the open at major port locations to witness the traditional midnight fireworks celebrations as part of a 12-minute fireworks display.

People will line up at the viewpoints early in the day.

This could prove to be a serious threat because the Omicron variant of the coronavirus is considered to be highly transmissible and infects a large number of people.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called on people to ‘enjoy the evening’ and New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet has said everyone should head out and enjoy the New Years.

As the threat of overwhelming hospitals looms, just over a month after Omicron was announced as a “worrying variant” by the World Health Organization, several countries have resorted to blankets. fires and restrictions to prevent massive spread of infection.

More than 32,400 new cases were recorded in the island nation on Friday, a new daily record, pushing the cumulative number to nearly 400,000. More than 135,000 active cases remain in Australia, of which 127 people are in intensive care, said officials.

Australia has recorded a total of 2,239 deaths from the infection since the start of the pandemic.

The United States Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has warned people of infections on board and not to go on cruises because Covid-19 infections triggered by the Omicron variant have reached an all-time high in the country.

“The virus that causes Covid-19 easily spreads between nearby people on ships, and the chance of getting Covid-19 on cruise ships is very high,” even though people are fully vaccinated and have received a recall, the CDC said.

The United States saw nearly 600,000 new cases – a world record for daily infections – on Thursday.

More than 90 cruise ships have been scanned for ongoing Covid-19 infections, and the total number of cases was not immediately clear.

It comes as Covid has wreaked havoc around the world with a dominant variant that is highly transmissible as the pandemic runs into two years and hundreds of economies enter 2022 in an unhealthy state.