Fully-Vaccinated Man Dies After Recovering From Omicron Variant Of COVID-19

A fully-vaccinated 73-year-old man has been reported dead just days after he recovered from the Omicron variant of the COVID-19 virus in Udaipur, Rajasthan, India on Friday, Dec. 31.

The deceased man, who was a retired nursing staff, had tested positive for the Omicron variant on Dec. 15. He subsequently recovered from the disease after undergoing treatment at a hospital for nearly a week. However, just days after he recovered from the virus, his health rapidly deteriorated and he was declared dead at the MBGH Hospital in Udaipur on New Year's Eve, Friday, the Indian Express reported.

The man was reportedly brought to the facility on Dec. 15 after experiencing respiratory problems and pneumonia-like symptoms. He subsequently tested positive for the COVI-19 virus.

He was treated at the hospital and later started recuperating. On Dec. 21, the elderly patient reportedly returned a negative COVID-19 test result. A couple of days later, the genome sequencing report for his infection finally came out and the health authorities confirmed that he had contracted the Omicron variant of the virus.

“The person was brought to us on Dec. 15 after he tested positive for COVID-19 on the same day. At the time, he had respiratory problems and pneumonia-like symptoms. He eventually tested negative on Dec. 21. However, on Dec. 25, after his genome sequencing report came out, we learned that he had the Omicron variant,” Dr. RL Suman, Superintendent of the MBGH Government Hospital, said.

Suman added that the patient underwent another COVID-19 test on Dec. 25 after coming to know that he had the Omicron variant. However, the results turned out to be negative, the Times Of India reported.

After getting tested negative for the virus twice, the man was later moved to a general ward. Since he had respiratory problems, he was also given a Bipap mask, a non-invasive form of a ventilator.

“The person had received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Prima facie it appears that this was the first time he had COVID-19. After he tested negative twice, we shifted him to the general ward where he was given a Bipap mask, which is a non-invasive form of ventilator because of his respiratory problems,” Dr. Suman added.

After the patient's health started deteriorating on Thursday, Dec. 30, he was immediately moved to a ventilator. However, his oxygen saturation decreased gradually and he passed away on Friday morning, Dec. 31.

According to Dinesh Kharadi, Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Udaipur, the patient's death appeared to be from post-COVID pneumonia with comorbidity of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and hypothyroidism.