A brand new sub-lineage of the Omicron COVID variant now makes up one in seven {cases} within the UK.
EG.5 and EG.5.1 are descendants of Omicron, which was first detected in South Africa in late-2021 earlier than changing into widespread within the UK.
This week the World Well being Organisation (WHO) designated EG.5 as a ‘variant of interest’ after it was reported in 51 nations.
Right here Sky Information seems at it in additional element.
When was it found?
EG.5 was first detected on 17 February however was given ‘variant underneath monitoring’ standing by WHO on 19 July following a spike in {cases}, notably in Asia. As of seven August it was a ‘variant of curiosity’.
Most reported {cases} are nonetheless in China (30.6%), adopted by the US (18.4%), South Korea (14.1%) and Japan (11.1%).
In accordance with the most recent UK Well being Safety Company (UKHSA) knowledge, it’s now the second most prevalent variant making up 11.8% of UK {cases} as of 27 July. As of 4 August, it represented one in seven UK infections.
The vast majority of {cases} are nonetheless the Arcturus pressure, one other Omicron sub-variant that emerged earlier within the yr.
On a world scale, WHO claims EG.5 makes up 17.4% of infections as of 23 July, which it says is a “notable rise” on the final time it collected knowledge on 25 June.
What are the signs?
In accordance with the ZOE well being app, the signs of EG.5 and EG.5.1, are just like different Omicron sub-variants.
These embrace:
- Runny or blocked nostril
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Sore throat
- Sneezing
How frightened ought to we be?
WHO has stated that on the proof accessible the “public well being threat posed by EG.5 is low at international stage” and just like the opposite Omicron sub-variants we have seen previously two years.
They have not discovered a rise in illness severity in comparison with ones we have seen beforehand both.
But it surely does have a development benefit and immune escape properties, which implies it may evade pure or vaccine-based immunity.
It predicts that: “As a consequence of its development benefit and immune escape properties, EG.5 could trigger an increase in case incidence and develop into dominant in some nations and even globally.”
There have been will increase in COVID hospitalisations in some Asian nations the place EG.5 is circulating however there isn’t any proof of a hyperlink between the sub-variant and any spike in hospital admissions.
Professor Francois Balloux, an professional in computational techniques biology and director of the UCL Genetics Institute, stated it nonetheless “solely performs a minor position within the present improve in {cases}”.
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He says that is “pushed primarily by the climate”, which has prevented folks from spending extra time outdoor in latest weeks, and “continuously waning immunity” from booster jab campaigns.
“There’s nothing that feels notably regarding about EG.5.1, relative to the various different Omicron sub-variants in circulation,” he stated.
Biologist Professor T. Ryan Gregory who coined the nickname “Eris” for EG 5.1 on social media, provides that it “is not tremendous notable when it comes to particular mutations” and “is just not even the quickest XXB (Omicron) variant”.
He added it’s “one to look at even when it isn’t count on to trigger a big wave”.
However virologist Professor Stephen Griffin wrote on X, previously often known as Twitter, that “not being extra extreme than present strains is just not the identical as not being extreme”.
He warned that “particular person dangers scales by prevalence” and confused the persevering with dangers of Lengthy COVID and lack of immunity within the tremendous clinically weak.
What about COVID extra typically?
Usually COVID {cases} are on the rise. Though common testing and routine reporting of {cases} has ended within the UK, hospital admissions stay a sign of prevalence.
At present the COVID hospitalisation charge is 1.97 per 100,000 folks – in comparison with 1.17 per week earlier.
Individuals aged 85 and over symbolize the largest age group in hospital as they’ve all through the pandemic.
In accordance with UKHSA “general ranges of admission stay extraordinarily low and we aren’t at the moment seeing an analogous improve in ICU admission”.