another one
Every time a new variant makes a grand entry onto monitoring lists, health officials take note because this could mean that There is an important change in the behavior of SARS-CoV-2. Countries reporting an increase in XEC detections include Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
XEC characteristic mutations detected in at least 25 states. Labs in New Jersey, California and Virginia reported 10 or more cases each.
Not so worrying (yet)
XEC has not advanced enough in Europe, the United States, or anywhere else in the world to be included as a stand-alone variant on official watch lists maintained by the CDC, the European Union, or the World Health Organization. Nevertheless, Experts believe this variant could be important in the near future.
Last year, around this same time, health authorities warned about another Ómicron variant, BA.2.86, named “Pirola”, which ultimately had NO major repercussions.
The CDC is not aware of any specific symptoms associated with XEC or any other co-circulating SARS-CoV-2 lineage.
#1 for today
The current dominant variant in the United States is called KP.3.1.1 and represents approximately 53% of Covid-19 cases in the country. Their progenitor lineages are KP.2 and KP.3, and all of them belong to the Ómicron family.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus mutates over time, and scientists use names and labels to identify groups of viral variants based on their similarities and which strains a mutated offspring comes from.
The KP.3.1.1 variant has been the predominant variant since early August, when it topped the list with 19%, barely surpassing its parent, KP.3.
No major alarms in the autumn-winter of the northern hemisphere
As respiratory illness season approaches in the United States, when flu and RSV also tend to increase, the CDC said in its publication on the Outlook for the 2024-2025 respiratory disease season, what They do not expect any unusual serious impacts from the Big 3 viruses.
The CDC expects that the upcoming fall and winter respiratory illness season will likely have a similar or lower number of combined peak hospitalizations due to Covid-19, influenza, and RSV compared to last season.
Covid-19 levels in the United States remain high, based on wastewater detections, a retreat from the “very high” label the CDC applied earlier this summer.
About 15% of Covid-19 tests reported to the CDC are positive. That rate is trending downward, as are emergency room visits and hospitalizations related to Covid-19.
