You may remember the XBB variant that took Singapore by storm in the fall of 2022 – the most immune-evasion variant to date. Canadian biology professor Ryan Gregory dubbed it a “griffin” (a Greek mythological creature with the body of a lion and the head, beak and wings of an eagle) – and he took many of the other variants Similar names – Today, the new coronavirus variant code-named “Gryphon” has less global status than it did back then. Currently, its descendants are vying for dominance around the world. Due to the surge in infections, experts are paying close attention to the new variant XBB.1.5 of the new coronavirus (also named by Gregory) nicknamed “Kraken” (North Sea Monster).
However, a recent report from India offers some reassuring news. In the second half of 2022, among the 85 patients infected with the new coronavirus variant XBB investigated in Maharashtra, India, most (88%) had corresponding symptoms, but most of them (79%) You can recover at home and don’t need to go to the hospital for treatment. The study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, also brought good news that the severity and fatality rates of the new coronavirus variant XBB have both decreased.
The vast majority of patients (96%) survived, with only three deaths, according to the study published Jan. 6 on medRxiv, a preprint repository affiliated with Yale University.
The most common symptom in patients infected with the new coronavirus variant XBB is fever, which is present in nearly three-quarters of patients infected with the new coronavirus variant XBB. Other common symptoms are runny nose, cough, sore throat, muscle pain and fatigue/weakness. Patients without XBB infection developed symptoms of chest pain or rash. Only a minority experienced shortness of breath, loss of taste or smell, or gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting.
In India, patients infected with the XBB family had “less severe symptoms,” the authors wrote, referring here to the 2019-nCoV variant XBB itself, as well as XBB offspring such as XBB.1, XBB.2, XBB.3 and XBB.5.
However, the study authors caution that the variant has the potential to spread rapidly around the world, given that the mutation allows it to evade previous infection and immunity acquired through vaccination, and can infect others more efficiently.
Symptoms were fairly similar in all interviewed COVID-19 patients, including those infected with BA.2 family, BA.5 family, and BQ.1 variants. Patients infected with BA.2.38, BA.2.75, and XBB family variants tended to be more prone to headaches and shortness of breath.
The vast majority (approximately 90%) of study participants were vaccinated, including patients infected with XBB families. Most patients with XBB infection (76%) received two doses of the vaccine, and slightly more than one fifth received a booster shot. Only four were unvaccinated. The authors caution that the high vaccination rates among study participants may have contributed to the generally milder symptoms among patients infected with the XBB variant.
According to the World Health Organization, XBB is a recombination or combination of two variant strains BA.2.75 and BA.2.10.1 derived from BA.2. The variant was first identified in August 2022 and made headlines last fall when it led to a surge in infections in Singapore. However, Singapore’s health minister noted that patients infected with the XBB variant appeared to have about 30% lower risk of hospitalization compared with BA.5. Eventually, the XBB variant also dominated India, Bangladesh, Malaysia and other parts of Asia.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Jan. 13 that 18 percent of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. two weeks ago were infected with the XBB-derived variant known as Kraken, XBB.1.5. According to a Jan. 5 memo from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, 28% of confirmed cases were expected to be infected with XBB.1.5 last week, making it the second most common disease in the U.S. variant and is expected to dominate in the United States.
Experts are watching the variant closely due to a surge in infections. The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control estimates that the number of infections doubles every nine days.
World Health Organization officials said two weeks ago that XBB.1.5 was ravaging the northeastern United States, and it was unclear whether the variant had contributed to the increase in hospitalizations in the northeastern United States. But experts told Fortune last week that the Kraken likely contributed at least in part to the rise in hospitalizations in the region, and that the rise in XBB.1.5 infections is on the rise in western states, so the rise could spread to other regions.
While it’s too early to tell, XBB.1.5 is not thought to cause more serious illness. The World Health Organization will continue to call it Omicron without assigning it a new Greek letter, citing that it is not too different from other Omicron variants, officials said Jan. 11. , without using a new Greek letter to name it. (Fortune Chinese website)
Translator: Zhong Huiyan-Wang Fang
You may remember the XBB variant that took Singapore by storm last fall—one of the most immune-evasive yet. Dubbed “Gryphon” by the Canadian biology professor Ryan Gregory—who has a lot more names like it for other variants—after the mythical amalgamation of eagle and lion, it’s less of a global player than it was then. Now its descendants are battling for dominance throughout the world. Experts are keeping a close eye in particular on (the also Gregory-monikered) “Kraken” XBB.1.5 , due to its ability to grow at a breakneck pace.
A recent report out of India offers some comfort, however. Of 85 patients with XBB variants surveyed in Maharashtra, India, during the later half of 2022, most (88%) were symptomatic, but the majority of them (79%) were able to cope with infection at home, versus in a hospital. The study (which has not yet been peer reviewed) also had good news about survival and symptoms.
The vast majority of the patients (96%) survived, with only three deaths among the group, according to the study, published Jan. 6 on Yale University-affiliated preprint repository medRxiv.
Fever was the most common symptom among the group, with nearly three-quarters of XBB-variant patients experiencing it. Runny nose, cough, sore throat, muscle pain, and fatigue/weakness were the second, third, fourth, and fifth most common , respectively. No XBB-variant patients experienced chest pain or skin rash. And only a handful experienced shortness of breath, loss of taste or smell, or GI symptoms such as diarrhea or vomiting.
XBB COVID variants are causing “mild disease in India,” the authors wrote, referring to the XBB variant itself, as well as offspring variants like XBB.1, XBB.2, XBB.3, and XBB.5.
Authors of the study warned, however, that the variant has the potential to spread around the world rapidly, given mutations that allow it to escape immunity from prior infection and vaccination, and infect others more effectively.
Symptoms were fairly similar among all COVID patients interviewed, including those with BA.2-family, BA.5-family, and BQ.1 variants. Patients with BA.2.38, BA.2.75, and XBB-family variants, however, tended to experience headache and breathlessness at a greater rate.
The vast majority—around 90%—of the study’s participants were vaccinated, including XBB-family patients. Most XBB patients (76%) had received two doses, and a little more than a fifth had been boosted. Only four were unvaccinated. Study Participants’ high rate of vaccination may have contributed to the generally mild presentation of XBB variants, the authors cautioned.
XBB is a recombinant, or combination, of two BA.2 variants: BA.2.75 and BA.2.10.1, according to the World Health Organization. The variant was first discovered in August 2022 and made headlines when it spiked in Singapore in last fall, though the country’s minister of health noted that it seemed to carry a roughly 30% lower risk of hospitalization when compared to BA.5. Eventually XBB also became dominant in India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and other parts of Asia.
XBB spinoff XBB.1.5, dubbed “Kraken,” was behind 18% of US COVID two weeks ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on January 13. It’s projected to fuel 28% of cases last week, making it the second most common variant in the US—and putting it on track to become the most dominant in the States, according to a Jan. 5 memo from the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
Experts are keeping a close eye on it due to its rapid growth rate. It is estimated to double the number of those it sickens every nine days, according to the CDC’s European counterpart.
It’s unknown whether the variant is contributing to a rise in hospitalizations in the northeast US, where it’s thriving, WHO officials said two weeks ago. But experts told Fortune last week that Kraken is likely playing at least a part in the regional rise in hospitals— And that the rise could spread geographically, as case levels of the new variant trend upward in western states.
While it’s too early to say definitely, XBB.1.5 is not thought to cause more severe disease. The World Health Organization will continue to refer to it as Omicron and will not assign it a new Greek letter, officials said on January 11, arguing it Doesn’t differ enough from other Omicron variants to warrant one.
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