As the winter season is headed our way, so is another COVID-19 variant.
After a large summer wave of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., in which we’re now experiencing a slight dip, doctors are expecting another spike to come this winter season.
Sparking new fears, there’s currently a new COVID-19 variant that’s making its way through Europe and has even been detected in the U.S., as well.
It’s called the XEC COVID variant.
“The XEC variant appears to be the most likely one to get legs next,” Eric Topol, M.D., founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, recently wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Currently, The World Health Organization (WHO) hasn’t publicly profiled XEC yet, but the Scripps Covid-19 epidemiology tracker Outbreak.info has sequencing information on the variant, which is already drawing massive attention for how contagious it seems to be.
So, what exactly is the XEC COVID-19 variant and what level of concern should we all be?
Well, the XEC variant has been tracked around the world.
“It’s one of the Omicron variants and it seems to be reasonably contagious,” William Schaffner, M.D., an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, said to Prevention.
According to what data shows from Outbreak.info, XEC appears to be a hybrid of Omicron subvariants KS.1.1 and KP.3.3., where KP.3.3. is an off-shoot of KP.3, which is one of the FLiRT variants that circulated this summer.
XEC has multiple mutations on the spike protein, which is what SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19 – uses to latch onto people’s cells and then causes infection. Due to this, it might be more infectious than other recent strains.
“Like every SARS-CoV-2 variant that appears—and will appear, in perpetuity—the spread is related to evolution of the virus to develop new mutations that allow it get around some of the immunity engendered by prior infections and vaccinations,” Infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, said to Prevention.
When it comes to where the new variant has been detected, right now, it’s more common in Europe. Currently, it’s been detected in Poland, Norway, Luxembourg, Ukraine, and Portugal. But XEC has been detected in other places too, such as China, not to mention the 23 cases that have been detected in U.S. so far, including three in California.
“I anticipate that, if it is a more fit version of SARS-CoV-2, it will likely dominate most countries,” Dr. Adalja told the outlet. “However, the time scale will be different in each country.”
As for the new COVID vaccine, will it protect against the XEC?
The updated COVID-19 vaccine, which is now available, was formulated based on the KP.2 strain of the virus. Even though the KP.2 is related to XEC, there’s a great deal of differences between the two.
“It’s unclear how the updated vaccine will fare against this variant,” Dr. Adalja said. “But, based on the biological characteristics of XEC, it is not likely to be a good match and will not provide durable protection against infection.”
Dr. Adalja also stressed that the vaccine will still “protect high-risk individuals against severe disease.”
When it comes to protecting yourself, the CDC currently recommends that everyone aged 6 months and up get the updated COVID-19 vaccine to protect against serious illness and complications from the virus. For anyone who is considered at high risk for serious complications for the virus, Dr. Schaffner recommends getting the shot now.
But if you’re healthy and cases of the virus are lower in your area, keep in mind that he said , “October is an excellent time to get the COVID vaccine,” because of the fact that it can help extend your protection through the winter.
Also, wearing a mask such as the KN95 or N95 when traveling or in crowded indoor spaces can lower the risk of infection. Additionally, having home COVID tests on hand and contacting a doctor about getting on an antiviral medication such as Paxlovid if at high risk and get infected are also good measures when it comes to protecting yourself.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19’s biggest symptoms to watch out for includes fever or chills; cough; shortness of breath or difficult breathing; sore throat; congestion or runny nose; new loss of taste or smell; fatigue; muscle or body aches; headache; nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea.
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Publish date : 2024-09-24 02:01:00
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