Omicron XBB.1.5: the new subvariant of the Covid that alerts the US and Europe

When it seemed that COVID-19 was already part of the past, once again infectologists and health specialists warned about a new subvariant of Ómicron. It is the Omicron XBB.1.5or also called “kraken”, a “recombinant” subvariant of omicron, that is, it contains genetic material from different coronavirus subvariants.

Both the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) point out that the symptoms they produce are very similar to those of their predecessors. Based on early indices, collected in the United States, it suggests that XBB.1.5 would not be more deadly than other omicron subvariants.

Nevertheless, will ensure that XBB.1.5 will become the dominant variant in Europe by the end of January. Coronavuris specialist Maria van Kerkhove, from the World Health Organization (WHO), said last Wednesday in Geneva that the current subline surpasses all previously known ones in terms of its contagion capacity.

Are the vaccines against the Omicron XBB.1.5 variant effective in Argentina?

The specifications would indicate that the spread is due to the fact that the immune system takes longer to recognize the virus, which is why the infected person continues to circulate and spread the virus while they already have it. For example, 41% of those infected in the United States are the product of this new subvariant.

Although the propagation is faster, the Omicron XBB.1.5 continues to be neutralized by the immune cells that we incorporate as a result of vaccination. To minimize the impact of the virus it is important that vaccination is high. That is, that we continue to apply the doses as recommended by the National Ministry of Health.

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