Stealth Omicron Edition This has fueled the recent outbreak in China, which according to reports is the largest in two years for the East Asian country.
in the national health commission China In the latest 24-hour period, 1,337 locally transmitted cases were reported, including 895 in the industrial province of Jilin. A government notice said people would need police permission to leave the area or travel from one city to another.
What is the Stealth Omicron variant?
deadly novel coronavirus That has changed with the times and this has created new variants that have fueled every wave of the pandemic. The delta variant took the most lives during the second wave. The third wave was driven by the Omicron variant which was first discovered in South Africa.
Viruses mutating due to environmental factors and geographic area cause many changes in the nature and structure of the virus.
Notably the new sub-version of Omicron differs from the original version. Dubbed as “stealth”, Omicron’s subspecies are concerning because they are harder to detect. Knowing the signs of stealth variants can help in rapid detection of the condition and taking the right steps to avoid complications.
BA.2 has sometimes been dubbed a stealth variant because its spike protein is missing critical mutations that are necessary for rapid PCR tests to differentiate it from previous variants, such as delta. This difference may also be because BA.2 escaped earlier attention.
Even though BA.2 is said to be a subtype of Omicron, its genetic makeup is quite different from the latter. According to the researchers, the stealth version has about 20 mutations that differ from the original Omicron. This makes it quite different from the Omicron variant in many ways and is also a cause for concern. Since the stealth Omicron variant is so much more diverse than the Omicron variant, it is difficult to trace its nature and its aggression. Predicting anything at this stage would be wrong and may mislead others.
Stealth Omicron Traits
Read below for the symptoms of the BA.2 type.
The WHO recently noted that unlike some earlier versions of viruses such as Delta, Omicron primarily affects the upper respiratory tract rather than the lungs.
Even though WHO agrees that knowledge about B.A2 is still evolving, this lineage is more diverse. Empirical data stated that it spreads faster than the Omron variant, which in itself had a higher transmission efficiency than COVID-19.
The two most commonly reported symptoms of patients infected with stealth omicron types are dizziness and fatigue. However, one must note, these are only symptoms of the initial stage.
Even though dizziness and fatigue are common everyday symptoms, their persistence should be monitored. If it bothers you for a few days or more, you should consult a doctor.
These symptoms can appear within two to three days of being infected with the virus and can last longer in the body.
In addition to the two telltale signs, the new sub-version may also cause other symptoms such as:
-Fever
-Excessive fatigue
– cough
-Sore throat
– head wound
-muscle fatigue
-high heart rate
According to the UK’s Zo COVID study app, a cold has also been the most commonly reported symptom of the ba.2 variant of Omicron, especially in people who have been vaccinated.
Symptoms such as loss of smell or taste and shortness of breath can also be ruled out, as the BA.2 variant does not primarily affect the lungs.
As far as the infectivity of the subvariant is concerned, it can spread as easily as its parent variant. Due to its highly contagious nature, it has already spread to many countries and it is believed that positive cases will emerge in the coming days. The only way to protect yourself is to get vaccinated and follow all COVID norms with utmost care.
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