The microorganism that causes COVID-19 is bringing much variants our way, requiring a fewer changes to the combat against it.
The BA.5 variant of omicron, which has dominated the U.S. since aboriginal summer, is fading fast. According to information released Friday, fractional the cases successful the U.S. are present owed to 2 descendants of BA.5, called BQ.1 and BQ.1.1.
Not overmuch is known yet astir those 2 variants, but the severity and duration of illness look akin to the different omicrons, and milder than the archetypal and delta variants.
The biggest situation from the 2 caller variants volition beryllium for radical who are immunocompromised because of illness oregon medications. Treatments designed to forestall and treat infection successful the immunocompromised won't enactment against BQ.1 and BQ.1.1.
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Here's what we cognize close now:
What is the existent COVID variant and what happened to omicron?
The omicron variant that caused truthful galore infections past winter is inactive around, but it has divided into galore subvariants. The 2 subvariants — BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 — present relationship for half of COVID-19 cases successful the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
BA.5 present accounts for 24% of cases.
Are the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 much dangerous?
Lab studies suggest the viral descendants of BA.5 and BA.2, which includes each the caller ascendant variants, mightiness origin somewhat much terrible disease than BA.1 oregon the archetypal omicron, said Jeremy Luban, a prof of molecular medicine, biochemistry and molecular biotechnology astatine UMass Chan Medical School.
But it's not wide whether that's existent successful the existent world, helium said, as laboratory studies can't capture factors similar quality behavior.
The caller variants are intelligibly much transmissible due to the fact that they are taking implicit and making radical sick contempt erstwhile vaccinations and infections, helium said successful a Thursday quality league with different members of the Massachusetts Consortium connected Pathogen Readiness.
Will vaccines and the bivalent booster inactive enactment against omicron variants?
Yes.
"Any benignant of boost truly reduces your chances of getting precise sick from COVID," said Dr. Kathryn Stephenson, an infectious illness adept astatine Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center successful Boston.
People who got the bivalent booster volition beryllium much protected against a terrible COVID-19 corruption compared to those who are unvaccinated oregon got a vaccine agelong ago.
In a survey posted Friday, Pfizer and its vaccine spouse BioNTech say that the latest booster increases the level of neutralizing antibodies against some BQ.1 and BQ.1.1, which support against infection.
Moderna reported akin results for its booster earlier successful the week, and it said past week its bivalent changeable besides showed “robust neutralizing activity” against the BQ.1.1 variant, suggesting it offers immoderate extortion against the newest strains.
Read much astir vaccines:
- In the works: Companies developing combination vaccine for flu and COVID
- Which bivalent booster should I get, and when? What you request to know
- COVID vaccine: Why Americans request to reset their expectations
What does BQ stand for?
The World Health Organization uses the Greek alphabet arsenic a classification strategy to simplify knowing and debar stigmatizing countries wherever strains of the SARS-CoV-2 microorganism that causes COVID-19 are identified.
The WHO named the archetypal B.1.1.529 variant aft the 15th letter, omicron. Within variants, the bureau assigns numbers to sublineages.
BA.5 was classified arsenic an omicron variant but has mutations that separate it from different omicron subvariants, specified arsenic BA.1 and BA.2. BA.5 is the parental strain of BQ.1 and BQ.1.1.
What are the symptoms of the caller omicron variants?
The symptoms of BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 look to beryllium the aforesaid arsenic for different COVID-19 variants. The astir communal symptoms see exhaustion, fever, a cough, congestion, shortness of breath, sore throat, nausea, diarrhea, and musculus aches oregon headache. Loss of smell, which primitively characterized COVID-19 infections, is nary longer arsenic common.
Before you get sick: Have these essentials astatine location to easiness cold, flu and COVID symptoms
Can I get BQ.1 or BQ.1.1 if I've had BA.5?
Yes. Theoretically anyone is susceptible if exposed to capable viral particles. But radical who person been boosted oregon infected wrong the past 3 to six months are little apt to beryllium infected again and surely little apt to endure terrible disease, Stephenson said.
What to bash if I get infected by BQ.1 oregon BQ.1.1?
If you trial affirmative for the coronavirus oregon consciousness sick with related symptoms, the CDC recommends:
- Stay home for astatine slightest 5 days and isolate from different household members
- Wear a well-fitted disguise astir others successful the home
If you're fever-free for 24 hours and symptoms improve aft the 5 days, the CDC says you tin extremity isolation, but instrumentality precautions for 5 further days. This includes wearing masks and avoiding travel.
What if I person a compromised immune system?
This is simply a "pretty scary" clip for radical who don't person bully moving immune systems, either due to the fact that of older age, diseases similar cancer, oregon treatments that trim immunity, Luban said.
The past 2 protective monoclonal antibodies don't enactment against the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 variants, said Jake Lemieux, an infectious illness specializer astatine Massachusetts General Hospital.
That includes Evusheld, which was utilized to forestall severely immunocompromised radical from getting precise sick with COVID-19. It's a large loss, helium said. "I bash anticipation determination volition beryllium a replacement cause for prophylaxis that retains enactment against circulating variants."
Flu, RSV and COVID: What to cognize astir the 'tripledemic'
Doctors are saying we're presently successful a "tripledemic" with 3 respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, flu and RSV circulating simultaneously.
Vaccinating against some flu and COVID-19 volition assistance bounds terrible infections, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious illness specializer astatine the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
There are presently nary vaccines oregon circumstantial attraction for respiratory syncytial virus, oregon RSV, which tin infect radical repeatedly and are particularly unsafe for the precise young and precise old, helium said.
It's not wide why, but some flu and RSV are circulating overmuch earlier this twelvemonth than they did earlier the pandemic, said Dr. Tina Tan, vice president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, which held a quality league Friday that included her and Schaffner. "Whether oregon not these volition spell backmost to mean (in aboriginal years), cipher knows," she said.
Tan, a pediatrician astatine the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, said she knows everyone is acceptable for a "new normal," but she worries that not capable radical are getting COVID-19 boosters and yearly flu shots, and that children and adults person fallen down connected different regular vaccinations as well.
"Vaccines request to beryllium portion of that caller mean to forestall individuals from becoming sick with the viruses and bacteria that are circulating," she said. "That is the caller normal."
Read much astir this topic:
- An RSV vaccine is 'long overdue.' Why that could soon change.
- Antibiotic shortage: Demand spikes for amoxicillin aft surge successful RSV cases
- CDC study: People of colour much apt to beryllium hospitalized with the flu
Can we person a COVID-free Thanksgiving? Here are immoderate tips.
Extreme precautions are nary longer needed, experts say. But Lemieux said people should beryllium cautious if they person precise young, precise aged oregon immunocompromised radical astatine their vacation gatherings.
He suggests guests usage a location COVID trial earlier sitting down unneurotic successful an enclosed abstraction and that radical who are sick shouldn't spell astatine all.
"I don't privation to accidental 'cancel Thanksgiving,' but I besides don't privation to accidental 'don't interest astir respiratory viruses," said Lemieux, who besides worries astir the flu and RSV getting passed astir on with the turkey.
Some things to support successful mind:
►If you make acold symptoms, get tested for COVID: Take a trial close away because the anti-viral Paxlovid, which tin assistance forestall terrible illness successful high-risk people, lone works if fixed wrong five days of infection.
►If you're traveling, deterioration a mask: Masking portion traveling to celebrations besides makes sense, said Dr. Lael Yonker, a pediatrician astatine Massachusetts General Hospital. She's had her children deterioration masks starring up to the holiday.
►Get vaccinated against the flu and COVID: For Schaffner's household gathering, everyone indispensable beryllium vaccinated against flu and boosted against COVID-19, helium said. "No 1 wants to beryllium a dreaded spreader," helium said.
When tin we halt worrying astir caller variants?
Experts person been waiting for the microorganism that causes COVID-19 to settee down into a seasonal signifier and halt mutating truthful much, but it hasn't happened yet. While existent vaccines are considered harmless and precise effectual against terrible disease, they bash not forestall each infections.
Next procreation vaccines, presently nether development, could supply broader oregon longer-term extortion against COVID-19. Companies are besides exploring delivering the vaccine done the chemoreceptor rather than by shots, which mightiness supply much extortion against infection.
Pfizer and BioNTech announced Wednesday that they person started a 180-person early-stage proceedings of a caller campaigner vaccine they anticipation volition broaden and widen extortion against the virus. The caller vaccine volition people the "spike" macromolecule connected the aboveground of the archetypal microorganism positive the mentation of spike connected the BA.5 variant, as good arsenic a non-spike macromolecule that doesn't look to beryllium mutating arsenic much.
The proceedings volition see 3 antithetic doses and variations to spot if the campaigner vaccine is amended than the existent one.
Follow Adrianna Rodriguez connected Twitter: @AdriannaUSAT.
Health and diligent information sum astatine USA TODAY is made imaginable successful portion by a assistance from the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition successful Healthcare. The Masimo Foundation does not supply editorial input.
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