22 September 2023 , 10:27
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Health chiefs have offered their top tips to help people avoid the twindemic of a new Covid variant and the flu, as the UK becomes the global centre of the Pirola outbreak.
The UK Health Security Agency has released some additional help, as temperatures begin to plunge and the country faces another tough winter for the NHS. Recent weeks have seen concern resurface over Covid as a highly mutated new variant, BA.2.86 nicknamed Pirola, appeared in the country already moving by community transmission, leading to the Autumn booster programme being brought forward.
Alongside that, every winter, growing flu cases puts extra pressure on an already struggling NHS. So ahead of the chillier weather, the UKHSA has released a number of their top tips to help reduce the spread of the twindemic of Covid and flu.
Tips to avoid the twindemic and stay healthy
Get vaccinated if you’re eligible
Keep indoor spaces ventilated when meeting with others
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Practise good hygiene: cover sneezes and coughs, wash your hands properly, and clean your surroundings,
Consider wearing a face covering.
This comes as the UK is now the heart of the confirmed outbreak of Pirola cases worldwide, with over 50 sequences according to GISAID. BA.2.86 was first detected and reported in Denmark, Israel and the USA. But scientists quickly realised it was vastly different to previous variants as it had over 30 mutations to the spike protein.
This led to some worries amongst the scientific community that the mutations might lead to it being resistant to vaccines which target the spike protein. However, as yet, there is no data to indicate that Pirola is more transmissible, evasive to vaccines, or deadly than Omicron or any previous Covid variant.
But nonetheless, the government took the decision to bring forward the autumn vaccine programme, rushing it up three weeks to offer maximum protection. Scientists are now stockpiling the variant in containment facilities so they can begin testing on BA.2.86 to learn more about it. Simultaneously, new, as yet unlicensed vaccines, are being tested to see if they’ll offer better protection.
A Norfolk care home is responsible for the majority of Pirola cases, with nearly 30 occupants and staff catching it after an outbreak in August. The latest data, from earlier in September, suggests that Pirola cases aren’t increasing rapidly, but overall Covid cases are up.
They remain on the up throughout September in the majority of age groups and regions across the UK. On top of that, hospitalisations have also increased week on week, being highest amongst the most elderly, but ICU admissions remain low and stable.