New Covid variant makes up two-thirds of new cases – 8 symptoms to look out for

08 January 2024 , 17:43

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New Covid variant makes up two-thirds of new cases – 8 symptoms to look out for

The new JN.1 variant of Covid-19 now accounts for almost two-thirds of new cases.

Over recent weeks, the number of JN.1 infections has rocketed, rising from just four per cent of all cases in early November to 65 per cent on December 30.

Experts believe the current wave of the virus has been fueled by the new variant along with Christmas socialising. It's growing so rapidly it will be approaching previous records soon, and could even hit an all-time high in the UK in as little as a week.

“The rapid rise of infections with the JN.1 variant in the UK and across the world is yet another reminder that the pandemic is far from over. JN.1 is one of the most immune-evading variants to date and is likely to be the lineage from which new variants will evolve,” said Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at Warwick University.

“We can expect to see more people suffering from infections with JN .1 over the coming weeks as a consequence of more indoor mixing due to the cold weather and the return of pupils to school. More infections means more days off work and more hospitalisations."

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On December 13, just 4.3 per cent of people had the virus, but numbers are though to have risen considerably since then. Now the number of JN.1 infections may even exceed previous records. Though it's the most infectious of the 10 or more subvariants, it has not been proven to be more severe. Scientists have warned that all subvariants are able to cause serious illness, long Covid, or even death.

Rowland Kao, of Edinburgh University, told inews: “While it is reassuring that we have no evidence that JN.1 causes more severe infection the fact that it is dominating new cases means that healthcare burdens are likely to be higher than if the variant didn’t exist.

“So even though it is still believed that the most recent boosters are protective, for individuals it is worth being extra aware of contact with vulnerable persons, even if they have had recent boosters – because we know protection isn’t 100 per cent. It remains important for eligible individuals to get boosters.”

Last week, scientists said Covid cases may reach new record highs by mid-January after JN.1 became dominant over Christmas. The data was drawn from the latest ONS and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) winter infection survey. The research, published on December 21, estimated that on December 13, 2.54million people had Covid. That was more than double the amount seen at the start of December. Another warning said that more than 100,000 Brits could develop Long Covid in coming weeks.

Here are the eight symptoms of the JN.1 variant...

• Sore throat.
• Congestion.
• Runny nose.
• Cough.
• Fatigue.
• Headache.
• Muscle aches.
• Fever or chills.

Ryan Fahey