The Aga Khan University Hospital has confirmed emergence of six Covid-19 cases belonging to XBB, the highly contagious XBB category of the Omicron subvariant.
“We have detected six cases, however, others have been found around the country,” AKUH Infectious Diseases Section Head Dr Faisal Mehmood told Dawn.com.
According to the expert, the variant can spread rapidly, especially among those who do not have pre-existing immunity via vaccination or earlier infections.
“The symptoms are similar to other Covid variants,” he added, and encouraged vaccinations for people with low immunity or those who haven’t yet received a booster shot of the vaccine.
Dr Faisal, who has expertise in infectious diseases, termed adequate testing as crucial to countering the spread of the said variant.
On whether the existing vaccination would work against it, he said, “New variants are able to still infect people who have had the vaccination, however, the symptoms tend to be mild.”
World Health Organisation describes the XBB as a ‘highly contagious subvariant of Covid-19’s Omicron strain.’
The US Centres for Disease Control says that around 40pc of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country were caused by the XBB.1.5 strain, a strain related to the XBB variant.
According to a report, the CDC guidelines indicate how the scientific community has come to terms with the fact that the coronavirus is going nowhere. Or as they said in their recent briefing, “it is here to stay”.
The virus grew and so did the science around it. We became more confident in fighting off the nano-nuisance as our knowledge advanced. To cut the long story short, we came a long way in this man-versus-virus saga, riding on science.
Whether due to vaccination or exposure, our immunities are now stronger. This along with better preparedness in healthcare facilities has allowed not just to mellow the morbid aura around the virus but also tone down its effects. People are experiencing milder symptoms and require less hospitalisation.
The transmissibility has also reduced significantly thanks to improved immunities. The numbers seem to be on our side.
