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The B.1.1.529variant includes a large number of spike protein mutations as well as mutations in other parts of the viral genome. BA.2 is estimated to account for approximately 93.7% of cases in England, with the highest prevalence in the South East (96.4%) and the lowest in the East Midlands (91.1%). UKHSA is carrying out targeted testing at locations where the positive cases were likely to be infectious. There is no data to suggest that BA.2 leads to more severe disease than previous Omicron sub-variants. UKHSA continues to examine all available data relating to SARS-CoV-2 variants in the UK and abroad. At this point it is not possible to determine where the sublineage may have originated. India is another country where BA.2 is rapidly replacing the Delta and Omicron BA.1 variant, according to molecular biologist Bijaya Dhakal. The following are the symptoms of this subvariant: The most common symptom is a sore throat that causes dryness, itching, and pain in the throat Low-grade fever Runny nose Sneezing Mild to moderate fatigue Headache The variant technical briefing also includes updated analysis on Omicron BA.2, currently the dominant variant in the UK. We continue to monitor all recombinants closely, routinely through our world-leading genomic surveillance and sequencing capability. Of symptomatic cases, loss of smell and taste was found to be more common in people who tested positive for Delta than those who had Omicron. So, like the original omicron strain (BA.1), the primary symptoms of a mild BA.2 infection are a cough, fever, fatigue and possible loss of taste or smell. The BA.2 subvariant has been referred to as stealth Omicron because it contains genetic mutations that can make it harder to distinguish from the . The Delta variant, for example, comprises 200 different sub-variants. Positive tests with sufficient virus detected from people arriving in the UK are sent for confirmation through Whole Genome Sequencing, regardless of the presence or absence of SGTF. It is critical that anyone with COVID-19 symptoms isolates and gets a PCR test immediately. UKHSA is constantly monitoring the situation and working to understand the implications for public health. Please come forward to receive your booster as soon as possible. Following the change in Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice yesterday, a booster dose for everyone over 18 years is now recommended at a minimum of 3 months from your last primary course jab. The BA.2 variant is a sibling of the BA.1, which swept across the country over Christmas. Headache. Why Alex Murdaugh was spared the death penalty, Why Trudeau is facing calls for a public inquiry, The shocking legacy of the Dutch 'Hunger Winter', Why half of India's urban women stay at home. Health and Social Care Secretary, Sajid Javid, said: We are learning to live with this virus and thanks to our world-leading surveillance system we can rapidly detect and carefully monitor any genetic changes to COVID-19. The individuals who have tested positive and their contacts are all isolating. Xi Jinping is unveiling a new deputy - why it matters, Bakhmut attacks still being repelled, says Ukraine, Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore dies at 61, The children left behind in Cuba's mass exodus, Snow, Fire and Lights: Photos of the Week. We will continue to monitor this situation closely and recommend appropriate public health measures if needed. ; The incubation time (time to onset of symptoms) is a bit shorter: 3 days. Working alongside Cambridge University MRC Biostatistics unit, UKHSA analysed 528,176 Omicron cases and 573,012 Delta cases between 22 November and 26 December to assess the risk of hospitalisation in England after testing positive for Omicron. Neither BQ.1 nor XBB have been designated as variants of concern and UKHSA is monitoring the situation closely, as always. Dr Jenny Harries, Chief Executive of UKHSA, said: We are continuing our efforts to understand the effect of this variant on transmissibility, severe disease, mortality, antibody response and vaccine efficacy. Omicron sublineages BQ.1 and XBB have been given UKHSA variant designations to facilitate continued studies. We use some essential cookies to make this website work. Any variants showing evidence of spread are rapidly assessed. Due to the early nature of the findings, all estimates are subject to significant uncertainty and are subject to change. Everybody who is contacted or has symptoms should take aPCRtest as soon as possible, even if they have received a positive COVID-19PCRtest within the last 90 days. So, like the original omicron strain (BA.1), the primary symptoms of a mild BA.2 infection are a cough, fever, fatigue and possible loss of taste or smell. We have started to see cases where there are no links to travel, suggesting that we have a small amount of community transmission. For some more vulnerable a third dose is available. A total 637 cases of XE a recombinant of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2 have been confirmed in the UK so far. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has identified 8 further cases of COVID-19 with mutations consistent with B.1.1.529 in England, in addition to the previous 5 confirmed cases of the SARS-CoV-2 variant known as B.1.1.529. By the summer of 2022, the BA.5 variant was the most dominant strain in the US. Please take up this offer as soon as you are eligible to protect yourself, your families and your communities. So far, there is insufficient evidence to determine whether BA.2 causes more severe illness than Omicron BA.1, but data is limited and UKHSA continues to investigate. BA.2, also known as "stealth omicron," is considered a subvariant of omicron. As we cautiously return to Plan A, I encourage you to give yourself and your loved ones the best protection possible and Get Boosted Now. Two-thirds with Omicron say they had Covid before. Anewrisk assessment for OmicronVOC-21NOV-01 (B.1.1.529)has also been published and is available here. A further case has been identified in Scotland, bringing the total to 10. Please also make sure to follow all Government guidance to reduce the spread of infection. Recent studies suggest that BA.2 has a. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) can confirm that 10 people have been hospitalised with the Omicron variant in England; the individuals were diagnosed on or before admission. The best way that you can protect yourself is to come forward for your first 2 doses of vaccine, or your booster jab and do everything you can to stop onward transmission of the infection. Two variants, CH.1.1 and XBB.1.5, appear to have a growth advantage in the UK. Stay at home if you have any respiratory symptoms or a fever and limit contact with others until you are feeling better, particularly if they are likely to be at greater risk if they contract COVID-19. The latest number of COVID-19 cases with mutations consistent with B.1.1.529 in England are published on UKHSAs social media channels. The worst symptom is a "throat on fire," said University of California, San Francisco's Dr. Peter Chin-Hong. Vaccine effectiveness (VE) against Omicron has again been updated in this weeks briefing. Work is underway to identify any links to travel to Southern Africa. The guidance on vaccination is changing to help all of us bolster our defences in the face of this new variant. The designation was made on the basis of increasing numbers of BA.2 sequences identified both domestically and internationally. One study has suggested that it may be difficult to identify this variant . Dr Jenny Harries, Chief Executive ofUKHSA, said: We are continuing our efforts to understand the effect of this variant on transmissibility, severe disease, mortality, antibody response and vaccine efficacy. The individual is no longer in the UK, but UKHSA is carrying out targeted testing at locations where the positive case visited when they were likely to have been infectious. Hospital admissions are increasing, and we cannot risk the NHS being overwhelmed. The full document and underlying data is available on GOV.UK. The percentage of people to have received a booster dose will also already be higher in older age groups and those with underlying health conditions due to prioritisation of the rollout so far. This analysis is preliminary and highly uncertain because of the small numbers of Omicron cases currently in hospital, inability to effectively measure all previous infections and the limited spread of Omicron into older age groups. So far, there have been 717 V-22OCT-01 sequences uploaded from the UK to the international GISAID database. A major ailment is not to be expected for the age group 20-50 years. UKHSAs most recent variant technical briefing includes examination of a number of recombinant variants which have been identified in the UK, as well as updated epidemiological and genomic analysis of Omicron BA.2. The individual tested positive after travel to the UK and is linked to travel to Southern Africa. This is not an unusual occurrence and several recombinant SARS-CoV-2 variants have been identified over the course of the pandemic. Typical meningitis symptoms include neck stiffness or pain, numbness, tingling, and sensitivity to light. Even if a smaller proportion of these individuals require hospitalisation, these are still large numbers of people requiring hospital care and pressures on the NHS will increase. Work is underway to identify any links to travel to Southern Africa. Vaccination is critical to help us bolster our defences against this new variant please get your first, second or booster jab without delay. According to the COVID Symptom Study, the five most common symptoms are the same: Runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and sore throat. The data suggests this risk is significantly reduced following a booster vaccine, so I urge everyone to take up their booster when eligible. Yet fears of another Omicron wave in the United States may be. None of these cases are known to have been hospitalised or died. An ad blocker has likely prevented this video content from loading. BA.2 Symptoms Not That Different From Omicron, Delta. As the coronavirus continues to evolve, a new highly contagious Omicron variant is appearing in India and other nations, including the United States, experts say.. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has published the latest variant technical briefing. Initial data suggests that LFDs are as likely to detect Omicron as other variants including Delta, which has been the dominant variant in the UK from May to December 2021. These are some of the symptoms that you should be looking out for: High temperature. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has identified 75 further cases of COVID-19 with mutations consistent with B.1.1.529 in England, in addition to the previous 29 confirmed cases of the SARS-CoV-2 variant known as B.1.1.529. Work is underway to identify any links to travel. However, it remains too early to draw any definitive conclusions on hospital severity, and the increased transmissibility of Omicron and the rising cases in the over 60s population in England means it remains highly likely that there will be significant pressure on the NHS in coming weeks. What we know is that it is certainly growing as a proportion of overall cases in the UK. It includes a complete list of studies planned and already under way into the emerging variant. To help us improve GOV.UK, wed like to know more about your visit today. As set out last week, the effectiveness of all vaccines against symptomatic infection continues to be lower in all periods against Omicron compared to Delta. According to Denmark's Statens Serum Institut (SSI), BA.2 infections rose to account for about half of the country's reported Covid cases in January. The study also showed evidence to suggest that the BA.2 sub-variant is better able to evade vaccines. It is still too early to determine next steps, so please stay cautious this Christmas and get your booster as soon as possible to protect yourself and your loved ones. Currently, the Omicron variant has BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, and B.1.1.529 sub-variants, of which the BA.1 was dominant a few months before, and scientists have recently warned about the BA.2 sub-variant . For the first time, this data includes analysis on vaccine effectiveness 15+ weeks after the booster dose. It has since swept the globe, eventually vanquishing other variants including delta. The latest UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) COVID-19 variant technical briefing, published today, includes updated epidemiological analysis which indicates that Omicron BA.5 has, as expected, become the dominant SARS-CoV-2 variant in the UK. Please take up this offer as soon as you are eligible to protect yourself, your families and your communities. It is not unexpected to see new lineages and continued investigation is a normal part of the surveillance of an infectious disease. Everyone over 18 is now able to walk into a vaccine centre, so do not hesitate to get yours. "It's important to know and recognize all of the. We have also learnt that BA.2 has a slightly higher secondary attack rate than BA.1 in households. UKHSA is monitoring the situation closely, in partnership with scientific and public health organisations across the world. Infection rate corrected to one million infections a day. Wear a mask in crowded places, including public transport and shops, to ensure we all help break the chains of transmission and slow the spread of this new variant. However, it should serve as objective evidence that this pandemic is not over. As I previously reported, omicron subvariants have a shorter incubation period, which is why the symptoms may appear earlier. The assessment suggests that Omicron is displaying a significant growth advantage over Delta, meaning that it is likely to outcompete Delta in the UK and become the dominant variant. The total number of confirmed cases in England is now 22. Data on this wont be available for several weeks. The proportion of test results displaying SGTF has been very low in recent months but an increase has been observed in the past week. Data and analysis will be released in due course through our regular surveillance reporting. The World Health Organization has been monitoring SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19) since January 2020, during which time the variant Omicron has been identified, which is technically known as BA.1 or B.1.1.529.The WHO is now monitoring a sub-variant of Omicron, known as BA.2, which has been described as "stealth Omicron," because it has genetic mutations that potentially make it . There are simple things you can do in your daily life that will help reduce the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections and protect those at highest risk. And in England, more than 1,000 confirmed cases of BA.2 have been identified, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The odds of reporting long COVID symptoms four to eight weeks after a first COVID-19 infection were 21.8% higher after an infection compatible with Omicron BA.2 than Omicron BA.1 among adults who were triple-vaccinated when infected; this was after adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics and time since last COVID-19 vaccination. The five most common symptoms of Omicron are: runny nose;. A BA2 variant's symptoms are similar to those of Omicron. The team at ZOE, a study that tracks symptoms .