A new COVID-19 variant may be causing a severe throat pain in some people who contract the infection.
The variant, known as NB.1.8.1, has been nicknamed by some as “shaving blade throat” due to the painful symptom.
Open global genome sequencing database data Gisaid It shows that the new variant has been detected in several states, including New York, Illinois, Texas and California.
Public health experts told ABC News that there is still no reason for serious concern because the virus does not seem to be more severe than the previous variants and that you can take steps to protect themselves.
What is NB 1.8.1?
NB.1.8.1 Derive from the recombinant variant XVD.1.5.1, which is a descendant of the OMICRON variant.
The first sample of NB.1.8.1 was collected on January 22, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). First it was detected in China and other parts of Asia before extending to Europe.
It was designated as a “variant under monitoring” by WHO, which means that it may require prioritized attention and monitoring, but it is not as serious as a “variant of interest” or a “variant of concern.”
From the week ending on June 7, NB.1.8.1 is the second most dominant variant in the US., It represents an estimate of 37% of cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Centers for disease control and prevention).
A three-dimensional representation shows the OMICRON variant strain of the COVID-19 virus.
Stock Image/Getty Images
The virus seems to be more transmissible because there seems to be changes in spike protein, which is what the virus uses to unite and infect cells, said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, a professor of medicine and specialist in infectious diseases at the University of California, San Francisco.
It also seems to join Ace2 receptors more easily, which are proteins that are on the surface of the cells and how the virus that causes Covid to enter the cells, he told ABC News.
NB.1.8.1 It still does not seem to be causing increases in cases or in hospitalizations with rates that remain “stable” so far, according to Chin-Hong.
The variant has also been called “Nimbus”, which It seems to have been coined In X by T. Ryan Gregory, Canadian professor of evolutionary biology.
“Nimbus is a catchy and fast name, and also includes an ‘N’ and a ‘B’ of the lineage, which is NB.8.1. Therefore, it is easier for people to be able to say these nicknames for Covid, instead of remembering the real lineage,” said Dr. Ahok Potel, Stanford’s Pediatrician Children Health and an ABC news taxpayer.
“But I think it is also important because it keeps people paying attention to new Covid variants that can be different in terms of infectivity and in terms of propagation,” he added.
What are the symptoms?
The experts said they are not sure whether the pain of painful throat is just a symptom that people are talking or a distinctive symptom of this variant.
Nor is it clear if the “razor blade” is more common in those who are more up to date with vaccination compared to those who are not updated.
“I think it is certainly among the spectrum of symptoms that it can obtain, and we know that throat pain is reported by approximately 70% of patients with Covid, so it is not unusual, and as with everything in medicine, there is always a spectrum,” said Chin-Hong.
There is currently no evidence that NB.1.8.1. It causes a more serious disease or is more likely that it causes hospitalization, according to Dr. William Schaffner, professor of preventive medicine at the Medical Center of Vanderbilt University in Nashville,
“But, of course, there are people in high -risk groups who still run the risk of being hospitalized if they become infected,” he told ABC News.
There are no other described symptoms that are specific to NB.1.8.1 by the CDC.
Symptoms listed by the Health Agency It still includes throat pain, cough, fever, chills, lack of breath, difficulty breathing, congestion, nasal secretion, loss of taste or smell, fatigue, muscle pains, body pain, headache, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
How to protect yourself
Experts recommend that high -risk Americans receive a vaccine twice a year as recommended by CDCs.
CDC too He currently recommends Most adults over 18 receive an updated vaccine of 2024-2025 and that parents of children between 6 months to 17 years discuss the benefits of vaccination with a medical care provider.
COVID-19 also tends to increase at the end of summer and early fall, so people should consider opening windows to increase ventilation, use a mask in certain situations and avoid areas full of people, Schaffner said.
In this archive photo of March 4, 2024, people speak on a hiking route near their home in Napanoch, NY
The Washington Post through Getty Images, Archive
“It’s time to transmit a movie, as I like to say, instead of going to the movies,” he added.
Patel said it is important to practice good hygiene, such as adequate hand washing and covering the mouth when coughing or sneezing.
He also recommended that people try if they are symptomatic and said that fast tests work in the free sale home.
“Infecting with Covid and other infectious diseases is not necessarily life or death, but it can still be very weakening.” Patel said. “It can make people lose their jobs, spread the virus, nursing people who are older at risk and there is still an incalculable amount of people who have a long covid.”
He added: “Then, we do not want to see Covid as a common cold, because there is still much we are learning about it, and there are still so many possibilities with this virus that continues to mutate, if we leave it.”
