JN1 New Covid strain “variant of interest (VOI)”, be alert but do no panic

COVID cases are rising again , and the culprit seems to be the new strain JN.1. It is more transmissible,spreading more rapidly and gradually becoming a dominant variant.WHO has classified it as a variant of interest but yet not as an area of concern.

In India, active COVID cases around 4,054 patients with the highest being reported from Kerala. A rise in daily positivity rate has also been reported from Goa, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Delhi etc.

WHO has reported new COVID cases increased by 52 per cent during the past four weeks, with over 850 000 new cases reported during this period.

When ever Covid cases are on rise, it becomes an area of concern. Since the first case of the virus, identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, china, so far around 7 million deaths have been recorded globally and around 5 lakh in India.

Luckily the fatality rate with the present strains stands low ,below1.0 per cent, may be hybrid immunity protection from current vaccines and previous immunity from Covid infection continues to protect against severe disease and death from JN.1 and other circulating variants of SARS-CoV-2 .

With the onset of winter , JN.1 could increase the burden of respiratory infections in many countries since people are staying more in a closed environment.

Symptoms are mostly similar. They include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing, fatigue, muscle, or body aches, but symptoms are less severe in nature.

It is also important that at present, COVID-19 is not the only respiratory disease circulating. influenza, RSV, and common childhood pneumonia and Mycoplasma are also on the rise.

For all these respiratory illness, Preventive measures include wearing a mask when in crowded, enclosed, or poorly ventilated areas, keeping a safe distance from others, practicing respiratory etiquette (covering coughs and sneezes), cleaning hands regularly, and getting tested if one has any above symptoms or exposed to someone with COVID-19 or influenza.

At the same time, states should enhance surveillance and maintain adequate stock of medicines, oxygen cylinders & concentrators, ventilators and vaccines.

We may see an increase in the number of Covid cases, but the nature of JN.1 infection suggests there is no reason to panic.

At present, an additional dose of vaccine is not recommended. Only those over 60 years of age who have comorbidities and high-risk patients in this age group can take a precautionary third dose if they have not taken one till now. As of now, there is no need for a fourth dose in the general public as per experts.

Take precautions. We have the experience behind us. Together, we shall control this again.