Experts have warned that a ‘devastating’ covid wave is about to break over winter in the UK.
A drop in testing and insufficient monitoring of new immune-evasive subvariants could lead to a wave of infections. And, with a new wave of the pandemic virus comes a new variety of symptoms.
A new dominant symptom is being reported - with two-thirds of all people now reporting having a sore throat when they first contract covid as opposed to a loss of smell or a fever.
READ MORE: Health officials issue warning after 'rapid' rise in covid cases
Professor Tim Spector, co-founder of the covid ZOE app told The Independent: “It looks like we’re in the start of the next wave and this time it’s affected older people slightly earlier than the last wave. Many people are still using the government guidelines about symptoms which are wrong.
"At the moment, covid starts in two-thirds of people with a sore throat. Fever and loss of smell are really rare now – so many old people may not think they’ve got covid. They’d say it’s a cold and not be tested.”
The expert also told the newspaper that early data showed new subvariants of Omicron were becoming immune-evasive and could cause the UK ‘real problems’ as winter approaches with the NHS ‘already on its knees’.
The ONS said that approximately 1.1 million people in private households tested positive for covid in the latest UK survey, which covers the seven days to September 17 in England and the week to September 30 in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This is the first time that the UK-wide total has been above one million since late August, however, it is way below the 3.8 million weekly infections in early July, marked as the peak of the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 wave.
Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, says two Omicron subvariants – known as BA.2.75.2 derived from BA.2, and BQ1.1 derived from BA.5 – are showing signs of being able to escape the immune system. He's finding that the virus is evolving around the immunity that’s been built up through vaccines and infections people have had.
Both professors are called for stronger messaging from the Government ahead of the winter, with Professor Young advocating the return of mask-wearing in poorly ventilated and crowded indoor spaces. Meanwhile, Sarah Crofts, ONS deputy director for the Covid-19 infection survey, said it was “too early to identify whether this is the start of a new wave”.
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