Five people in the UK have died with the new Arcturus strain of Covid, according to the latest technical briefing from the UK Health and Security Agency (UKHSA). There have been at least 135 cases of Arcturus, Omicron XBB.1.16, in the UK so far.
The disease is mostly concentrated in England, where there were 120 cases of the subvariant, but Wales had eight cases, Scotland had five, and Northern Ireland had two as well. As of earlier this month, Arcturus was present in at least 28 countries, with the majority of those cases, over 2,000, in India, reports The Mirror.
Alongside this, the United States was reported to have 357 cases as of April 14, as Singapore and Australia both had over 100 cases too.
Reports from doctors in India, where the strain is rife, have said they are seeing more children and adolescents with the subvariant presenting with conjunctivitis - or pink eye.
Arcturus was behind a rise in Covid cases in India that led to some mask laws being reintroduced.
The World Health Organisation first detected the subvariant in January.
