The Omicron variant of the Covid virus is further mutating. In recent times, 2 new Omicron sub-variants have been found as well. In today’s post, we will shed some light on the sub-variants to help you understand what they are, what their symptoms are, and what their causes are.

 

BA.4 Omicron Covid Variant

The first sub-variant detected goes by the name of BA.4. The cases affected by this sub-variant are only a few dozen worldwide. However, these are spread across numerous countries like South Africa, Scotland, England, Denmark, etc. Even though this variant is transmissible but so far, the cases are pretty limited.

 

Symptoms of BA.4 Omicron Variant

It is now time to look at some of the symptoms of this variant so that detection becomes easy.

Cough:

Cough is persistent and comes across all the variants of covid. It is a symptom that is common with this variant as well. Persistent coughing might lead to some occasional throat or lung pain which is common when an individual is affected by this sub-variant of Omicron.

 Fever:

Fever is another common symptom of Omicron as well as other covid variants. It is one of the main symptoms in an individual suffering from this sub-variant of covid.

The main distinction is that the individual or the patient infected by the sub-variant suffers from high fever. The temperature can easily rise. Also, the fever usually lasts for more than three days as well.

Loss of taste:

Right from the start of the Covid pandemic, it has been seen that when you’re infected with the virus, you will experience a loss of taste. Even if you eat out something which has a strong flavor, you will not be able to recognize any flavor at all. With this variant of Covid, you will experience the same symptom.

Loss of smell:

Another common symptom is loss of smell. However, this symptom is also seen in individuals suffering from any other variant of Covid.

When you look at the list of the symptoms, you will realize that most symptoms are common in other variants as well. To detect this variant, proper sequencing needs to be done rather than merely looking at the symptoms.

 

Causes of BA.4 Omicron Variant

The cause of this sub-variant is the mutation of the virus. Some of the countries where this variant has already been detected include:

• England
• Scotland
• Botswana
• Denmark
• South Africa

With travel opening up and global business travel also resuming once again, we might likely see cases caused by this sub-variant crop up in many more countries.

 

BA.5 Omicron Covid Variant

BA.5 is in the nascent stages. However, WHO has already detected a few cases caused by this mutation of the virus. Truth be told, the information about this Omicron variant is pretty limited. However, it is the next variant of concern according to WHO.

Fortunately, this variant is not more transmissible than the other variants of the Omicron virus. It means that it is unlikely to accelerate the spread of the virus.

 

Symptoms of BA.5 Omicron Covid Variant

The symptoms of the sub-variant are pretty similar to its predecessor. However, a few symptoms are extremely common in people suffering from this sub-variant. We will cover those below.

Tiredness:

During the initial phase of the pandemic, loss of energy or feeling tired all the time was a pretty common symptom. After that, the symptom wasn’t that common. However, the BA.5 Omicron Covid variant patients suffer from this problem.

In fact, during the 1st few days of getting infected, most patients cannot continue with their day-to-day courses well. However, with proper medication and as the infection subsides, energy loss is also less severe. Nevertheless, it is one of the most prominent symptoms you need to watch out for.

 Fever:

Fever is a persistent symptom across all the variants of the Covid virus. In this sub-variant, people often suffer from a high fever at least for the first 3 to 5 days. It is only after that that the fever subsides. The patients should not wait it out, assuming that the fever will reduce independently. However, proper medication should be taken under the advice of a doctor for the fever to reduce.

Cough:

Cough is another common symptom across all the variants of the Omicron Covid virus. While the cough caused by this sub-variant might be wild, it is still a pretty common symptom in individuals suffering from this sub-variant of the virus.

One thing which has come to light until now is that the patients who are suffering from this sub-variant of the Covid virus have mild symptoms. That is why it is easier to treat the symptoms as well.

While it is not a given that everyone will suffer from mild symptoms but up until now, the study suggests that this sub-variant does not cause any severe symptoms.

 

Some Features

The BA.5 Omicron sub-variant is once again a mutation of the omicron variant. It is not more transmissible as compared to the other coronavirus variants. That is why the cases have been localized up until now.

As of the last couple of weeks, all the cases of this sub-variant have been found in South Africa. However, Botswana recently stated that there might be a few cases caused by this sub-variant virus in their country.

Initial indications are that while this sub-variant is causing mild symptoms, it also affects fully vaccinated individuals. That is certainly a cause of concern when it comes to this sub-variant.

 

Conclusion

So, instead of thinking that the pandemic is over, it is now time for the authorities to focus more on these 2 sub-variants. If they are kept under check, the Covid pandemic might be on its last legs. However, unless and until concrete information is formed about the sub-variants and their transmission isn’t slowed down, we still have a couple of reasons to worry when it comes to the Covid pandemic.