There are two new Covid variants currently circulating around the UK – named ‘Stratus’ and ‘Nimbus’ – and they come with some unusual indicators you can look out for
Some five years after the COVID pandemic hit, new strains of the virus have been reported – and they come with some unusual symptoms.
The most common variants currently doing the rounds are ‘Stratus’ and ‘Nimbus’. And according to the NHS, ‘Stratus’ – which is made up of two variants, XFG and XFG.3 – is believed to have led to a 60 per cent surge in Covid hospitalisations.
With cases continuing to rise worldwide, one woman has shared her symptoms after recently testing positive for the virus. Despite having caught Covid several times before, she described it as the “worst it’s ever been”.
In a TikTok video, Nev (@nivismad), from the US, revealed she began feeling unwell on August 30 as she experienced a “little bit of congestion” and noted that one side of her nose was “blocked”.
Next, she noticed her throat “was a little bit scratchy” and the next day she was “still congested but nothing crazy”” But then things took a turn for the worse. She revealed: “When I went to bed that night, my teeth were hurting, my jaw was hurting, and my head hurt really bad.”
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Nev’s video has since sparked comments from others who had experienced similar Covid symptoms, with one person commenting: “The teeth pain was terrible! Never had that symptom til this time around.” Another agreed: “Teeth pain, body aches, headache it sucks.”
The most commonly reported symptom of the new Stratus strain is a hoarse voice that appears suddenly.
George Sandhu, deputy superintendent pharmacist at Well Pharmacy, previously told Sun Health: “One distinctive symptom which many people have noticed before testing positive for the latest Covid variant is a hoarse voice
“Of course, as we are in Autumn, cold and flu are more prevalent and therefore a hoarse voice isn’t uncommon – the easiest way to know whether you have Covid or not is to take a test.”
The Nimbus strain, meanwhile, has reportedly been giving people very sore throats, with some people feeling like they’ve swallowed razor blades, added Sandhu.
It comes after UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) officials cautioned that the Covid virus continues to cause “severe” illness and fatalities, and also highlighted the warning signs of infection to monitor.
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The UKHSA stated: “While for most people COVID-19 is not as severe as during the early years of the pandemic, the virus is still causing severe illness, hospitalisations, and deaths – particularly among those with a weakened immune system and those 75 year old and over.
“It is normal and expected for viruses to genetically change over time and the current COVID-19 variants, much like previous variants, can spread easily through droplets released when an infected person coughs, sneezes or speaks.
“The autumn COVID-19 vaccines are our best defence against serious illness.”
The agency added: “We have seen COVID-19 symptoms change over time. Today, many people now experience cold-like symptoms and some will also experience fever or chills, continuous cough, shortness of breath, tiredness, body aches, headache, sore throat, blocked nose, loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhoea, or change in sense of taste or smell.
“Some people report a hoarse voice or a particularly painful sore throat, associated with the latest variants. This has been referred to in the media as ‘razor-blade throat’.”
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Statistics from September 29 to October 5 this year reveal that the XFG variant, also called Stratus, has become the dominant strain of Covid across England. In preceding weeks, the NB.1.8. 1 variant, known as Nimbus, had also been circulating extensively.
The NHS lists 12 symptoms to look out for:
- a high temperature or shivering (chills) – a high temperature means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
- shortness of breath
- feeling tired or exhausted
- an aching body
- a headache
- a sore throat
- a blocked or runny nose
- loss of appetite
- diarrhoea
- feeling sick or being sick