The past four weeks have reported a surge of almost 52 per cent (approximately 8,50,000 new cases) in the Covid cases globally, according to the information put out by WHO. There has additionally been a decrease of 8 per cent in deaths in comparison to the last 28-days period and over 3000 new casualties were added as per the latest WHO press release.
Keeping the recorded data of COVID-19 in mind till December 17, there have been close to 772 million confirmed cases with nearly seven million deaths. Globally, EG.5 remains the most reported variant of interest. However, with the rising cases of JN.1, a sub-lineage of BA.2.86 Omicron variant, hospitals globally have witnessed an increased patient overload. Though not as fatal as the precursor variants of COVID, it still stands concerning due to its rapidly increasing speed. Thereby, it has earned the status of separate variant of interest (VOI) by WHO.
The available evidence is indicative of the threat posed by JN.1 which is currently evaluated as low. Despite this, as the winter enters its full bloom in the Northern Hemisphere, JN.1 could potentially increase the burden of respiratory infections in many countries. The WHO is continuously monitoring the evidence and updates about the JN.1 risk evaluation are expected to follow.
Currently, the circulation of vaccines continues to protect against severe disease and death from JN.1 and other existing variants of SARS-CoV-2. COVID-19 is not the only respiratory disease reporting the increase in cases. Accompanying it is influenza, RSV, and common childhood pneumonia.
The WHO has put out several advisories which discuss the measures to prevent infections and severe disease using all available tools. These include wearing a mask in crowded, enclosed, or poorly ventilated areas, maintaining a safe distance from others, practising respiratory etiquette (covering coughs and sneezes), washing hands regularly and getting tested if one has any symptoms or if you might have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 or influenza.
