New COVID-19 Symptoms: Daily Cases Surge In UK, US, Experts Warn of Massive Jump In Hospitalisation Rate

In the last few days, the United Kingdom and United States have seen a massive jump in daily cases of COVID-19 virus. Here is what experts want you to know about the virus and its new symptoms.

COVID-19 Updates: After fighting the COVID-19 pandemic for over 4 years, the world is now preparing for another wave that may strike this summer. SARS-CoV-2 causing coronavirus, was first identified in China's Wuhan city in 2019. Since then, the virus has been mutating and forming new variants, causing serious threats to mankind.

In recent reports, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated that the UK and the US are both seeing a sudden surge in COVID-19 cases. The current dominant strain KP.3 emerged in early April and belongs to a new group of COVID-19 variants, known collectively as FLiRT. The variant's names were inspired by the mutations in the genetic code of the variant. They are a spin-off from JN.1 - a variant that could transmit efficiently through an additional one or two mutations. As of April 2024, three strings of the FLiRT variant have been responsible for 40 per cent of all Covid cases in the UK, these variants are KP.1.1, KP.3 and KP.2, according to the UK Health Security Agency data.

New Symptoms of COVID-19

While the most classic symptoms of COVID-19 are still in place, some of the new variants are bringing in new symptoms of the infection. As per reports, here are some of the signs that you may notice after getting in contact with the COVID-19 virus:

1. Fever
2. Body pain, discomfort
3. Joint pain
4. Headache
5. Nausea, and vomiting
6. Loss of smell and taste
7. Brain fogging
8. Extreme tiredness and fatigue
9. Pain behind the eyes and muscle cramps
10. Diarrhoea, or loose motion

KP.2 and KP.3 are the current dominant strains which are driving fresh cases in the UK and US. This strain is also known to be behind the wave of infections that happened in the month of May before passing the baton to P.3, which has almost doubled UK infections to 44 per cent in less than two weeks. KP.2's share has declined to 22 per cent. Hospital admissions rose by 24 per cent in the week to Sunday, from 2.67 people per 100,000 to 3.31 per 100,000, according to new figures from the UKHSA.

The highest hospital admission rate for confirmed COVID-19 continues to be in those aged over 85 years, increasing to 34.70 per 100,000 following a short interval of decreases. However, increases also occurred for those aged between 65 and 74 years, those aged between 75 and 84 years, and most of the younger age groups.

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