Even though most of us would like to forget about COVID-19 entirely, unfortunately, this is not possible. The virus is still on the rise and moving through the whole world. 

A new omicron subvariant XBB.1.5, otherwise known as “Kraken,” is nasty and highly transmissible. This is due to merging fragments from two other variants, a “recombinant subvariant.” 

Fun fact: do you know why the XBB.1.5 variant is named “KRAKEN”? In short, scientists have now run out of Greek letters. Due to various types of omicron now, some scientists have started naming all these key sub-variants after mythological creatures to better illustrate and speak about the ever-growing virus family tree. 

According to the WHO, the Omicron XBB.1.5 variant belongs to the XBB sublineage, which is a recombinant of two BA.2 sublineages. There were 5 288 omicron XBB.1.5 sequences reported from almost 38 countries from 22 October 2022 to 11 January 2023. The majority of these sequences originate in the United States (82.2%), the United Kingdom (8.1%), and Denmark (2.2%). This is raising alarms across the world, and leaders are questioning whether strict measures should be taken to avoid a wave of deaths. 

The ECDC noted XBB.1.5’s growth advantage over other Omicron variants, which is 109% in North America and 113% in Europe. However, these figures are subject to “significant uncertainty,” according to the EU health agency.

It has been estimated that “Kraken” first originated between November and December of 2022 in New York State, US. According to the C.D.C., in the month of December, the cases in the United States increased to 41%, and approximately 75% of new infections in the USA’s Northeast region. It’s a highly mutated strain of the virus that appears to be more capable of evading immune defenses and infiltrating cells, with some experts calling it the most transmissible variant yet. Scientists believe it is still uncommon in much of the world but that it will spread rapidly and globally.

Should you be worried about the “Kraken”? It seems to have raised concerns among experts and epidemiologists. World Health Organisation’s Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, in a press conference held in the first week of January, said “We are concerned about its growth advantage in particular in some countries in Europe and in the US…, particularly the northeast part of the United States, where XBB.1.5 has rapidly replaced other circulating variants,” later on she adds that. “Our concern is how transmissible it is… and the more this virus circulates, the more opportunities it will have to change.”

There has been an increase in Covid cases involving Kraken worldwide. But that isn’t what epidemiologists are most concerned about as the Coronavirus pandemic enters its fourth year. No, it is China that scares the experts. A country that, unlike the rest of the world, is only now, for the first time, catching Covid in a big way.

Furthermore, The World Health Organization has criticized China’s “very narrow” definition of Covid-19 deaths, warning that official figures do not accurately reflect the outbreak’s scope. There are growing concerns about the sharp increase in Covid infections since Beijing abruptly lifted years of strict restrictions last month, leaving hospitals and crematoriums quickly overwhelmed. A day after WHO officials met with Chinese scientists, the UN agency released data from the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). China has been reporting single-digit Covid deaths daily.
Although the sub-variant is currently prevalent in the United States & China, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) predicts that it will most likely become the dominant form of coronavirus in Europe between February and March of this year. Moreover, according to the EU health agency, the subvariant in question currently accounts for only 2.5 percent of European cases.

What happens now? Even though the variant is spreading rapidly, it is currently only found at very low levels in the EU/EEA. Europe still has time to prepare and take measures to avoid a disastrous situation.