What is known about KP.3, the new variant of COVID-19 that is already prevalent in the United States

What is known about KP.3, the new variant of COVID-19 that is already prevalent in the United States

The CDC uses a data tracker to show Covid variants every two weeks (Image: Image Bank)

The United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that it is monitoring the new type of coronavirus (KP.3). Between May 26 and June 8, the variant was responsible for 25% of coronavirus cases in the United States. Now, the dominant variant is the one that toppled the previous leader: the JN.1 variant, which spread around the world in the winter of last year. Information from the portal USA Today.

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– KP.3 is growing and will become the most common strain of SARS-CoV-2 nationally. Our agency is working to better understand its potential public health impact,” said CDC spokeswoman Rosa Norman.

K.2 is right behind KP.3, accounting for 22.5% of cases. The CDC uses a data tracker to view coronavirus variants every two weeks. The tool is used to help estimate the current prevalence of variants.

Despite the alarming data, the CDC does not predict future spread of the virus: infection rates may be lower than expected.

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– KP.3 viruses are currently estimated to represent between 16% and 37% of all SARS-CoV-2 viruses in the United States. Most of the key COVID-19 indicators show low levels of activity nationally, so the total number of infections this strain could cause is likely low, Norman said.

According to her, Covid-related deaths and hospitalizations have remained low since March 2020.

What is the KP.3 variant?

Like the KP.1.1 and KP.2 variants of JN.1 and “FLiRT,” KP.3 is a similar lineage. Norman explains that the KP.3 variant is a “subspecies of the JN.1 lineage” that comes from the Ômicron variant.

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– KP.3 evolved from JN.1, which has been the main viral strain circulating since December 2023. It is very similar to JN.1 and has only two peak changes compared to JN.1 – Norman says.

Know the symptoms of KP.3

Norman says the symptoms associated with KP.3 are similar to those found in JN.1. They include:

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  • Fever or chills.
  • cough;
  • sore throat;
  • Congestion or runny nose.
  • headache;
  • muscle pain;
  • difficulty breathing.
  • exhaustion;
  • New loss of sense of taste or smell;
  • “Brain fog” (feeling of lack of alertness and awareness);
  • Gastrointestinal symptoms (stomach pain, mild diarrhea, vomiting).

The CDC highlights that the list does not include all possible symptoms, which can change with new variants or vary from person to person.

In general, people infected with Covid show a range of symptoms, which vary depending on whether the disease is mild or severe, according to the agency. Symptoms may appear two to 14 days after exposure to the virus.

How to prevent

Norman suggests that everyone from six months old should get the Covid-19 vaccine from 2023 to 2024. According to her, the vaccine will help protect against any serious illness from Covid.

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The following forecasts, which are updated every two weeks, can be found on the CDC website: Track Covid Data.

*Under the supervision of Andrea da Luz

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By Andrea Hargraves

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