The World Health Organization (WHO) published on Wednesday Latest Immediate Risk Assessment Bulletin The Omicron XBB.1.5 variant of Covid-19 is thought to be responsible for the increased incidence of the disease worldwide.
From October 22, 2022 to January 11, 2023, according to the WHO, 5288 cases of the XBB.1.5 variant were reported in 38 countries. “Most of these sequences were from the US (82.2%), the UK (8.1%) and Denmark (2.2%),” says the World Health Organization.
The WHO Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE) met on the 5th and discussed the latest data on the variant under study, now “based on its genetic characteristics and preliminary developmental assessments, XBB. 1.5 may contribute to the increase in the incidence of new cases.”
Even so, the WHO points out that the estimate is “low confidence” because the growth estimates are “limited to one country, the Americas”.
Therefore, the organization recommends that countries prioritize studies that allow them to respond to uncertainties related to “growth in the number of cases, the ability to evade antibodies and the severity” of cases of infection through XBB.1.5.1.5.
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