2023-08-07 22:08:33
The World Health Organization (WHO) has added EG.5 to its list of variants currently circulating and under surveillance. To date, cases associated with the new variant have been reported in particular in the United Kingdom and the United States.
The latest data from the UK Health Security Agency suggests that EG.5 accounts for around 14.6%, or one in seven, of all COVID-19 cases in the UK.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that EG.5 accounts for regarding 17.3%, or one in six, of new COVID-19 cases in the United States over the past two weeks.
Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease specialist at the University Health Network in Toronto, says he expects cases of EG.5 to appear in Canada soon, if they are not already present.
“He’s probably everywhere and if he’s not everywhere, he will be,” he said in a phone interview with CTVNews.ca on Monday.
Dr. Bogoch added that he expects the presence of EG.5 to be “very likely” similar to what has been seen with other Omicron subvariants, the COVID-19 variant. 19 to have infected the most people in the world.
“We have seen BA.2, BA.4 and BA.5, we have seen an XBB and now it is EG.5, so the virus continues to mutate and we will see the alternation of the virus in the community,” said he explained.
“Of course we have measurements to detect it, and probably in August or September we will start to see a corresponding increase in sewage signals in Canada.”
As recent years have shown, COVID-19 is disproportionately impacting certain groups, Dr. Bogoch said, adding that EG.5 is unlikely to be an exception. “As we have seen in the days of Omicron and even before the days of Omicron, COVID-19 will have a disproportionate impact on certain cohorts.”
“So unfortunately, we’re likely to see a corresponding increase in hospitalizations, especially among those more likely to develop serious illness – the elderly and those with underlying health conditions.”
According to Dr. Bogoch, some of the best defenses once morest COVID-19 are still masks, vaccinations, and good ventilation or air quality in indoor spaces.
“We have the necessary tools, we have known for years and there is really nothing new,” he stressed.
Some have called EG.5 “Eris,” but the WHO overhauled its COVID-19 naming system earlier this year, deciding to assign nicknames or Greek alphabet labels only to variants of concern. like Delta and Omicron, and more for variants of interest or under scrutiny.
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