Health experts warn of the COVID variant Nimbus.
Well, as you make plans for the July 4th holiday, health experts warn about a new COVID-19 variant spreading very fast. It could spark a summer wave of cases. So tonight we’re sharing what you need to know about this variant, including the key symptom it’s causing most often. It’s related to the Omicron variant. NB 181, nicknamed Nimbus, is spreading in the US, and it’s now causing more than 40% of COVID-19 cases, according to the latest CDC data. But it is a little bit more infectious and contagious than kind of the last couple of versions that we have seen before. So we’re seeing a pretty rapid rise in the number of cases related to Nimbus. Carry Horn with National Jewish Health says as people gather to celebrate the July 4th holiday, there’s an increased chance for the virus to spread even more. She says in addition to the symptoms with previous variants like fever, runny nose, and congestion, some shortness of breath, cough, and body aches, the defining symptom for this variant is what she calls a razor blade sore throat. It is really intense and It can last for a couple of days. Um, and it’s even as bad as like when you’re just swallowing your saliva, just normal swallowing, it doesn’t have to be with food or or liquids or anything, um, just super intense pain. To slow the spread of this variant, Horn says to stay home if you’re having symptoms. If you have to go out, wear a mask and continue washing your hands. If you’re at high risk of getting severely sick, she recommends getting the updated COVID-19 vaccine. The real benefit of the vaccine is keeping people out of the hospital, um, preventing severe illness and death. So anybody who’s high risk, I strongly recommend getting the vaccine. Now if you test positive for COVID-19 and are immunocompromised or have other high risk factors, Dr. Horn says to see a healthcare provider right away for antiviral treatment. She also warns parents to watch for sore throats in kids it could be strep throat instead of COVID, which requires antibiotics.
