As flu season ends, health experts sound alarm over new Covid-19 variant
It's flu and cold season. In the past few weeks, you may have experienced a fever, a symphony of relentless coughing, a runny nose, headaches or fatigue.
It's flu and cold season. In the past few weeks, you may have experienced a fever, a symphony of relentless coughing, a runny nose, headaches or fatigue.
Sylvia Muia, a Nairobi-based journalist, can pinpoint the moment she noticed the symptoms. In the middle of a busy day at her office on Wednesday last week, she suddenly felt an irritating itch in her throat. Aware that many people are suffering from the common cold, she quickly sought medical attention.
"Within a few hours, it had become a relentless cold. A nasty one, coupled with exhaustion. It made me cancel plans and stay indoors over the weekend," she says. "I felt sleepy, confused and groggy. My mum has it too, but unlike me, she has headaches too," she offers.
When she posted on her Instagram page, at least three people asked, "Even you?"
"We are in the flu season when there is an increase in respiratory viruses, including the common cold, influenza and coronaviruses, including SARS-COV-2 (Covid-19)," says Dr Ahmed Kalebi, a consultant pathologist.
He added: “This is the typical time for such outbreaks both globally and locally because of the winter in the Northern Hemisphere. The travels during the holiday season fuelled the spread of the highly infectious respiratory,” he says.
Risper Mokua, a mother of three, said she has been battling a cold for three weeks.
"Despite seeking medical help after being around people with the flu recently, I'm still not feeling well. For fear of infecting my children, I have been wearing a mask, sometimes even in the house. I have not yet been tested for Covid-19, but there are moments when I wonder, 'could this be it?'" she says.
End to the global Covid-19 pandemic
In May last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an end to the global Covid-19 pandemic. This declaration came three years after the pandemic was first recognised.
Adding a cautionary note then, WHO's emergencies director Michael Ryan warned that the battle was not over. “We still have weaknesses and those weaknesses that we still have in our system will be exposed by this virus or another virus. And it needs to be fixed,” he said.
On December 24, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued an alert urging countries, particularly those in the southern region, to step up their surveillance efforts. The advisory highlighted the urgent need for increased vigilance in light of the rising number of respiratory diseases attributed to Covid-19.
WHO also drew attention to a new Covid-19 variant, JN.1. The advisory also stressed the importance of taking precautions against influenza.
“The Covid-19 virus continues to evolve, change, and circulate in all countries globally. While current evidence suggests the additional public health risk posed by JN.1 is low, we must continue to track the evolution of these viruses to tailor our response. For this, countries must strengthen surveillance and sequencing, and ensure sharing of data,” said Dr Poonam Singh, Regional Director, of WHO Southeast Asia.
“JN.1 is now the dominant variant worldwide and it is more transmissible and better at evading the immune systems than other variants - the most transmissible since Omicron,” said Dr Ahmed.
JN.1 variant is on the rise
He added that the JN.1 variant is on the rise, particularly in Europe and North America, where variants are constantly being tracked.
“Fortunately, it seems there is no indication that JN.1 is more virulent in terms of disease severity than other circulating variants. Evidence from emerging studies show that the available Covid-19 vaccines offer protection against JN.1 just like other variants,” he said.
Dr Patrick Amoth, Director General of Public Health at the Ministry of Health, said the ministry remains steadfast in its support for vaccination efforts and booster doses in light of the global increase in Covid-19 cases.
In response to the evolving situation, particularly with the emergence of JN.1, the ministry is actively encouraging the public to prioritise vaccination as a critical measure to protect against the spread and impact of the virus.
“So far, we have no surge in cases in Kenya but looking at global statistics, JN.1 is contributing to more than half of the new cases. And, due to global connectivity, that risk is still there. This is why we are encouraging people to go for booster doses so that they can be protected,” he said.
Dr Ahmed emphasised the importance of vaccination for the millions of Kenyans who have not yet been vaccinated, as well as booster shots for those with a history of repeated Covid-19 infections and those who are dealing with the lingering effects of long-term Covid-19.
“The fact that the world population now has immunity from natural infection and vaccination means, we cannot have a widespread serious disease outbreak like at the beginning of 2020 when the coronavirus was new to the human population,” he said.
Seasonal flu-like illness
He added: “So I wouldn’t be particularly worried or concerned about Covid-19 but focus on all respiratory viruses in terms of public health education, information, and prevention measures including masking and isolation for those who are having the seasonal flu-like illness.”
He went on: “It is important for those with symptoms to test if they have access to testing including self-testing at home or rapid tests in the hospital labs to confirm whether they have the coronavirus infection. And, if they must move out they should wear masks to avoid infecting others - regardless of the specific respiratory virus they may have whether common flu, rhinovirus, influenza or coronavirus.”
Dr Aisha Barmud, a medical officer at Meridian Hospital, said the rise in respiratory viruses was common, especially with the change in weather.
“During the cold seasons, there are more cases of common colds and flu-like illnesses. The uptick in cases is partly because the viruses mutate, we gain immunity and they mutate again. In the last few days of seeing patients, the numbers have gone down compared to the last two months,” she said.
WHO data show that seasonal influenza (flu), an acute respiratory infection caused by influenza viruses, is common in all parts of the world and that most people recover without medical treatment in severe cases. There are about one billion cases of seasonal influenza each year, including three to five million cases of severe illness.
For anyone with respiratory symptoms of flu or flu-like illness, Dr Aisha recommends, “wearing masks when sick to stop spreading infections, coughing and sneezing on a tissue or the elbow instead of hands and practicing proper hygiene".
