United States: Two new COVID-19 variants have been on the rise and circulating, causing the possibility of bringing a summer surge soon.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been keeping an eye on the new variants that are about to be known scientifically as KP. 2 and KP. 1. 1 since the onset of 2024.
More about the FLiRT variants
They have been constantly been in focus of experts, and have been called “FLiRT” because of their mutations, as the Hill reported.
Nowadays according to the experts report, KP.2 is the most dominant strain in the United States, comprising upto 25 percent of the tests. KP.1.1 makes up to 8 percent at the end of April.
Both are the sublineages of the JN.1 branch of the Omicron variant, the main COVID variant for the whole three years.
The two FLiRT types are thought to be very much alike to JN.1, according to the health officials, the early data shows that there are only a couple of changes in their spike proteins of the viruses.
Will the last COVID-19 vaccine be effective?
As the virus is anticipated to reach its peak in the summer months, it might be raising worries about whether the last shot gotten has still been protecting us. Hence, the decision entirely depends on when one got his/her last dose, the Hill reported.
During the fall, the vaccine against the new strain of the virus was developed. The CDC has advised everyone who is six months old and above to take the new vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Novavax.
In February, the federal vaccinations committee voted in favor of issuing another dose for those aged 65 and up. People between 6 months and four years old need to be given several doses, the CDC says.
According to the previous CDC statement, the COVID vaccines could provide shielding against the virus for several months. However, in its February update, the CDC recommended that the newest vaccine boosters, which were made available in September last year, would be effective. Experts expect the protection to “decline over time,” which was the case with previous doses.
Dr. William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center said, lab studies revealed the vaccine and immunity doses so far have provided partial protection.
Moreover, the World Health Organization last month recommended that COVID vaccine in the future be likely to be based on the JN.1 variant, which is a close relative of the FLiRT mutated variants, reigning the ground in the US for the past few months.