BA.4 is responsible for a large wave of Covid in South Africa and is capable of affecting the immune system provided by infection and vaccination.
The BA.4 sub variant of the Omicron has reached India. The first case of this variant has been found in Hyderabad. This was revealed on Thursday from the Covid-19 Genomic Surveillance Program. Scientists associated with the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG) said that from India, the details of the BA.4 subvariant were entered on GISAID on May 9.
This strain of the SARS CoV 2 virus has been responsible for a large wave of new Covid-19 infections in South Africa and is capable of affecting the immune system provided by infection and vaccination. However, scientists believe that due to the wave of Omicron in January this year, the Indian population saw a better and wider immune response, which is less prone to infection.
Read | India's first case of Omicron variant BA.4 detected in Hyderabad
How deadly is Omicron sub-variant BA.4
The latest sub-lineages BA.4 and BA.5 have been reported in a number of countries, including South Africa and some European nations.
The BA.4 virus remains deadly especially for the unprotected and unvaccinated that don't have access to health care and antivirals.
The best way to protect yourself is to get vaccinated and boosted when recommended. Continue wearing masks, specially in crowded places.
The National Center for Disease Control says they do not expect much jump in Covid-19 cases in the coming days due to the BA.4 virus.
National Center for Disease Control also feels it is very unlikely that the number of hospitalisations due to severe Covid will increase rapidly.
The WHO's technical lead on Covid, Maria Van Kerkhove, said that at least 16 countries have reported nearly 700 BA.4 infected cases.
More than 300 BA.5 cases have been found in 17 countries. All these variants are definitely highly contagious but have not proved to be as deadly.
WHO’s lead scientist Dr Soumiya Swaminathan, warned that sub-lineages and recombinants will continue to appear in near future.
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 "How deadly is Omicron sub-variant BA.4")
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