The Nigerian Center for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) said they are investigating a new subvariant of the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, namely EG.5 and BA.2.86.In a press release issued on Saturday and signed by the director of the agency, Dr. Ifedayo Adetifa, NCDC made it clear that new sub-variants have not yet appeared in Nigeria. The new version is currently available in 51 countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on August 9, 2023, that EG.5, the line from XBB.1.9.2, and its subline are now classified as species of interest.EG.5, a subline of the Omicron variant, has been identified in 51 countries, including capitals such as China, the United States, Korea, Japan, Canada, Australia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, France, Portugal and Spain. EG.5 causes symptoms similar to those seen in other types of COVID-19, including fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, body aches, headache, and sore throat. The WHO risk assessment shows that EG.5 strains pose a low risk worldwide. So far, only one EG.5 has been found in Africa, it has not been found in Nigeria, NCDC said that although BA.2 has been found in Nigeria, no variant BA.2.86 has been found alone. in Nigeria. Nigeria.
What the NCDC is saying Here’s an excerpt from the press release: “Our influenza sentinel surveillance sites continue to provide information on COVID-19 prevalence in patients with influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory illness,” “We have not observed any increase in trend of COVID-19 in this patient group. We continue to carry out genomics surveillance even with the low testing levels and encourage testing locations in states to ensure their positive samples are sent on to the NCDC for sequencing.” “Unrelated to the news of these emerging variants, the NCDC and partners are working on implementing an enhanced COVID-19 testing exercise in four states to obtain complementary and more detailed information about circulating variants in the country.
In addition, COVID-19 rapid diagnostic kits are being distributed for the purpose of improving bi-directional COVID-19 testing.” The NCDC also added that there is no need to cause unnecessary anxiety and panic. “There is no need to cause unnecessary anxiety and panic. As we have consistently advised, COVID-19 is here to stay and is now mainly a problem for those at high risk – the elderly, those with underlying chronic illnesses, especially hypertension, and diabetes, those on cancer treatment, organ transplant recipients, and those whose immune systems are suppressed for one reason or the other.”
