COVID emergency room visits are on the rise across much of the U.S., including Illinois, and a particular set of new variants appear to be behind the potential surge. So what symptoms can you expect?
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the new wave of COVID variants, nicknamed the “FLiRT” variants, are dominating the U.S.
The variants, identified as KP.1.1, KP.3 and KP.2, collectively make up more than 54% of COVID cases in the U.S., according to the CDC’s most recent variant-tracking data. KP.3 in particular made up the most cases of all the variants at 24.5% of cases, according to the most recent forecast data.
Likewise, emergency department visits measured through June 29 showed that COVID-related visits were up 18% from the previous week. Illinois was among states that saw a “substantial change” in metrics week-over-week, the data showed. COVID-related emergency department visits in the state increased 29.7% from the previous week, though the overall percentage of emergency department visits that were considered COVID visits remained “minimal,” at 0.8%.
What can you expect from the newest varieties?
What are COVID FLiRT variants?
The variants are subvariants of JN.1, which became dominant in December 2023 and was designated a “variant of concern,” although the “FLiRT” variants have two changes in the spike protein compared to JN.1.
“The two spike changes have been observed in previous lineages, including XBB.1.5 lineages, which were dominant during 2023 and formed the basis for the 2023-2024 vaccine formulation,” the CDC reported.
Health officials said there is no evidence that the new strains cause more severe illness than other strains, but that the “CDC will continue to monitor community transmission and the effectiveness of vaccines against this strain.”
Megan L. Ranney, dean of the Yale School of Public Health, told WebMD that the changes in the spike protein are concerning.
Are KP.3 and other FLiRT variants more contagious?
The KP.3 variant quickly became dominant and within weeks had overtaken KP.2 as the most common variant in the U.S., the CDC reported.
“It’s early days, but the initial impression is that this variant is quite contagious,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told TODAY.com.
According to Schaffner, some laboratory studies suggest that the FLiRT variants may have mutated in such a way that previous vaccination or immunity from previous infection is unlikely to provide complete protection.
“We’ll have to wait and see if that’s true, but it does seem like it’s becoming a more prominent variant over time,” he told TODAY.
What are the symptoms?
Dr. Lakshmi Halasyamani, Chief Clinical Officer at Endeavor Health, said despite the spread of the latest variant, the key symptoms associated with COVID remain the same.
The most common symptoms Halasyamani reported were largely respiratory related.
If you suspect you have COVID-19, these are some symptoms you may experience, according to the CDC:
- Cough
- A sore throat
- Running nose
- To sneeze
- Fatigue
- Headache
- muscle strain
- Altered sense of smell
- Accumulation
- Fever or chills
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
Last year, a Chicago-area doctor said she noticed changes in the most common symptoms her patients reported as the JN.1 variant became more dominant.
Dr. Chantel Tinfang, a family physician at Provident Hospital’s Sengstacke Health Center in Cook County, noted at the time that many of the patients she saw had fewer symptoms of fever, body aches and chills, but more symptoms of sore throat, fatigue and cough.
“We still see some patients who have loss of appetite, loss of taste or smell. So it kind of depends,” she said. “One patient was just really tired. She couldn’t really do much. And then you know … it’s different. It’s not just coughing and shortness of breath. We still see that.”
She advised contacting your doctor if your symptoms do not improve outside the recommended isolation period.
In terms of timing, symptoms can last for several days, but in some cases even longer.
“Some people who are infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 may experience long-term effects of their infection, known as Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions (PCC),” the CDC said.
These symptoms can last for weeks and possibly even years.