JN.1 COVID-19 Variant Surges to 44.1% in the US: CDC Warns

(CTN News) – The new COVID-19 variation, JN.1, has just been shown to account for 44.1% of cases in the US, according to the CDC. This indicates a considerable increase in the prevalence of the rapidly spreading variant.

According to CBS News, which cited CDC figures, the surge in JN.1 infections is over double the 21.3% prediction for the week ending December 9, following Thanksgiving.

It is believed that 56.9% of cases occur in the Northeast region, which includes New Jersey and New York, making it the most prevalent among other regions.

The fact that the Virus is still multiplying implies that this variation is either easier to spread or more adept at eluding human immune systems.

The CDC stated that it is premature to determine if COVID-19 JN.1 would lead to a rise in infections or hospitalizations, and if so, to what degree.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has elevated the strain to “variant of interest,” its second-highest rank, following a jump in Virus prevalence in other nations. The revised estimations match these findings.

Compared to earlier strains, the new variation does not appear to induce particularly severe symptoms.

But health officials are worried about the exceptional number of mutations it has inherited, mostly from its severely altered dad BA.2.86.

The BA.2.86, which infected individuals in dozens of nations, could never establish a global presence. However, the new mutations in Virus have changed the strain’s trajectory, which raises concerns about its possible increased transmissibility.

Estimates by the CDC’s “Nowcast” model, which estimates more recent proportions of circulating variations and permits rapid public health response, show that the JN.1 variant in the US, originally identified in September, has become the fastest-growing COVID-19 instance.

Not much has changed with the CDC’s variant classifications since September when BA.2.86 was marked as a “variant being monitored.”

Furthermore, JN.1 has not been designated as an independent “variant of interest” by the Biden administration. Along with its BA.2.86 parent, the variant is instead classified as a “variant being monitored.”

According to CDC spokesman Jasmine Reed, “We will continue to monitor variants, including JN.1 and provide updates when information changes” (email).

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