New Covid variant Arcturus causing "pink eye," higher fevers
MIAMI - A new COVID variant is spreading across the U.S. This comes after the country just hit a new milestone of record low deaths that haven't been seen since the start of the pandemic.
That variant, classified as XBB.1.16 by the World Health Organization, is otherwise known as "Arcturus."
There is a new symptom that we need to be on the lookout for according to infectious disease specialist Dr. Aileen Marty.
"Children have more instances of red eyes. So, they have a conjunctivitis that doesn't have pus, because it's viral and not bacterial. We're also seeing higher fevers, especially in children," she said.
In the United States, it is responsible for an estimated 9.6% of current cases, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Higher levels of infectivity are being reported with newer variants, but overall, they tend to be causing less-severe disease, which is likely the result of higher vaccination rates, higher rates of immunity from previous infection, and lower pathogenicity of recent variants, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Marty did say that as of late vaccination rates have been lower. She stressed that the early vaccines do not protect against the newer variants which is why getting an updated shot is extremely important.