A winter surge COVID-19 cases may have you wondering whether it’s time to mask up again or get vaccinated or boosted to protect yourself from getting sick.
In December 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that JN. 1, nicknamed “Pirola,” accounted for between 15% and 29% of all COVID-19s in the United States. As of January 2024, JN. 1 was responsible for 40% of COVID-19 globally.
JN.1 is a close relative to the Omicron subvariant BA.2.86, which the CDC has been tracking since August 2023 when it was detected in multiple countries. It was first detected in the U.S. in September and accounted for less than 0.1% of COVID cases by the end of October.
Pirola is considered a notable SARS-CoV-2 subvariant because it has genetic differences from previous mutations and may cause breakthrough infections. The only difference between JN.1 and BA.2.86 (also known as Pirola), is a small change in the spike protein.
As the 2024 respiratory illness season peaks in the United States, it can feel like almost everyone around you is getting sick, whether it’s the flu, breathing syncytial virus (RSV), or COVID-19.
The symptoms of COVID-19 may resemble those of common respiratory viruses, but there are some key differences. Knowing the differences in symptoms can also minimize the spread of those infectious diseases.
According to Dr. Monica Gandhi, MPH, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, the symptoms of the new COVID variants are symptoms related to other strains of SARS-CoV-2.
“There is no evidence that the symptoms caused by the [new variants] differ from those caused by other Omicron subvariants,” Gandhi said. “The symptoms appear to be the same as other recent Omicron subvariants. “
Like other subvariants, Pirola symptoms may include upper respiratory tract symptoms such as:
Gandhi added that immunocompromised individuals, older adults, and people who are not immune to the virus could develop more severe lower respiratory tract symptoms like pneumonia.
If you have any of the above symptoms and test positive for COVID-19, you may have contracted the JN. 1 Pirola variant and isolated for five days, which Gandhi says is the era of isolation advised lately.
A 2020 study from the University of Southern California (USC) shed light on how COVID-19 symptoms present, which may help individuals recognize whether their cough is just a cough or something worse. The researchers determined that COVID-19 symptoms often start in a certain order:
If you have symptoms in that order, it’s a smart idea to get tested for COVID-19 so you can isolate and recover. The CDC provides resources for locating loose COVID tests in your area.
“The study found that seasonal flu patients developed more coughing before the onset of fever,” Dr. Robert Glatter, an assistant professor at Hofstra/Northwell’s Zucker School of Medicine, told Healthline in a previous interview.
“This can actually be difficult to discern, as the flu begins abruptly with a triad of symptoms, including back pain, chills and a dry cough. “
According to the study, while the flu starts with a cough or muscle aches, the first symptom of COVID-19 is a fever.
“This order is especially vital for knowing when we have overlapping cycles of ailments like the flu that coincide with COVID-19 infections,” says Peter Kuhn, PhD, professor of medicine, biomedical engineering, aerospace and mechanical engineering, and urology at USC. he told Healthline in a previous interview.
“Doctors can know what steps to take to treat the patient and prevent their condition from getting worse. »
To predict the order of symptoms, the researchers analyzed symptom onset rates collected through the World Health Organization (WHO) for more than 55,000 cases of COVID-19 in China. To compare the order of symptoms of COVID-19 with that of influenza, the researchers analyzed data from more than 2,000 influenza cases in North America, Europe and the Southern Hemisphere reported to government health between 1994 and 1998.
“The order of symptoms matters,” said Joseph Larsen, the study’s lead author and a doctoral student at USC Dornsife. “Knowing that each disease progresses differently means that doctors can identify beforehand whether a user is more likely to have COVID-19 or some other illness, which can help them make better treatment decisions.
“It is incredible to perceive the progression of symptoms in other people infected with COVID-19 to prevent the spread of the disease – in fact, to isolate and then release effective touch tracing,” Glatter said.
“This is applicable to a virus that is 2 to 3 times more transmissible than influenza, causing clustered epidemics. “
He added that early symptoms not only help patients get tested faster, but also help them start physically distancing after the first symptoms appear.
“It also underscores the importance of wearing a mask and washing your hands as soon as symptoms appear,” Glatter said.
It also reveals that sudden loss of smell, taste, and inflammatory skin reactions “may be clinical cues to distinguish COVID-19 from seasonal influenza. “
Based on Glatter’s experience treating COVID-19 patients in New York City, the symptoms associated with the virus could be more diverse than the USC study suggests.
“Overall, while fever is the most commonly described initial symptom of COVID-19 infection, the truth of what I see on the front line is more variable,” Glatter said. “In fact, some patients would possibly just have a loss of taste or smell and in a different way feel good. “
Glatter added that he has observed COVID-19 symptoms ranging from “COVID toes” (frostbite) to a reddish-blue discoloration of the skin in reaction to acute inflammation, all in the absence of fever, cough or respiratory symptoms.
He said that other patients have also “presented with malaise, headache, and dizziness,” which in some ways resemble stroke symptoms but without fever, cough, or any evidence of upper respiratory symptoms.
“I have also seen patients present only with chest pain, devoid of any respiratory symptoms,” Glatter said. “The onset of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea after onset of respiratory symptoms such as fever and cough may also suggest that a person may have COVID-19.”
According to Glatter, medical professionals want to be vigilant and open-brained when evaluating patients who may have COVID-19-related symptoms, especially as new subvariants emerge.
“They don’t appear ‘according to the book,’ so you have to take a broad view when thinking about who might or might not have COVID-19,” he said.
If you’re wondering whether it’s time to mask up again, experts are not particularly concerned about the new variants, particularly for vaccinated individuals.
The updated COVID-19 boosters are expected to continue providing coverage against severe illness caused by the new variants.
WHO recommends COVID-19 booster shots for vulnerable groups, especially immunocompromised people, people with comorbidities, and those over 65 years of age.
“I’m not very involved with the new variant because COVID-19 is not an eradicable virus (it’s first discovered in too many animal reservoirs, with immediate evolution in animals like deer), so we’ll see new subvariants. Gandhi said.
“However, lately we have the highest rates of population immunity in the US (up to 96. 4% antibody positivity in fall 2022). Memory B cells, generated through from vaccines or as a result of past infections, they recognize the virus, adding its variants. Specifically, if memory B cells see a variant, they must produce antibodies adapted to the variant or subvariant,” he added.
Gandhi explained that COVID-19 vaccines and herbal infections cause the production of T cells.
“B cells serve as memory banks to produce antibodies when needed [and] T cells help B cells produce antibodies and recruit cells to attack the pathogen directly. T cell immunity from the vaccine remains protective versus “alpha to omicron” variants. “The cellular response, even through a mutated spike protein, is so physically powerful that we have not yet seen Omicron evade the many T cells that descend into the system. mutated viruses to combat serious diseases,” Gandhi said.
JN.1, nicknamed “Pirola,” is the dominant SARS-CoV-2 strain in the U.S. and globally. Symptoms of the JN.1 Pirola variant may present similarly to prior Omicron subvariants.
Understanding the difference between COVID-19 symptoms and those of the flu or RSV can help minimize the spread and get the right treatment.
A 2020 study compared the symptoms of other people with the flu to those of COVID-19 and found that COVID-19 symptoms appear in a different order.
Experts with frontline experience emphasize that this progression isn’t always how the disease manifests, but it’s still a useful guide for healthcare professionals.
Our experts continually monitor the fitness and wellness space, and we update our articles as new data becomes available.
Current Version
Jan 12, 2024
Written by
George Citroner and Andrea Rice
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Andrea Riz
Fact verified by
Kelsey Costa, MS, RDN
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August 31, 2023
Written by
George Citroner and Andrea Rice
Edited by
Andrea Riz
Fact verified by
Kelsey Costa, MS, RDN
Copy Edited By
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