There is currently an increase in hospitalisations across NHS hospital trusts owing to "American Covid," reports The Independent.
According to the latest laboratory surveillance from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), more than half of all sequenced positive samples in England now test positive for XFG, also known as the Stratus variant.
The strain - first identified internationally earlier last year before spreading widely across the United States - is categorised by the World Health Organization as a recombinant lineage originating from the LF.7 and LP.8.1.2 variants.
Although overall inpatient bed occupancy remains far below historic pandemic peaks, the rise in community transmission is placing early pressure on emergency departments and acute admissions units.
The XFG strain is frequently presenting with marked exhaustion and upper airway involvement. Other symptoms remain the same as the Omicron family waves.
Dr Bruno Silvester Lopes, a lecturer in microbiology at Teesside University, highlighted that the Stratus variant has been specifically "linked to hoarseness and fatigue" in presenting patients.
Public health leaders maintain that seasonal fluctuations in SARS-CoV-2 prevalence are expected as indoor mixing increases in autumn and winter.
The UKHSA is urging all eligible groups - including adults aged 65 and over, residents in older adult care homes, frontline health and social care workers, and clinical risk groups - to take up their autumn Covid-19 and flu vaccinations without delay.
