Fact Check: This message claiming that these are new symptoms of XBB strain of COVID-19 are fake

New Delhi, Dec 22: The Union Government announced that all should be careful with the spread of the new variant of COVID-19 amidst which several claims are being made.

A tweet has now gone viral with the claim that the new virus COVID-19-Omicron XBB have the following symptoms. The claim that the new symptoms are no cough, no fever, and there will only be a limited number of these others such as joint pain, headache, pain in the neck, upper back pain, lack of appetite and pneumonia.

The claim further says that the new variant is 5 times more virulent than the Delta variant has a higher mortality rate. Let us be more careful as it takes less time for the condition to reach extreme severity and sometimes there are no obvious symptoms.

While the government has urged all citizens to exercise caution, the claims that are being made in this forward are fake. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare took to Twitter to say that this claim is fake. This message is circulating in some WhatsApp groups regarding the XBB variant of COVID-19. The message is fake and misleading the ministry also said.

The COZVID-19 variant keeps mutating and evolving into a more virulent, transmissible and deviant strain. Latest medical data suggests that XBB has numerous changes n DNA than the previous Omircon sub-variants. These modifications are especially seen in the receptor binding domain, which is the outer surface of the spike protein, reports also said.

Medical reports have said that the symptoms are mild to moderate upper respiratory tract symptoms such as sore throat, congestion, shortness of breath, body ache, confusion and fatigue. Some patients have also reported gastrointestinal manifestations like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea. The report also added that although the symptoms may mimic the ones of the regular flu, they must not be taken lightly and must be reported to the doctor at the earliest.

The precautionary measures include observing COVID-19 appropriate behaviour at all times. Senior citizens should be careful while visiting crowded places. Further if not vaccinated, it is advised that you get yourself a shot, the government advisory also says.