Newshub Enlightens Us on the 'Intensely Transmissible' COVID-19 XBB.1.5 Omicron Variant
January 9, 2023
PHOTO: Newshub
It is yet to be detected in New Zealand but it is expected to only be a matter of time.
Kraken appears to have the ability to bind to cells while evading the body’s immune defences, leading to greatly increased transmissibility, according to Professor Wendy Barclay from Imperial College London.
The cold-like symptoms that Kraken produces are largely the same as Omicron, and, according to the UK’s National Health Service, can include:
A high temperature or shivering - your chest or back will feel hot to the touch (there is no need to measure your temperature)
A new, continuous cough - this may look like coughing a lot for over an hour or three plus coughing episodes in a day
Shortness of breath
Changes to, or loss of, sense of smell and taste
Feelings of fatigue or exhaustion
A sore throat
Aches throughout your body
Headaches
A blocked or runny nose
Loss of appetite
Feeling or being sick
Diarrhoea
People experiencing any of these symptoms are recommended to take a rapid antigen test.
Professor Andrew Pollard, Oxford Vaccine Group director, has urged calm in the reaction to Kraken.