Urgent Covid warning as new highly-transmissible strain of the virus is detected
Urgent Covid alert as a new highly transmissible strain of virus is detected in Australia
- Arcturus was first discovered in India
- Has been identified as a ‘concerning variant’
- It has now been discovered in Australia
A new sub-variant of Covid-19 is emerging in Australia, and experts warn it may be one of the most transmissible strains yet.
The Omicron subvariant, labeled Arcturus, was first discovered in India in January and has led to an increase in infections and led to the reintroduction of mask mandates in some parts of the country.
Arcturus has also been classified as a ‘variety of concern’ by the World Health Organization and is notable for conjunctivitis-like symptoms, especially in children.
Arcturus was first detected in India in January and has led to an increase in infections and has led to the reintroduction of mask mandates in some parts of the country.
University of South Australia biostatistics professor Adrian Esterman said it was ‘very difficult’ to get hold of data on Arcturus, but early indications suggested it could be as much as 20 per cent more transmissible than the recent Kraken variant.
Professor Esterman said Arcturus was one of 600 Omicron sub-variants, and it seemed it could “get around our immune system a bit better.”
He said it didn’t seem to cause illness more severe than Kraken, and hospitalizations hadn’t risen markedly in countries with major arcturus spikes.
Professor Esterman said early data suggested Arcturus accounted for about 5 per cent of all cases across Australia.
Adrian Esterman, professor of biostatistics at the University of South Australia, said it was ‘very difficult’ to get data on Arcturus
But he was critical of the federal and state governments tracking the virus.
‘We used to get regular reports from wastewater monitoring – that’s stopped altogether now,’ said Professor Esterman.
According to Department of Health weekly Covid data, the average daily number of Covid-19 cases had risen by more than 16 per cent in the week leading up to April 18, with sharp increases in NSW and Victoria.
The Ministry of Health has been contacted for comment.