What you need to know about the new Covid strain ‘Eris’ on its way to Australia
- New Covid sub-variant called Eris appears
- It is quickly becoming the dominant species abroad
A new Covid strain called Eris is becoming the dominant strain in the US and UK, with experts warning Australia is likely to follow a similar pattern.
The strain – known scientifically as EG.5.1 – was reportedly first found in Asia and is a sub-variant of the Omicron strain that remains responsible for the majority of cases worldwide.
While Covid is no longer a public health emergency, the virus is still highly prevalent in the global population with over a million new cases reported to the World Health Organization in July.
Eris has become the most prominent sub-variant in the US and is the second most common in the UK after another Omicron spin-off Arcturus, or XBB.1.16 as it’s technically called.
In Australia, Arcturus also appears to be the most common sub-variant, and while no cases of Eris have yet been reported, experts say it’s likely already in the country.
A new Covid sub-variant called Eris could already be in Australia and is expected to cause a rise in Covid infections in the coming months
University of Queensland associate professor Paul Griffin, an infectious disease physician and clinical microbiologist, said Eris appears to be behind a spike in cases.
“It has certainly increased, with an estimate that it may have doubled globally in the last four weeks from almost six to 12 percent[of cases],” he told SBS News.
“It appears to be becoming the dominant sub-variety of Omicron in a number of countries.”
Adrian Esterman, a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of South Australia, agreed, saying that while cases in Australia remain low, there is likely to be a spike because of the new subvariety.
“We will probably see another spike of cases coming in the coming weeks, which will be due to Eris.”
Symptoms are similar to those of Omicron such as a runny nose, fatigue, cough, sore throat and decreased sense of smell.
They will generally be mild in most cases, unless a person is immunocompromised, due to the widespread uptake of vaccines.
In the week to August 2, 5,431 Covid cases were reported in Australia, although the number is likely to be significantly higher as testing rates have plummeted.
World Health Organization (WHO) chiefs also added EG.5.1 to the list of Omicron variants to watch in July.
Globally, Eris already accounts for about 20 percent of Covid sequences in Asia, 10 percent of sequences from Europe and seven percent in North America.
Japan has been hit by a spike in Covid infections in recent weeks, with experts predicting the trend will continue amid high heat, waning population-level immunity and the holiday season.