First death from new COVID-19 subvariant 'Arcturus' detected in Thailand
Amid a surge in cases globally, the first death from COVID-19's new variant, Arcturus, has been reported in Thailand, the health officials informed on Friday. An unnamed elderly man became the victim of the virus strain which is thought to be around 1.2 times more infectious than the last major sub-variant.
Dr Supakit Sirilak, director-general of the Medical Sciences Department stated that the deceased was a foreigner who had underlying health conditions as well.
"The dead person was an elderly foreigner with underlying health conditions. His death, therefore, may not directly reflect the severity of this subvariant but rather its impact on other risk factors," said Dr Sirilak.
Between April 9 and 15, the number of patients hospitalised in the country has seen an uptick of almost 2.5 times, compared to the previous week.
Subsequently, Thai health officials have issued a warning regarding the new subvariant and urged the public to err on the side of caution and practice Covid-appropriate behaviour.
Arcturus and its brief history
Notably, India was the first country to detect Arcturus. The highly contagious Covid strain has already been discovered in at least 24 countries. According to experts, the variant is a matter of discussion but not a cause of concern.
“It’s been in circulation for a few months. We haven’t seen a change in severity in individuals or in populations, but that’s why we have these systems in place. It has one additional mutation in the spike protein, which, in lab studies, shows increased infectivity as well as potential increased pathogenicity," Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead for Covid said last month.
In the US, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has informed that the new strain is responsible for almost seven per cent of the coronavirus cases, coming only behind the Omicron variant.
According to the experts, the symptoms caused by Arcturus are nearly identical to the ones caused by the prior variants. However, the virus tends to produce conjunctivitis (inflammation of the outside of the eye) in the contracted person which is being classed as one of the distinguishing symptoms.
How to protect yourself from Arcturus?
Nothing out of the ordinary needs to be done to protect oneself from the new strain. Some of the most important measures include staying updated with vaccinations and booster doses, wearing a mask, social distancing, washing your hands, and attempting to spend time outdoors or in well-ventilated areas.
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