Omicron subvariant takes control
Hospitalizations increase as BA.5 now accounts for 65 percent of all COVID infections in the U.S.
Houston has seen an uptick in COVID-19 cases recently, and officials say the BA.5 subvariant is largely to blame.
The subvariant is a primary reason COVID-19 hospitalizations have nearly doubled in the Houston area over the past month, Texas Medical Center officials said last week. Similar increases in infections and hospitalizations have been seen across the U.S.
“It’s the dominant variant now in Houston, and really most of the U.S. and a lot of places around the world,” said Dr. Wesley Long, a pathologist and medical director of microbiology at Houston Methodist.
The recent increase is partly because BA.5 looks to be “the most highly transmissible virus agent we’ve seen of the COVID-19 family so far,” Houston infectious disease expert Dr. Peter Hotez told the Chronicle.
Hotez, the dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and co-director of the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children’s Hospital, said even fully vaccinated people may be at risk of infection.
BA.5 is a subvariant of omicron, the coronavirus variant that was responsible for a wave of infections this winter. The World Health Organization has been tracking BA.5 over the past few months after identifying it and another subvariant, BA.4, in early 2022.
Here’s what you need to know about the variant that’s responsible for the latest wave of COVID-19.
How widespread is BA.5?
BA.5 currently accounts for 65 percent of all COVID-19 cases across the country, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Three more omicron subvariants account for the remainder of the cases.
BA.5 is even more common in the CDC’s region 6, which includes Texas and four other states. It accounts for 68.3 percent of cases in the region.
Modeling indicates that by the end of the month, BA.5 could account for 90 percent of all cases in the Houston area, Long said.
“The community transmission levels right now are quite high,” he said.
The BA.5 subvariant has been detected in at least 68 countries, with the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Denmark and Germany among those seeing a high number of cases.
Is it more transmissible?
BA.5 is more transmissible than any of the prior strains of the coronavirus, experts have said. In fact, it may be among the most infectious viruses we’ve ever seen.
“This subvariant, BA.5, is probably about as transmissible as measles is, which up to this point has been the most transmissible agent that we’ve faced,” said Dr. Robert Atmar, a professor of infectious diseases at Baylor College of Medicine.
Experts have determined that BA.5 is much more infectious than omicron, which was itself more infectious than both the delta variant and the original strain of the coronavirus.
The increased transmissibility is likely due to some inherent mutations in the virus, Long said. It has three key mutations
in the spike protein of the virus that make it better at evading immune defenses. As a result, people are being reinfected much more quickly, Long said.
“We’re seeing reinfections now a lot earlier than typically we would have in previous waves,” Long said.
Is BA.5 more serious?
At this time, there is no evidence that BA.5 causes more severe disease than earlier virus strains, both Long and Atmar said.
“It doesn’t appear to be causing more serious disease, per se. Certainly not compared to what we saw early in the pandemic,” Atmar said.
However, they cautioned that an infection can still cause severe disease. That’s especially true for someone who is older, or immunocompromised, Atmar said.
Experts have also cautioned that even a mild illness can result in long COVID, with symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue and brain fog persisting for months after the initial infection.
What are the main symptoms associated with BA.5?
Many of the symptoms associated with BA.5 were also seen with earlier strains of the virus. They include fever, muscle aches, cough and congestion and shortness of breath, among other symptoms.
The omicron variants and its subvariants seem to be less likely to cause a loss of taste or smell, though, Atmar said.
Long said the symptoms caused by BA.5 are similar to those we’ve seen throughout the pandemic.
“I don’t have any definitive or statistically valid data to say that the symptoms are any different,” Long said.
Are the vaccines effective against BA.5?
Unfortunately, multiple studies have suggested the BA.5 subvariant seems to be more capable of evading the protection offered by a vaccine or a prior infection.
However, there’s no evidence of a substantial reduction in the vaccines’ effectiveness against severe disease, experts have said.
“All the evidence we have does still show the vaccines are incredibly effective at preventing severe disease, hospitalization and death, even though you may be more likely to have a symptomatic infection,” Long said.
Research has shown that vaccine effectiveness wanes over time, which is why federal officials have approved booster shots for anyone who has been fully vaccinated.
As part of the response to BA.5, federal officials are considering expanding eligibility for a second vaccine booster to all adults, according to the New York Times. Currently, only people age 50 and older are eligible for a second booster.
How can you protect yourself ?
The best protection from BA.5 remains the same as prior strains of the virus, experts said. That includes getting fully vaccinated and boosted, as well as breaking out those face masks that may have been gathering dust in a drawer.
“It is time, if people quit wearing it, to consider putting their face mask back on when they’re going out in public,” Atmar said.
Wearing a face mask could be particularly important if you’re going somewhere like a baseball game, where you’re going to be around a lot of people, Atmar said.
Atmar and Long also urged anyone who is infected to seek out a medication like Paxlovid, an antiviral drug that is used to treat COVID-19. Studies have shown the drug is 90 percent effective at reducing the risk of hospitalization or death.
“I think that’s helping to manage the severity of the pandemic and manage the hospitalization numbers we’ve seen,” Long said.
Some people have reported having a hard time accessing the drug, despite the efforts of President Joe Biden’s administration to make it widely available, according to NPR. To obtain Paxlovid, you’ll need a prescription from a doctor or one of the 2,300 health centers, pharmacies or urgent care clinics that have been designated “test-totreat” sites.