Covid-19: Should we be Worried About the Arrival of the New Variant with the Sweet Name “Frankenstein”?

HEALTH: The WHO explains that this new variant of Covid-19 “is growing rapidly compared to co-circulating variants on a global scale”

“Frankenstein”. The slightly worrying nickname of the new variant of Covid-19 should he make us panic? As at every start of the school year, the cases of coronavirus start to rise again. Public Health France indicates that the number of visits and hospitalizations to emergency rooms for suspected Covid-19 infection increased by 37% for the adult public during the week of the 15th to 21stSeptember.

The incidence rate of the virus increased from 38 cases per 100,000 inhabitants from September 8th to 14th to 49 cases for the week of September 15th to 21st, according to the Sentinels network. The WHO adds that XFG is growing rapidly compared to co-circulating variants globally. “Should we then be worried about the arrival of “Frankenstein” in France?

What does this new variant consist of?

Among the variants under surveillance, there is a new one: the “XFG” variant, nicknamed “Frankenstein” because of its hybridization of several strains of the virus. It is a derivative of the Omicron variant and “its prevalence is increasing globally”, indicates the World Health Organization (WHO) in a bulletin published on June 25. Several Southeast Asian countries have reported a simultaneous increase in new cases and hospitalizations, where XFG has been widely detected. “Current data do not indicate that this variant causes a more serious form or deaths than other variants in circulation”, reassures the WHO in its press release.

Should we be worried about it?

“Given the available data, the additional public health risk posed by XFG is considered low globally”, says the WHO. According to the organization, the vaccines against Covid-19 currently approved should remain effective against this variant, whether symptomatic or serious forms. So for now, there is no reason to panic. Especially since the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 begins in two weeks, on October 14. It particularly targets people at risk, such as those aged over 65, immunocompromised or pregnant women, as well as those around them.