Covid-19: What do we know about Eris, the new variant now the majority in France?

newbie Among infected people in France, 35% are affected by the new Eris variant

In the Omicron family, we present to you Eris. — Canva

• Among people currently infected with the coronavirus, 35% are affected by the subvariant of Omicron, Eris, according to Gisaid, an international reference database for monitoring Covid-19.
• Fever , rhinitis, sore throat, headache, dry cough or even severe fatigue: the symptoms associated with Eris are not new.
• This variant of the name of a Greek deity, called EG.5.1, is more transmissible than previous variants.

We thought it was behind us. However, for the past few days, the Covid-19 has been talking about him again. In its national news bulletin Oscour of August 2, Santéé Public France reports, for the week of July 24 to 30, a 26% increase in the number of visits to the emergency room for symptoms suggestive of Covid-19, i.e. 149 additional visits per relation to; the previous week.

Among those infected, 35% are affected by the new Eris variant, according to Gisaid, an international reference database for monitoring Covid-19. A figure which however remains to be determined. nuance given that not all infected people get tested. What is this new majority variant? What are the associated symptoms? Is it more transmissible and dangerous than the previous ones? 20 Minutes takes stock.

A more transmissible virus

This sub-variant of Omicron in the name of a deity Greek was baptized EG.5.1 by the World Health Organization (WHO) and has been initially spotted in India. “However, it is difficult to say that this variant is of Indian origin because this country has more than a billion inhabitants and is better equipped. into sequencing tools than many of its neighbours,” explains Antoine Flahault, medical epidemiologist, professor and director of the Institut de sant” global to; the Faculty of medicine from the university of Geneva.

Fever, rhinitis, sore throat, headache, dry cough, even severe fatigue: the symptoms associated with Eris are nothing new. On the other hand, it is more transmissible than the previous variants. A logic explained by the epidemiologist: “The selection of new variants which tend to becoming dominant is based on their greater transmissibility. compared to the previous ones. EG.5.1 is needed because it is more transmissible than XBB.”

No severity; particular

As with any new variant early in its emergence, the virulence of Eris is not yet fully known. “Having said that, where it is already widespread, in India, South-East Asia, the United States and the United Kingdom, no severity is reported; particular, specifies the professor. Nothing is known, however, of its potential. lead to long Covids.”

So should we be worried about the arrival of this new variant? An increase in cases is more than likely, according to Antoine Flahault. “It is expected that new variants, which are more transmissible than the previous ones, will come to impose themselves. their turn. They then lead to an increase in cases, new hospitalizations in immunocompromised and elderly people and probably an increase in long Covid”, analyzes the epidemiologist.

A new wave coming soon?

The French being less immunized due to their vaccination or last contamination which begins to spread. date, the increase in cases is all the more likely. A situation that is not going to improve this fall. “The cold season favors the circulation of these respiratory viruses because their transmission takes place in closed, crowded and poorly ventilated environments where there is a lot of air. we meet more frequently during the cold seasons,” relativize because the epidemiological data are less precise than in the past. Since May 5, 2023, Covid-19 is no longer considered by the WHO as a global health emergency and the Ministry of Health Since July 1, 2023, French no longer registers antigenic results on its SI-DEP portal.