Irish health officials are urging the public to stay at home if they’re feeling unwell. A new Covid variant, known as NB.1.8.1, has been detected in Ireland, and according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), this strain first emerged in January and by late April was responsible for approximately 10.7% of global infections, up from just 2.5% a month earlier. The WHO note that while the variant may be more transmissible than previous strains, there is no evidence it causes more severe symptoms or illness.
This new strain has seen a rapid rise here in Ireland in recent weeks and according to data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC), the proportion of sequenced Covid samples linked to NB.1.8.1 jumped from 3.7% to 27.3% within the last five weeks.
Irish people who find themselves unwell with unseasonal cold symptoms or gastrointestinal issues may actually have Covid, according to the HSE.
Ireland’s public health guidelines remain the same; if you have any symptoms of Covid, stay at home until 48 hours after the symptoms are mostly or fully gone. You should also avoid contact with other people, especially people at higher risk from Covid.
Covid symptoms to look out for include:
Fever (high temperature – 38C or above) – including experiencing chills; a dry cough; tiredness;
change to your sense of smell or taste; runny or blocked nose; conjunctivitis (red eyes or pink eyes); sore throat; headache; muscle or joint pain; skin rash; vomiting; diarrhoea; chills; dizziness; breathing difficulties; loss of appetite; confusion; pain or pressure in the chest.
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