'Viruses mutate in order to become more fit and have the ability to be passed from one person to another person more effectively,' she explains. Sherrill Brown, M.D., medical director of infection prevention for Los Angeles-based AltaMed Health Services, tells Good Housekeeping that the XBB.1.5 variant is the most infectious strain that experts have come across recently - which officials at the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed in January, per ABC News. Many outlets, from USA Today to the Washington Post, have highlighted leading experts' testimony which suggests that this particular strain is a bout five times more contagious than earlier Omicron variants (which were already spreading rapidly in years past). XBB.1.5 may be one of the most virulent strains of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that triggers COVID-19, and has adapted to better evade some of the antibody protection that newer bivalent vaccines offer. Having quickly become the primary strain in new COVID-19 cases currently in the United States, a virus variant known as XBB.1.5 - called the ' Kraken' by some in the healthcare field - is likely spreading among Americans due to misleading symptoms that may be dismissed as seasonal illness.

Being sick and experiencing a chronic cough, elevated fever, sore throat or a runny nose should prompt you to get a COVID-19 test to ensure you are not contagious.

Common symptoms associated with this strain can be easily dismissed as seasonal illness or flu, but data suggests flu infections are declining, which means Americans should treat these symptoms seriously.

XBB.1.5 - which some experts are calling the 'Kraken' strain - is thought to be about five times more contagious than earlier Omicron strains and has characteristics that allow it to spread easier among both vaccinated and recently recovered individuals.Global healthcare officials have labeled XBB.1.5, a subvariant that is currently responsible for the bulk of new COVID-19 cases, as the most contagious Omicron mutation they've seen to date.When you can be around others after you had or likely had COVID-19.Similarities and differences between flu and COVID-19.Whole of population-based cohort study of recovery time from COVID-19 in New South Wales Australia. Modeling the onset of symptoms of COVID-19. Interim clinical guidance for management of patients with confirmed coronavirus disease (COVID-19).Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China. The prevalence of symptoms in 24,410 adults infected by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2 COVID-19): a systematic review and meta-analysis of 148 studies from 9 countries. All you need to know about the Delta variant.About variants of the virus that causes COVID-19.You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy. We link primary sources - including studies, scientific references, and statistics - within each article and also list them in the resources section at the bottom of our articles. Medical News Today has strict sourcing guidelines and draws only from peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. Others will experience no symptoms at all. For example, some people will experience nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea before fever or coughing. However, the type and order of symptoms will vary from person to person. Around 26% to 32% of people hospitalized with COVID-19 will require treatment in an intensive care unit. In these and other severe cases, doctors may admit people to an intensive care unit around 10 days after symptom onset. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 20% to 42% of people hospitalized with COVID-19 experience this condition. This is where the lungs fail to provide the body with sufficient oxygen. Some people will experience acute respiratory distress syndrome after 9 days. A 2020 study in The Lancet suggests that this typically occurs after 7 days from the onset of symptoms. In severe cases, COVID-19 can require hospitalization. The Frontiers in Public Health study also suggested that COVID-19 could then cause nausea and vomiting, which would develop sooner than it would in similar respiratory infections, such as MERS or SARS.

COVID-19 may then cause a cough, sore throat, and body aches or headaches.

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