Why Experts Are Warning About ‘Troublesome’ COVID Variants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1
The Omicron variant has dominated COVID-19 cases for a year and, in the process, spawned several subvariants. Two of the biggest subvariants—BQ.1 and BQ.1.1—are currently responsible for the majority of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That’s a dramatic uptick from the 11% of cases they caused back in October.
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 have gotten the side-eye from infectious disease experts, including Anthony Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who told CBS News that the subvariants have qualities that could make our existing treatments and immunity less effective. Meaning, BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are spreading fast—and things like being previously infected with COVID-19 or vaccinated against the virus may not protect you from getting sick as well as it did in the past. (But, of course, it can help protect you from getting seriously ill and dying of the virus.)
It’s difficult to get an accurate number on just how many COVID-19 cases are swirling in the country right now given how many people are testing at home (or not at all). However, CDC data suggest that cases are jumping back up again.
So, what’s the deal with BQ.1 and BQ.1.1, and how concerned should you be about it? Here’s what you need to know.
What are BQ.1 and BQ.1.1?
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are part of a new onslaught of COVID-19 variants, says Thomas Russo, M.D., professor and chief of infectious disease at the University at Buffalo in New York. “This is the next wave,” he says. “BQ.1, BQ1.1, and these other new variants have all evolved in different places but, to a degree, they share similar spike proteins that make them at least as infectious as the parental variants that they were derived from.”
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are subvariants of the Omicron variant BA.5, which used to dominate COVID-19 cases in the country (BA.5 is now responsible for about 11.5% of cases), Dr. Russo explains. He calls them “first cousins,” noting that they’re very similar.
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 have spread quickly. They were previously packaged in CDC data under BA.5, but were eventually given their own spot on the CDC’s “Nowcast” COVID-19 data tracker after cases continued to rise sharply. Each week, CDC data show more COVID-19 cases caused by BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 and less by BA.5.
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are particularly concerning because they’re dominating in a world that has “increasing immunity” from vaccines and natural infection, Dr. Russo says. “If you’re a variant or variants that can evade that, you’re then one that’s going to be able to spread and gain a larger share of infections,” he says.
Dr. Fauci called out BQ.1.1 in particular over concerns that it could evade protection from Evusheld, an antibody drug used to help minimize the risk of severe disease in people who are immunocompromised.“It seems to elude important monoclonal antibodies,” he said.
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 symptoms
Symptoms of BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are “all in the same general spectrum” as previous COVID-19 variants, says infectious disease expert Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. But, he adds, a person’s immunity “plays a major role in how severe and what exact [symptoms] people experience.” Meaning, if you’re up to date on your COVID-19 vaccines or you were recently infected with the virus, you’re less likely to have severe symptoms as someone who has no immunity to the virus.
Symptoms of BQ.1, BQ.1.1, and other COVID-19 variants include the following, per the CDC:
Fever or chills
Cough
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Fatigue
Muscle or body aches
Headache
New loss of taste or smell
Sore throat
Congestion or runny nose
Nausea or vomiting
Diarrhea
However, that list hasn’t been updated since October. According to the most recent data from the ZOE Health Study, which is a research project from scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, King’s College London, Stanford University School of Medicine and the health app ZOE, symptoms of BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are more like those of the common cold. The symptoms, which are listed from most commonly reported and on down, include:
Sore throat
Runny nose
Blocked nose
Sneezing
A cough without phlegm (aka dry cough)
Headache
A cough with phlegm (aka wet cough)
Hoarse voice
Muscle aches and pains
Altered sense of smell
“All of the Omicron variants seem less likely to cause loss of taste and smell and more likely to cause upper respiratory symptoms such as sore throat,” Dr. Adalja says.
As a result, Dr. Russo says, “if you have what appears to be a sore throat and runny nose, that could be COVID. It’s important to recognize the signs.”
Does the bivalent booster protect against BQ.1 and BQ.1.1?
While BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 may evade immunity from vaccines and natural infection, it’s unclear how much it will dodge the new bivalent booster. “We don’t have any data yet,” Dr. Russo points out. Still, “at the moment, we think this booster does provide substantial protection against severe disease with these variants,” says William Schaffner, M.D., infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
Overall, Dr. Russo says that the booster “should be pretty good at preventing severe disease, hospitalization, and death” in people who get BQ.1 and BQ.1.1—it just may not do as good of a job at protecting you from getting sick in the first place as it did with previous variants.
Dr. Russo encourages people to test themselves if they develop symptoms of COVID-19 and actually isolate if the results are positive. “People are in denial and ostrich mode with COVID,” he says. “But it is very much still out there.”
This article is accurate as of press time. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly evolves and the scientific community’s understanding of the novel coronavirus develops, some of the information may have changed since it was last updated. While we aim to keep all of our stories up to date, please visit online resources provided by the CDC, WHO, and your local public health department to stay informed on the latest news. Always talk to your doctor for professional medical advice.
You Might Also Like
