'Razor Blade Throat' COVID Subvariant Sickens More In NJ

NEW JERSEY - The new COVID-19 omicron subvariant, Nimbus (NB.1.8.1), has become the dominant strain across the United States and in the Garden State.

While 140 total cases across all strains of COVID have been reported in the state, the latest available data from the New Jersey Department of Health shows the Nimbus variety continues to show signs of rapid spread.

According to the World Health Network, Nimbus looks to be more is usually detected by symptoms of a severe sore throat, with a mild cough, fever, muscle aches and congestion. Some patients reported a sensation feeling like "razor blade throat."

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) modeled projections show a jump from 15 percent to 37 percent nationwide over that same two week period of data through June 7.

This data is subject to further refinement into a weighted adjustment available at a later date. The CDC points out that "due to low numbers of sequences being reported to CDC, precision in the most recent reporting period is low...(they are) moving to longer reporting periods."

According to the last available data for cases of all variants sequenced in the state, 10 percent of the 507 reported were attributed to the strain. This data is only available through May 17.

A spokesperson for the CDC says that, so far, too few U.S. sequences have been reported to be included in their official variant estimates dashboard, adding that the "CDC is aware of reported cases of COVID-19 NB.1.8.1 in China and is in regular contact with international partners."

“What sets NB.1.8.1 apart is how quickly it spreads,” according to Dr. Magdalena Sobieszczyk, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.

“It has a genetic advantage: mutations that make it easy for it to bind to receptors on human cells. The mutations could allow NB.1.8.1 to spread faster and therefore infect more people.”

According to Today, the new variant is now responsible for more than one third of all COVID cases in the United States following surges in Asia this spring.

This strain of the coronavirus was first detected in the U.S. in late March from airport screening procedures for international travelers. More than a dozen states have reported cases of the strain.

As of June 7, overall COVID test positivity have remained relatively flat at 3 percent, up just 0.2 percent from the previous week. COVID hospitalizations are falling, however, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Nimbus variant is growing at a time when federal authorities have dramatically reduced vaccine recommendations from the CDC, with U.S. Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, also removing all of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices' members just earlier this month.

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