The new Covid-19 Omicron is proving to be concerning for experts and world leaders.
Omicron is spreading faster than any other variant and is on route to becoming the dominant strain in the UK.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has warned that cases of Omicron is doubling per day.
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The new variant can be spotted with PCR tests if the strain shows an S-gene drop out.
As of December 13, there have been 3,756 new cases of COVID-19 reported according to Scottish government website.
As the Mirror reports, the NHS website still asks anyone with the three traditional symptoms of coronavirus to get a free PCR test as soon as possible.
It lists them as:
- A high temperature
- A new, continuous cough
- A loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
Although there is still research being conducted for the new strain, early signs are showing the symptoms are different from Delta and the original coronavirus.
The symptoms are being highlighted as followed.
- A scratchy throat (as opposed to a sore throat)
- A dry cough
Extreme tiredness
Mild muscle aches
- Night sweats
Additionally, ZOE Covid Symptom Study highlights that those who are sneezing and coughing without explanation should isolate as these are common symptoms from people who are fully vaccinated.
Dr Angelique Coetzee, chair of the South African Medical Association, who was one of the first people to suspect the Omicron Covid strain, has said she noticed patients at her private clinic showing symptoms that are different from the Delta variant.
Dr Coetzee told the AFP that she alerted health officials of a "clinical picture that doesn't fit Delta" on 18 November when seven patients showed different symptoms that seemed "very much related to normal viral infection".
She explained that her patients presented extreme tiredness, mild muscle aches, scratchy throat and dry cough.
Unlike the previous variants, this one doesn't cause loss of taste or smell, she added.
Night sweats - which are when you sweat so much that your night clothes and bedding are soaking wet - have also been noted by doctors in South Africa, where the variant was first discovered.
At a briefing convened by South Africa's Department of Health, GP Unben Pillay listed the symptoms that Omicron patients were reporting.
He said one telltale sign many patients are experiencing and presenting with is "night sweats".
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