In the wake of the emergence of a new COVID strain, health experts have urged the public to remain calm, emphasizing the need for increased awareness and precaution rather than panic.
Their appeal came amid growing public concern following the recent deaths of three individuals linked to the new variant of COVID, the first fatalities in Bangladesh in nearly a year and a half.
Meanwhile, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) has issued 11 precautionary guidelines as one elderly patient passed away on June 5 while another on June 13 in Dhaka and another in Chattogram.
Public health experts have reassured the people that the newly emerging sub-variants of the coronavirus do not currently appear to pose a major threat. However, they stressed the need for strict adherence to health protocols, as failure to do so could lead to rapid transmission.
They also issued special advice for older adults, individuals with weakened immune systems, and those with preexisting health conditions, warning that the virus could be more harmful to those vulnerable groups.
According to the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b), one of the main reasons for the rise in infections this year is the emergence of two new COVID-19 sub-variants — XFG and XFC. These are sub-lineages of the Omicron JN1 variant. Nearly all recent samples have detected the presence of the XFG variant, which is known for its higher বিস্তারিত