Govt issues Covid-19 subvariant JN.1 alert to states: What do Health Ministry guidelines mean for Christmas, New Year?

ARE THE ELDERLY AND THE CO-MORBID AT AN INCREASED RISK?

No more than from any other variant of COVID-19, say experts. Dr GC Khilnani, chairman of PSRI Institute of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine and former head of the department of pulmonology at AIIMS, said: “Most people in India have had the infection at least two or three times. And, more than 95 per cent of the people have received at least two doses of the vaccine. Therefore, the probability of severe disease is low.”

He added for those who are old and co-morbid, general precautions such as washing hands frequently and avoiding crowded areas during the festive season are enough. “They may don an N95 mask if they have to go to some crowded area; it will protect them from pollution, Covid-19, and any other respiratory infection,” he said.

WHAT SHOULD BE THE LINE OF TREATMENT?

The existing treatment line for COVID-19 is expected to be effective against JN.1 infection. “Updated COVID-19 vaccines are expected to increase protection against JN.1, as they do for other variants,” the note added.

WHAT’S THE EASIEST WAY TO TEST JN.1?

The RT-PCR tests continue to be the most trusted method of detecting the new sub-variant, says the Health Ministry.

SHOULD WE BE MORE ALERT FOR THE NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS?

The Health Ministry note emphasises the need for sticking to respiratory hygiene norms. “Considering the upcoming festive season, there is a need to put in place requisite public health measures and other arrangements to minimise risk of transmission of the disease by adherence to maintenance of respiratory hygiene.” This means returning to masking in enclosed and crowded spaces, frequent hand-washing, particularly before touching the face and mouth as well as social distancing.

Even states are keeping up vigil with the Karnataka government asking the elderly (above 60 years) and those with comorbidities to mandatorily wear face masks in the wake of symptoms like cough, phlegm and fever. It is also avidly testing symptoms in suspected cases and heightened surveillance in border districts.

The Health Ministry is following the old routine of intensified surveillance at the laboratory, community and sewage levels. It has called for monitoring and reporting of district-wise influenza-like illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases at all health facilities on a regular basis, including uploads at the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP) portal. This is necessary for detecting the early rising trend of cases.

The Ministry, which is already doing a mock drill of preparedness to take on a public health challenge, is monitoring the situation across states at the district level.

The JN.1 is raising concern globally because of its immunity-evading capacity that’s fuelling a rapid spread. Outbreaks have been reported in the US, China and Singapore. JN.1 is a descendant of the BA.2.86 lineage (Pirola) of SARS CoV2.