New Covid variant is different to anything seen before as GP warns symptoms 'wipe you out'

A new strain of Covid - the XEC coronavirus variant - is 'wiping out' people who catch it, a GP has warned. Some of the more recent strains since the pandemic have been milder, but GP Dr Helen Wall said the current one doing the rounds is more flu-like, with heavier symptoms. The new variant is sweeping across the globe and it is feared it will become the most dominant.

Dr Wall, who is the clinical director of population health in Greater Manchester, told the M.E.N.

that GPs are seeing a rise in illnesses as the new variant spreads. She said: "We do see generally a rise in respiratory infections this time of year. There is another Covid variant on the scene which is expected to become the most dominant, and is becoming more prevalent like all the variants before it.

"We don’t completely know if it makes it more or less transmissible, I suspect more because they always are. But we don’t know what the situation is.” XEC is a recombinant variant, which happens when two existing strains combine.

This can happen if an individual contracts both strains simultaneously. XEC is formed from the KP.3.

3 and KS. 1.1 strains, with genetic links to omicron - a variant initially spotted in South Africa in 2021 known for its high contagion levels and reduced severity compared to earlier SARS-CoV-2 strains.

But, some experts fear that "XEC appears to have a growth advantage and is spreading faster than other circulating variants, suggesting it will become the dominant variant globally in.