Everything you should know about new Stratus Covid strain after distinct symptom revealed

The clocks have gone back, the weather's got colder and more of us are getting ill, which only means one thing - we're well and truly in the depths of autumn.

And the dreaded 'C' word that nobody wants to hear is creeping back in.

That's right, doctors have announced there's a brand new strain of Covid-19 to watch out for called XFG and also known as Stratus.

As per the BBC, in September it was reported that Stratus, alongside NB.1.8.1 (Nimbus) are now the most common variants being passed around in the UK.

But before we all start panic buying loo roll again, experts have said the new strains don't appear to pose any bigger threat than previous types of Covid that we've experienced, or make people feel any more ill.

However, infections may be more likely, especially at this time of year when literally everyone is suffering from some sort of illness.

Here's everything you need to know about the Stratus variant, including symptoms to keep an eye out for and where it's spread to.

A new Covid-19 strain is making its way around the UK (Getty Stock Image)

What is the new Stratus Covid variant?

Status is simply a new variant of the original Covid-19 virus that we're all familiar with.

As per Mayo Clinic, if a virus infects a group of people, the virus then copies itself and during this process the genetic code can randomly change in each copy.

These changes are called mutations, and if a mutation changes how a virus acts in a group of people, it's called a variant. This is how we got Nimbus, Stratus, Omricon, and so on.

Stratus was first identified in Southeast Asia in January of this year, and by June, it had spread to 38 other countries, which meant the World Health Organisation (WHO) deemed it worth mentioning.

As per EuroNews, XFG is a recombination - a mixture of the two earlier virus sub-lines LF.7 and LP.8.1.2, and in Germany, some people are calling it the 'Frankenstein' variant.

While Covid cases are on the rise again, it's important to note that this is expected for respiratory viruses at the start of autumn.

There is no evidence to suggest this new variant makes people any more ill (Getty Stock Image)

What are the symptoms of the Stratus Covid strain?

According to reports, the symptoms are not too dissimilar of what you would usually expect from Covid-19.

We're talking headaches, coughing, a blocked or running nose and exhaustion, making it difficult to distinguish from a cold or flu.

However, one tell-tale symptom of Stratus is a hoarse voice or a 'razor blade' sore throat.

Dr Kaywaan Khan, a Harley Street GP and Founder of Hannah London Clinic, told The Mirror: "You can still get some of the same features as with the common cold, like a cough or runny nose, but we are seeing a lot more hoarseness of voice.

"It's not a defining feature, you can experience this with the common cold too but with Covid, you can get a bit of laryngitis and this hoarse voice."

The expert added: "You can get a razor sharp sore throat, but also loss of taste. It's probably less common than the first strains but that can indicate Covid."

One major symptom that's being reported is a 'razorblade' sore throat (Getty Stock Image)

How many people have the Stratus Covid strain?

We know what you're thinking - exactly how much of the problem is the new variant?

As reported by EuroNews, WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) consider Stratus to be a 'variant under monitoring' (VUM).

Essentially, this means health officials are watching it closely but at the moment, don't consider it to be a cause for concern.

The UK Health Security said: “Our genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 lineages last month found that 35 per cent were classified as XFG.3, 28 per cent were classified as XFG, 11 per cent were classified as NB.1.8.1, seven per cent were classified as XFG.5 and seven per cent were classified as XFG.3.4.1."

WHO have also confirmed that the current approved Covid vaccines are expected to remain effective against this new variant.