Covid-19: how to recognize the English variant?

The British variant causes symptoms different from the classic virus. This is shown by a recent study conducted by the UK National Statistics Office.

Called B 1.1.7, the British variant of SARS-CoV-2 detected since mid-September in the United Kingdom, is now actively circulating throughout Europe. In France, according to data conveyed by government spokesman Gabriel Attal, one in ten cases of Covid-19 detected is due to the English variant. If it is indeed more contagious than the classic virus, it would however not be more dangerous. On the other hand, according to the national statistics office of the United Kingdom, this strain would cause specific symptoms. Among them, the cough which affected 35% of patients who were infected with this strain against 28% in people infected with the classic strain of SARS-CoV-2. Another symptom frequently encountered with the British strain: fatigue. This concerns 32% of patients with the British variant, against 29% of people affected by the classic strain.

Muscle pain is present in a quarter of patients who contract the British variant, compared to nearly a fifth for the classic form of the coronavirus. The researchers also realized that sore throats were more frequent with the British variant: they are present in 21.88% of patients, against 19.08% with the classic virus. As for the loss of taste and smell, mentioned by about 19% of patients with the initial strain of SARS-CoV-2, only 15% of people infected with the variant reported this symptom. To reach this conclusion, the researchers who conducted this study analyzed the data they collected from 6,000 patients across the country. The specialists based themselves on the “self-reports” of the symptoms of patients with B 1.1.7 over the period from November 15, 2020 to January 16, 2021.