A new flu, called Cicada, is sweeping the streets of the United States. Here’s what you need to know!
News has broken out that a new variant of COVID-19 has emerged. The medical term for it is SARS-CoV-2 Variant BA.3.2; however, it’s commonly known as Cicada. It’s a new disease adapted from the deadly viruses that killed tens of thousands globally between late 2019 and 2022.
In February this year, the United States (US) Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially declared that the new virus had been detected in various health tests.
“BA.3.2 was detected in nasal swabs from four travellers, three aeroplane wastewater samples, clinical samples from five patients and 132 wastewater samples from 25 U.S. states,” CDC reported.
Since then, the USCDC has said that:
“Monitoring the spread of BA.3.2 provides valuable information about the potential for this new SARS-CoV-2 lineage to evade immunity from a previous infection or vaccination.” Otherwise, confirming that an investigation needs to be taken, for sufficient action to be made to combat the likelihood of the virus spreading further.
What actually is Cicada?
Lead Prescribing Pharmacist at Chemist4U, Ian Budd, exclusively tells Cosmopolitan UK about its official definition.
“Cicada, or BA.3.2, is part of the Omicron family. It’s named the Cicada strain because it is a variant of BA.3, a strain that disappeared for nearly four years, similar to how cicadas [a type of insect] lie dormant.”
