The BA.2 subvariant of the omicron variant has a unique set of symptoms that show up differently for everyone.
Driving the news: Researchers recently conducted an in-depth analysis into reinfection risks from the BA.2 variant, investigating whether or not the BA.2 variant can infect people who already were infected with the omicron variant, per CNN.
- In the study, the researchers investigated 140,000 viral genomes from infected patients.
- They found there were 263 reinfections.
- The researchers found 47 people who had been reinfected with BA.2 after getting the original omicron variant.
Symptoms: Symptoms for the reinfected were across the board, according to CNN.
- Most reinfections were mild.
- Some people had no COVID-19 symptoms or mild COVID-19 symptoms.
- About five people suffered “symptoms that were characterized as moderate, akin to flu-like symptoms,” according to CNN.
- No hospitalizations or deaths were reported.
The bigger picture: A large amount of anecdotal evidence has suggested that the omicron variant can reinfect people, especially through the BA.2 subvariant.
- “Yes, you can get omicron twice,” Stanley Weiss, an epidemiologist at Rutgers School of Public Health, told Yahoo.
- He added, “If you had a mild infection, didn’t get a very good immune response, and you get exposed again with a big dose of the virus, it’s definitely possible.”