Thailand detects Omicron XBB subvariant

Thailand has recorded its first two Covid-19 Omicron XBB subvariant cases, but those infected had recovered.

Director-general of the Medical Sciences Department (MSD) Dr Supakit Sirilak said the two women with mild symptoms were discharged from the hospital after completing their quarantine.

Supakit said the first is a 49-year-old Thai woman who arrived from Singapore and was admitted to a private hospital after developing Covid-19 symptoms on Sept 27.

The other was a 60-year-old foreigner arriving from Hong Kong who was admitted to a private hospital in Bangkok after testing positive for Covid-19 via a self-test kit on Sept 28.

He added that both completed quarantine and have been discharged from the hospital.

“There is no cause for panic. There are no severe cases linked to the XBB strain so far,” Supakit said at a press conference in Bangkok yesterday.

Lab tests carried out later confirmed that the two patients were infected with the XBB subvariant.

The XBB, a highly transmissible Omicron subvariant, was first detected in Singapore and the United States in August.

The XBB subvariant became a cause for concern for health authorities in Thailand after three people from Thailand tested positive in Hong Kong last week.

Health authorities stepped up checks at airports on passengers with respiratory symptoms from Hong Kong and Singapore.

The media has reported that the XBB subvariant has been driving a significant surge in Covid-19 cases in Singapore.

Meanwhile, Supakit said Thailand also detected its first two BF.7 cases - a 16-year-old teenage boy and a 62-year-old medical professional.

He said the patients did not develop severe symptoms.

- Bernama

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