Britain’s official list of COVID-19 symptoms has expanded to add nine on top of the original three: fever, cough, loss of smell or taste.
The U.K. Health Security Agency’s new list of symptoms adds several that are similar to cold and flu symptoms, including sore throat, muscle aches and diarrhea.
According to the BBC, the list of symptoms now include:
- shortness of breath
- feeling tired or exhausted
- aching body
- headache
- sore throat
- blocked or runny nose
- loss of appetite
- diarrhea
- feeling sick or being sick
The addition of new symptoms comes days after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a second booster shot for Americans 50 years old and older, although the shot is not necessary to be considered fully vaccinated.
The second booster shot can be from either a Pfizer-BioNTech or a Moderna booster.
Before the FDA decision on Tuesday, a fourth dose had been recommended only for people who are immunocompromised, for whom a third shot was also recommended. The agency is also mulling a fifth shot for those most vulnerable.
Following the FDA approval, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recommended another booster.
“Dr. Rochelle Walensky, CDC’s director, said it was especially important for older Americans — those 65 and older — and the 50-somethings with chronic illnesses such as heart disease or diabetes to consider another shot,” the Associated Press reported.
“They are the most likely to benefit from receiving an additional booster dose at this time,” Walensky said.
Earlier this month, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said a fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will be needed in order to keep hospitalizations down.
“Right now, the way that we have seen, it is necessary, a fourth booster right now. The protection that you are getting from the third, it is good enough, actually quite good for hospitalizations and deaths,” Bourla said while appearing on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
“It’s not that good against infections but doesn’t last very long. But we are just submitting those data to the FDA [Food and Drug Administration], and then we will see what the experts also will say outside Pfizer,” he added.
The CEO also told CNBC that “It’s clear that there is a need in an environment of Omicron to boost the immune response,” he said while appearing.
Show host Margaret Brennan asked Bourla if his company can avoid the confusion that swirled around the first booster shot. “I think so. And I think right now we need to be very well coordinated, CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], FDA and the industry so that we are all providing to the American people and to the world a cohesive picture rather than confusion,” he said.
Joseph Curl has covered politics for 35 years, including 12 years as White House correspondent, and ran the Drudge Report from 2010 to 2015. Send tips to [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @josephcurl.
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Source: Dailywire
