Covid-19 sub-variant JN.1 detected in Kerala woman

A case of Covid sub-variant JN.1 has been detected in Kerala as part of an ongoing routine surveillance of the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG). The sub-variant was detected in an RT-PCR positive sample from Karakulam in Thiruvananthapuram district on December 8.

The sample tested positive for coronavirus on November 18.

The 79-year-old woman had mild symptoms of Influenza Like Illness (ILI) and has since recovered from Covid.

As part of a regular exercise by the Union Health Ministry, a mock drill at all health facilities across states is underway to assess their public health and hospital preparedness.

A government press release stated that the Health Ministry is in touch with State Health Authorities and monitoring the situation.

“There has been an increasing trend of Covid cases from Kerala since the last few weeks. This has been attributed to an increase in several samples from ILI cases being referred for testing. A majority of these cases are clinically mild and recovering on their own at their homes without any treatment,” the press release said.

The health department is also monitoring various entry points to Kerala.

The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) is a network of Genomic Laboratories that has been monitoring coronavirus in the country from a genomic perspective. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is a part of this consortium.

According to the revised surveillance guidelines of Covid, patients of ILI and SARI are tested for the viral disease and the positive cases are referred for whole genome sequencing (WGS).