The Covid-19 virus continues to mutate. This time, the newest subvariant, the XBB 1.5 or Kraken, has spread to several countries. This variant has even been detected in Indonesia by Polish citizens with no symptoms. Then, what is the chronology of this subvariant entering Indonesia?
The discovery of the Kraken subvariant came from a Polish citizen who arrived in Indonesia on January 6, 2023.
The Polish citizen had spent one night in a DKI Jakarta hotel. Director General of Disease Prevention and Control (P2P) Maxi Rein Rondonuwu said the Health Service was still tracing further close contacts of the Kraken variant of the COVID-19 case.
After spending the night in Jakarta, the patient traveled to Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, had a chance to take a COVID-19 test with an antigen rapid test, and was declared negative as of January 7. It was only on January 11, he again took the COVID-19 PCR test for an activity, and the results were positive without symptoms.
Until January 15, he was undergoing isolation although he still did not complain of any symptoms. He just tested negative for COVID-19 on January 18, 2023.
“Yes, it’s true, the detection results were from friends from the Health Service and KKP,” confirmed Maxi when asked about the emergence of cases of the Kraken variant in Indonesia, Wednesday (25/1/2023).
“The person concerned is a Polish citizen. The condition is asymptomatic, has carried out independent isolation and the last PCR test was negative. The Health Service team is continuing to carry out epidemiological tracing for close contact tracing,” he continued.
Kraken Spreads Quickly, But Its Symptoms Are Relatively Mild
Furthermore, Kraken is said to be highly contagious compared to other variants that existed before. However, the symptoms are not severe and some are found to be asymptomatic.
Commissioner at the Chicago Department of Public Health, Allison Arwady also explained that the symptoms found in Kraken patients were similar to flu. For example, such as sore throat, and cough until life is clogged.
“Infected people generally only have flu-like symptoms, such as sore throat, cough, runny nose, and congestion. It’s rare for those who experience severe symptoms to have a high fever,” said Arwady.
However, mild symptoms are usually experienced by those who already have antibodies before. One of them is through the Covid-19 vaccination.
Researchers are continuing to analyze the ability of XBB 1.5 to transmit quickly. Until now, the Kraken was found to quickly replicate itself in the body of someone who was infected.
People can prevent it by getting vaccinated. Including receiving the second booster dose which has been open for people 18 years and over in Indonesia.
