Tag Archives: Omicron Variant

Fact Check : Singapore Advice On Omicron XBB?!

Take a look at the viral advice on the new Omicron XBB variant from Singapore, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : Omicron XBB Variant Advice From Singapore!

This message, purportedly advice on the new Omicron XBB variant from Singapore, has gone viral again on WhatsApp, and on social media.

It’s rather long, so feel free to skip to the next section for the facts!

Singapore news!
Everyone is advised to wear a mask because the new COVID-Omicron XBB variant coronavirus is different, deadly and not easily detected properly:-

Symptoms of the novel COVID-Omicron XBB virus are as follows:-

1. Do not cough.
2. No fever.

There will only be many :-

3. Joint pain.
4. Headache.
5. Neck pain.
6. Upper back pain.
7. Pneumonia.
8. Generally have no appetite.

Of course, the COVID-Omicron XBB is 5 times more toxic than the Delta variant and has a higher mortality rate than the Delta.

It takes a shorter time for the condition to reach extreme severity, and sometimes there are no obvious symptoms.

Let’s be more careful!

This strain of the virus is not found in the nasopharyngeal region, and it directly affects the lungs, the “windows,” for a relatively short period of time.

Several patients diagnosed with Covid Omicron XBB were eventually classified as having no fever and no pain, but X-rays showed mild chest pneumonia.

Nasal swab tests are generally negative for COVID-Omicron XBB, and false-negative cases of nasopharyngeal tests are increasing.

This means that the virus can spread in the community and directly infect the lungs, leading to viral pneumonia, which in turn causes acute respiratory stress.

This explains why Covid-Omicron XBB has become highly contagious, highly virulent and lethal.

Please note, avoid crowded places, keep a distance of 1.5m even in open spaces, wear a double-layer mask, wear a suitable mask, wash your hands frequently when everyone is asymptomatic (no coughing or sneezing) .

This Covid Omicron “WAVE” is deadlier than the first wave of Covid-19. So we have to be very careful and take various enhanced coronavirus precautions.

Also maintain vigilant communication with your friends and family.

Don’t keep this information to yourself, share as much as possible with other relatives and friends, especially yours.

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Truth : Omicron XBB Variant Advice From Singapore Is Fake News!

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS circulating on WhatsApp, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : XBB Is An Omicron Subvariant

First, let me just clarify a common misconception. XBB is technically not a COVID-19 variant. It is a subvariant of the Omicron variant.

As per WHO definition, XBB is a recombinant subvariant of BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 sublineages. In other words – XBB is a mix of the BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 subvariants.

Fact #2 : XBB Is Detected Like Any Other COVID-19 Variant

The viral message falsely claims that XBB is not easily detected.

XBB is nothing more than a subvariant of Omicron. It is just as easily detected by the same PCR or RTK tests, as the original Omicron variant.

Fact #3 : XBB Symptoms Similar To Other Omicron Variants

The viral message falsely claims that XBB infections do not present with cough or fever.

XBB is just one of the many Omicron subvariants that include BA.5, BA.2.75, BJ.1, and BA.4.6. While they have changes to their spike protein, they have similar symptoms to the Omicron variant.

They are just different versions of the Omicron variant, and present with common symptoms like cough, fever, sore throat, cold, body aches.

Fact #4 : XBB Is Not 5X More Toxic Than Delta Variant

The term “toxic” is nonsensical when it comes to viruses, and tells us that the writer does not understand basic science, never mind virology.

He/she probably meant “virulent” or “virulence”, which refers to the virus’ ability to cause damage to its host. In any case, that is a false claim.

On 27 October 2022, the WHO Technical Advisory Group on SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution (TAG-VE) reported that there is no “substantial differences in disease severity for XBB infections”.

In other words – XBB infections produce similarly mild disease to Omicron. That is not surprising, because XBB is after all an Omicron subvariant.

The Delta variant (B.1.617.2), which caused havoc in mid 2021, causes more severe disease than any other COVID-19 variants, particularly in people who were not vaccinated.

An April 2022 study published in Nature showed that Omicron variant infections had 2X to 5X fewer fatalities than Delta variant infections.

Fact #5 : XBB Does Not Skip The Nasopharynx

This COVID-19 variant skips the nasopharynx and attacks the lungs directly is an old hoax that keeps getting rehashed for the variant of the day.

You may recall when Delta variant was the hot topic, people claimed that this is the variant that skips the nasopharynx and infects the lungs directly.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus is immobile, and travels through droplets and aerosols that we breathe in. It is not a homing missile that goes in search of a particular target.

As the air we breathe passes through the nasopharynx before it reaches the lungs, that is where most of the virus ends up, and that is why we swab the nasopharynx to detect COVID-19.

Fact #6 : Nasal / Nasopharyngeal Swab Test Will Still Pick Up XBB

The false claim that nasal / nasopharyngeal swab tests will turn up negative also keeps getting rehashed for the variant of the day.

People too earlier claimed that the nasal / nasopharyngeal swab tests would turn up negative for the Delta variant. It was nonsense then, it’s nonsense today.

Nasal or better still, nasopharyngeal swab, to detect the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus still works for the XBB subvariant.

Fact #7 : XBB Wave Is Not Deadlier Than First COVID-19 Wave

While the XBB wave is driving up cases in Singapore, the Ministry of Health there confirmed that the number of severe cases from XBB remained low:

This is very likely due to the resilience built up through vaccination and previous waves of infection. We are monitoring the trajectory closely.

More importantly, there is also no evidence of XBB causing more severe illness. So far, the large majority of patients continue to report mild symptoms such as sore throat or slight fever, especially if they have been vaccinated.

On October 11, for example, Singapore recorded over 11,000 new cases, but only 11 of them needed to be treated in the ICU, and only 50 needed oxygen supplementation.

That was much lower than the 171 ICU cases and 308 cases requiring oxygen supplementation at the peak of the Delta wave, and 54 ICU cases and 232 cases requiring oxygen supplementation at the peak of the Omicron wave.

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Japan Confirmed All COVID Variants Were Engineered?!

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Did Japan just release evidence that all COVID variants were engineered in biolabs?!

Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : Japan Confirmed All COVID Variants Were Engineered!

People are sharing an article by The People’s Voice (formerly NewsPunch), which claims that Japan just released evidence that all COVID variants were engineered in biolabs!

Here is an excerpt from the article, which is pretty long, so feel free to skip to the next section for the facts!

Japan Releases Evidence That ALL COVID Variants Were Engineered in Biolabs

An official new study out of Japan has concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs and intentionally released into the public.

The mainstream media has recently ramped up reports that Covid cases are on the rise in the run-up to the 2024 election.

Mainstream journalists and health officials have been promoting the return of masks and vaccines to tackle the spread of new variants EG.5.1 and BA.X.

However, a recent Japanese study suggests that the plot to lockdown the public again may be part of a sinister plan to take away more of our personal freedoms.

NN reports: The study found that all previous variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, were not naturally occurring but were, in fact, made in a laboratory.

Presumably, the latest EG.5.1 and BA.X variants were also engineered in a lab, according to the study.

The study was led by renowned Japanese Professors Atsuki Tanaka and Takayuki Miyazawa of Osaka Medical University and Kyoto University.

Tanaka and Miyazawa wanted to trace the historical evolution of the omicron variant of SARS-CoV2.

To trace the variant’s origins, they studied viral sequences found “in the wild” and deposited in public databases.

In doing this they found around 100 separate omicron subvariants that could not conceivably have arisen through natural processes.

The existence of these variants seems to provide definitive proof of large-scale lab creation and release of COVID-19 viruses.

Moreover, the variants appear to form comprehensive panels of mutations typical of those used in “reverse genetics” experiments to systematically test the properties of different parts of viruses, Substacker PSMI wrote.

According to the professors’ findings, COVID-19 and all of its variants came from a lab.

“Suppose the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant and its one amino acid reversion mutants were artificially and systematically generated,” they further clarify.

“In that case, we should suspect that the other variants (Alpha to Delta) may also be artificially generated viruses.”

They continue by raising questions about who may have engineered the virus and why.

“One idea, the hypothesis that these viruses were artificially generated, is more reasonable than proposing a novel mutation acquisition mechanism,” the paper reads.

“However, is there any reason to artificially create these mutants, which are unlikely to have occurred naturally, given the current SARS-CoV-2 epidemic?”

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Truth : Japan Did Not Confirm COVID Variants Were Engineered!

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS about COVID-19 and the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Study Does Not Appear To Be Official / Peer-Reviewed

First, let me just direct you to the study – Unnatural evolutionary processes of SARS-CoV-2 variants and possibility of deliberate natural selection, which you can read for yourself here.

This is not an official study conducted by the Japanese government, or its agencies. Neither does this study appear to be published or peer-reviewed by any journal.

This study appears to be only “published” in Zenodo on August 15, 2023. Zenodo is not a journal though, but a general-purpose open repository for research papers, data sets, and other research-related digital files.

Zenodo (https://zenodo.org) is an open repository for all scholarship, enabling researchers from all disciplines to share and preserve their research outputs, regardless of size or format.

While this does not mean that the study is rubbish, it is important for the study to be at least pass the peer-review process, which is itself merely the first step in any scientific research review process.

Fact #2 : Study Only Looked At Omicron Variants

While The People’s Voice article claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“, that is simply not the case. For one thing – the study only looked at Omicron variants.

In this study, we aimed to clarify the evolutionary processes leading to the formation of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants, focusing on Omicron variants with many amino acid mutations in the spike protein among SARS-CoV-2 isolates.

The study authors certainly never concluded that “all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“.

Fact #3 : Study Never Said COVID-19 Was Artificially Created

While The People’s Voice article claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“, that is also not the case.

The authors pointed out in their study (PDF download) that they “do not conclude” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was “artificially synthesized”.

Furthermore, we do not conclude that these viruses were artificially synthesized…

In addition, the authors went to some length to point out that it is impossible to know if the original SARS-CoV-2 virus was natural or artificial.

It has been claimed that SARS-CoV-2 is artificially generated because of the unnatural presence of a codon (CGG) encoding a contiguous arginine at the furin cleavage site of SARS-CoV-2. This claim is refuted based on the following facts;

1) there is no logical reason for a genetically engineered virus to utilize such a suboptimal furin cleavage site.

2) The only previous study on artificial insertion of furin cleavage sites at the S1/S2 boundary of the S protein of SARS-CoV-1 using the pseudotype virus experimental system utilized the optimal “RRSRR” sequence, which is different from the furin cleavage site’s sequence present in SARS-CoV-2.

3) There is also no evidence of previous studies at the Wuhan Institute of Virology that artificially inserted a complete furin cleavage site in coronaviruses.

4) Unnatural CGG codons adjacent to the arginine at the furin cleavage site are rare in coronaviruses but are observed at a particular frequency in SARS-CoV-1, SARS-CoV-2, and other human coronaviruses.

However, these are only declarations and are illogical. No one explained why a naturally occurring virus would utilize a suboptimal furin cleavage site. It has not been mentioned about technically possible to insert this furin cleavage site or a CGG codon artificially. Inserting a polybasic furin cleavage site on the S protein makes it impossible to conclude whether SARS-CoV-2 is a naturally occurring or artificial virus by discussing whether it is natural or artificial.

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Fact #4 : Study Never Said COVID-19 Was Intentionally Released

The People’s Voice article also claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants” were “intentionally released into the public“. Again, that is not the case.

The authors pointed out in their study (PDF download) that they “do not conclude” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was “distributed based on malicious intent”.

… we do not conclude that these viruses were … distributed based on malicious intent.

Fact #5 : Study Hypothesises Gain-of-Function Creation Of Omicron

The study authors are hypothesising that the Omicron variants may have been artificially synthesised, based on their finding that “most of the mutations” in the S protein of the Omicron variants “are non-synonymous“, which they claim is “highly unnatural“.

The authors suggested that the mutations may have been “artificially generated to identify amino acids of the S protein involved in the infectivity and virulence” of the coronavirus.

While the authors did not explicitly say so, they are suggesting that the Omicron variant may have been introduced as an accidental lab leak of gain-of-function research into SARS-CoV-2.

Fact #6 : Study Called For Further Research

Rather that coming to the conclusion that “all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs and intentionally released into the public” as claimed by The People’s Voice article, the authors pointed out that their study had some weaknesses:

their databases had “a limited number of viral sequences”, and
their data may be unreliable due to “technical problems in sequencing or some malicious intent”

As such, their paper aims to “point out” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus has undergone “unthinkable mutations under conventional coronavirus mutation mechanisms“, and the authors “hope” that the “possibility of artificial theory” be “included in the discussion“.

In other words – the study authors suggest that more research should be conducted to look at the possibility that these COVID-19 variants were artificially created as part of reverse genetics / Gain-of-Function (GoF) research.

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Are COVID-19 Vaccines Still One Giant Experiment?!

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Are COVID-19 vaccines still one giant experiment?! Take a look at the viral claims, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : COVID-19 Vaccines Are Still One Giant Experiment!

Anti-vaccination activists are excitedly sharing screenshots of an article by Katherine J. Wu from The Atlantic magazine, claiming that it proves that COVID-19 vaccines are still “one giant experiment”!

💥BREAKING: The Atlantic recognizes reality. WOW. Hell must have frozen over. “The Atlantic” published this by a staff writer.

“Covid shots are still one giant experiment”

We’re finally allowed to call the experiment an experiment. We were called so nasty names for two years for sharing this truth. It’s now mainstream.

“COVID Shots Are Still One Giant Experiment”

Injecting billions of people with a new technology never before administered to humans with zero long term safety data is exactly a GIANT EXPERIMENT!!

Truth : COVID-19 Vaccines Are Not Still One Giant Experiment!

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS created and propagated by anti-vaccination activists, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Claims Are Based On Article From The Atlantic

First, let me provide some context on what’s going on.

These claims are based on a recent article (behind a paywall) by Katherine J. Wu, writing for The Atlantic magazine, in which she wrote about efforts to decide on this year’s COVID-19 vaccination strategy.

Unfortunately, the article is long and behind a paywall, so you cannot read it for yourself, unless you subscribe to The Atlantic magazine. But in this fact check article, I will share with you the pertinent parts of the article to show you why the claims are false.

Fact #2 : The Atlantic Changed Its Title Twice!

Anti-vaccination activists are sharing screenshots of the article, but not the actual link to the article itself because its title was changed not once, but twice!

According to archive.today, the original title on 26 May 2023 was uncontroversial – “What Should Go Into This Year’s COVID Vaccine?”

But that innocuous title probably didn’t gain much traction, so about 1.5 hours later, the title was changed to the controversial “COVID Shots Are Still One Giant Experiment“. That was when the article finally went viral.

When the controversy over its title blew up on social media, The Atlantic changed the article’s title six hours later to “Fall’s COVID Shots May Be Different in One Key Way“.

Fact #3 : Article Did Not Mention Experiment Even Once!

I should point out that while the article was written by Katherine J. Wu, the title was likely decided by the editor(s) at The Atlantic. That’s probably why the title was changed to the controversial “COVID Shots Are Still One Giant Experiment” even though the word “experiment” or “experimental” was never mentioned, not even once in her entire article.

One of the consideration editors have when creating a title is whether it is attractive and can gain traction… and whether it can improve the SEO of the article.

It is likely the editor(s) at The Atlantic decided to “amp up” the title to improve its SEO, and/or make it more clickbaity / share-worthy, so it would go viral. If that was the reason for the first title change, then the editor(s) sure did a great job!

Fact #4 : Article Never Said COVID-19 Vaccines Are Experimental

If you read the entirety of Katherine J. Wu’s article, you will realise that it never once said or even suggested that COVID-19 vaccines are still experimental.

Her article was about work being done to create the next COVID-19 vaccine formula that the US FDA is scheduled to decide next month. Would it continue with the current bivalent vaccine strategy targeting the ancestral and Omicron variants, or should it switch to targeting XBB.1 variant alone?

This fall, millions of Americans might be lining up for yet another kind of COVID vaccine: their first-ever dose that lacks the strain that ignited the pandemic more than three and a half years ago. Unlike the current, bivalent vaccine, which guards against two variants at once, the next one could, like the first version of the shot, have only one main ingredient—the spike protein of the XBB.1 lineage of the Omicron variant, the globe’s current dominant clade.

That plan isn’t yet set. The FDA still has to convene a panel of experts, then is expected to make a final call on autumn’s recipe next month. But several experts told me they hope the agency follows the recent recommendation of a World Health Organization advisory group and focuses the next vaccine only on the strains now circulating.

The switch in strategy—from two variants to one, from original SARS-CoV-2 plus Omicron to XBB.1 alone—would be momentous but wise, experts told me, reflecting the world’s updated understanding of the virus’s evolution and the immune system’s quirks

To be clear – COVID-19 vaccines underwent and passed large trials before they received their Emergency Use Authorisations, and many subsequently received full approval after months of monitoring. Those vaccine cease to be experimental once they receive either an EUA or a full approval.

Fact #5 : Scientists Need To Predict Virus Evolution

The SARS-CoV-2 virus evolves rapidly, with every infection presenting an opportunity for it to evolve further into new variants.

While mRNA technology has helped to speed up vaccine development, it still takes time to develop improved vaccines to tackle these new variants. So scientists need to predict the virus’ evolution, to decide on the next vaccine.

Will SARS-CoV-2 evolution continue mainly through the XBB.1 variant, or will a new Alpha or Delta variant gain supremacy? That is the question scientists need to answer in order to develop the next COVID-19 vaccine.

If the next vaccine is based on the XBB.1 variant, it will offer good protection even against subsequent sub variant of XBB.1. But if a new Delta sub-variant suddenly becomes far more common, then the XBB.1 optimised vaccine may not offer quite as much protection.

Fact #6 : Article Says Vaccines Are Essential

What anti-vaccination activists notably do not point out is that the article specifically pointed out that “it’s long been clear that vaccines are essential for preventing severe disease and death“, and that regular boosting is probably necessary to maintain their effectiveness.

By now, it’s long been clear that vaccines are essential for preventing severe disease and death, and that some cadence of boosting is probably necessary to keep the shots’ effectiveness high.

The article does not, ever, claim that COVID-19 vaccines are “still one giant experiment”. Instead, it says that these vaccines are essential, and we will need some regular boosting to maintain its effectiveness against new variants.

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Don’t forget to protect yourself, and your family, by vaccinating against COVID-19!

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Is Omicron XBB 5X More Virulent Than Delta Variant?!

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Is the Omicron XBB variant 5X more virulent than the Delta variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus?!

Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : Omicron XBB Is 5X More Virulent Than Delta Variant!

This message has gone viral on WhatsApp, Twitter and Facebook particularly in India, claiming that the Omicron XBB variant is 5X more virulent than the Delta variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus!

Note : It’s rather long, so please feel free to skip to the next section for the facts!

XBB variant

Let’s pay attention to the following information:

Everyone is advised to wear a mask because the new variant of the COVID-Omicron XBB coronavirus is different, deadly and not easy to detect correctly.

The symptoms of the new virus COVID-Omicron XBB are the following:

1. There is no cough.
2. There is no fever.

There will only be a limited number of these others:

3. Joint pain.
4. Headache.
5. Pain in the neck.
6. Upper back pain.
7. Pneumonia.
8. There is usually no appetite.

COVID-Omicron XBB is 5 times more virulent than the Delta variant and has a higher mortality rate than it.

It takes less time for the condition to reach extreme severity and sometimes there are no obvious symptoms.

Let’s be more careful!

This strain of the virus is not found in the nasopharyngeal region and directly affects the lungs for a relatively short period of time.

Several patients diagnosed with Covid-Omicron XBB were classified as febrile and pain free, but x-rays showed mild chest pneumonia.

Nasal swab tests are often negative for Covid-Omicron XBB, and cases of false negative nasopharyngeal tests are increasing.

This means that the virus can spread in the community and directly infect the lungs, causing viral pneumonia, which in turn causes acute respiratory distress.

This explains why the Covid-Omicron XBB has become something very contagious, highly virulent and lethal.
Caution, avoid crowded places, keep a distance of 1.5 m even in open spaces, wear a double-layer mask, wear a suitable mask, wash hands frequently, even if everyone is asymptomatic (no coughing or sneezing).

This wave of Covid-Omicron XBB is deadlier than the first wave of Covid-19. So we have to be very careful and take several reinforced precautions against the coronavirus.Maintain vigilant communication with your friends and family.

Do not keep this information to yourself, share it with other family members and friends.

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Truth : Omicron XBB Variant Advice From Singapore Is Fake News!

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS circulating on WhatsApp and social media, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : XBB Is An Omicron Subvariant

First, let me just clarify a common misconception. XBB is technically not a COVID-19 variant. It is a subvariant of the Omicron variant.

As per WHO definition, XBB is a recombinant subvariant of BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 sublineages of the Omicron variant. In other words – XBB is a mix of the BA.2.10.1 and BA.2.75 subvariants of Omicron.

Fact #2 : Omicron XBB Is Detected Like Any Other COVID-19 Variant

The viral message falsely claims that XBB is not easily detected.

XBB is nothing more than a subvariant of Omicron. It is just as easily detected by the same PCR or RTK tests as the original Omicron variant.

Fact #3 : Omicron XBB Symptoms Similar To Other Omicron Variants

The viral message falsely claims that XBB infections do not present with cough or fever.

XBB is just one of the many Omicron subvariants that include BA.5, BA.2.75, BJ.1, and BA.4.6. While they have changes to their spike protein, they have similar symptoms to the Omicron variant.

They are just different versions of the Omicron variant, and present with common symptoms like cough, fever, sore throat, cold, body aches.

Fact #4 : Omicron XBB Is Not 5X More Virulent Than Delta Variant

The viral message falsely claims that XBB is 5X more virulent than the Delta variant.

On 27 October 2022, the WHO Technical Advisory Group on SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution (TAG-VE) reported that there is no “substantial differences in disease severity for XBB infections”.

In other words – XBB infections produce similarly mild disease to Omicron. That is not surprising, because XBB is after all an Omicron subvariant.

The Delta variant (B.1.617.2), which caused havoc in mid 2021, causes more severe disease than any other COVID-19 variants, particularly in people who were not vaccinated.

An April 2022 study published in Nature showed that Omicron variant infections had 2X to 5X fewer fatalities than Delta variant infections.

Fact #5 : Omicron XBB Does Not Skip The Nasopharynx