Increase in Covid-19 cases in England: XFG variant is spreading

According to the news of the British Daily Mail newspaper, the situation is even worse in the capital London. Here, the number of hospitalizations has increased by 80 percent in the last 7 days. For those over the age of 85, the most risky group, hospitalizations have increased from 7.08 to 12.43 per 100 thousand people.

Although the current figures are incomparably lower than the pandemic period, it is stated that Covid has entered an autumn awakening.

"Covid cases are increasing, but it is not unexpected for this time of year," says Dr Matthew Siggins from the University of Surrey.

The “XFG” variant, called “Stratus” but also referred to as “American Covid,” currently accounts for the majority of infections.

XFG, which was first identified in January 2025 and has spread in both the UK and the US, causes similar symptoms associated with Covid. In addition to cough and high fever, Stratus patients also experience gastrointestinal problems.

Dr. Renée Hoenderkamp said she noticed a significant change in the number of patients presenting to her with symptoms such as sore throat, headache, runny nose and fatigue, adding, "Over the last 10 days to 3 weeks, my patient lists have definitely shifted towards people with these symptoms." he says.

The rise of this virus, which puts some people in bed and others without causing any symptoms, is definitely not as dangerous as a pandemic period for now, but it is still stated that the most concrete indicator may be looking at the number of deaths.

According to the "freshest" UKHSA figures, the number of deaths from Covid in England in the week of 21-28 August was 7, while the week before that it was announced as 6.