😷 Covid symptoms are getting milder

• Despite covid-19 variant XEC showing concerning early results in the laboratory, hospitalizations are fewer than previous winters.
• The majority of those infected are either asymptomatic or experience only mild cold symptoms that can be confused with seasonal allergies.
• Hospital treatment has been simplified significantly in recent years, and patients who are admitted now stay in hospital for shorter periods.

Fewer hospitalized

When virologists first discovered the covid-19 variant XEC in autumn 2024, the early signs were concerning. XEC, which is a new branch of the omicron variant, had emerged through a combination of two other variants. Tests indicated that it could easily evade immune protection from previous infections and vaccines.

But when XEC began spreading in the US after Thanksgiving, the expected increase in hospitalizations didn't materialize. CDC data shows that the number of admissions in early December 2023 was 6.1 per 100,000 people. During the same week in December 2024, that number had dropped to two per 100,000 people.

Changed symptoms

The previously common symptoms of loss of taste and smell are becoming increasingly rare. Peter Chin-Hong, professor at the University of California, San Francisco, explains that most people who are infected are either asymptomatic or get such mild cold symptoms that they can be confused with seasonal allergies. The biggest risk factor for severe covid is now simply being over 75 years old.

Treatment protocols in hospitals have changed noticeably in the last two to three years. Previously, blood thinners were routinely given to reduce the risk of blood clots, but this is no longer considered necessary. Steroids like dexamethasone are still used in certain severe cases, but antiviral medications are now the main treatment.

Extensive immunity in the population

One explanation for the milder disease progression could be that the majority of people have now both been vaccinated and infected multiple times. This has created a powerful immune memory that can quickly identify and fight the virus before it can penetrate deeper into the body.

Kei Sato, virology professor at the University of Tokyo, points out that when new variants are tested on hamsters, the results often appear scary because hamsters, unlike humans in 2025, lack immunity to covid-19.

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