Indore man tests positive for BA.2.86 sub-variant of COVID-19

A 52-year-old man has tested positive for BA.2.86 sub-variant of COVID 19-in Indore, a senior official of a private hospital where his swab sample was initially tested said on Thursday.

Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences (SAMS) Managing Director Mehak Bhandari said the man was found infected with the BA.2.86 sub-variant (pirola) of coronavirus during genome sequencing test of his sample in the institute's laboratory.

Genomic sequencing is a laboratory test that can map out the whole genetic makeup of a virus from a patient's swab sample.

The Omicron sub-variant was first detected in Europe last year.

Bhandari said the patient, quarantined at home, has a fever and his family members have been kept in isolation and are being treated.

The official said the patient's swab sample has been sent to the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College, Indore, which on its part will deliver it to the All India Institute of Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal, for detailed examination.