Symptoms of the Omicron BA.5 variant include runny nose, sneezing, and sore throat

Rapid test device for COVID-19.

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• The Omicron BA.5 variant is the dominant COVID-19 strain in the US, the CDC reports. 
• Its symptoms are similar to other Omicron variants — sore throat, sneezing, and runny noses. 
• But experts say infections by the BA.5 variant may be less severe. 

Omicron BA.5 has become the dominant COVID-19 strain in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But while this variant is fast-spreading, the strain appears to be less severe than previous versions of the virus and its symptoms remain relatively the same, experts say. 

Symptoms of Omicron infections are typically cold-like, including sore throat, sneezing, and runny noses. Symptoms like fever, chills, and cough are still seen sometimes in Omicron cases, but not as frequently as in earlier variants of the virus.

And loss of smell, which was a signature and common symptom in early COVID-19 cases, is rarely seen with the Omicron variant. 

The BA.5 variant appears to have similar symptoms.

BA.5 currently accounts for about 53% of COVID infections in the country, according to the CDC.

As symptoms remain the same, severity seems to be decreasing with BA.5, according to one expert. 

"In general, the average severity of infection is going down substantially," David Dowdy, MD, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told Insider. "As we get infected multiple times or vaccinated ... we learn how to better respond when we have an infection, meaning that we have the tools to get to get rid of that infection before it becomes overwhelming."

But even if the virus doesn't cause severe illness in most people, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there is still a risk that hospitals may become overwhelmed due to the transmissibility of the strain. 

"Currently available data suggest that these lineages may be able to spread a little better than other Omicron lineages," a CDC spokesperson said in a statement to Insider. "An increase in cases may lead to an increase in hospitalizations and changes to CDC's COVID Community Levels (CCL) in certain areas."

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