Experts said they are not sure if the painful sore throat is just a symptom that people are talking about or a distinctive symptom of this variant.
It's also unclear if the "razor blade throat" is more common in those who are more up to date on vaccination compared to those who are not up to date.
"I think it's certainly amongst the spectrum of symptoms that you can get, and we know that sore throat is reported by about 70% of patients now with COVID, so it's not unusual, and like with everything in medicine, there's always a spectrum," Chin-Hong said.
There is currently no evidence that NB.1.8.1. causes more severe disease or is more likely to cause hospitalization, according to Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville,
"But of course, there are people in high-risk groups that are still at risk of being hospitalized should they become infected," he told ABC News.
There are no other symptoms outlined that are specific to NB.1.8.1 by the CDC.
Symptoms listed by the health agency still include sore throat, cough, fever, chills, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, congestion, runny nose, loss of taste or smell, fatigue, muscle aches, body aches, headache, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea.
