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As masks have fallen away from most faces, tonight, a COVID-19 variant is rapidly spreading.
口罩正从大多数人的脸上摘下，但今晚，一种新冠肺炎病毒新变种正在迅速传播。
XBB, a sub-variant of Omicron, now accounts for more than half of all infections in the Northeast, according to the CDC,
这种被称为XBB的毒株，是奥密克戎的一种亚变种，根据美国疾病控制与预防中心的数据，该变种的感染病例现占美国东北部所有感染病例的一半以上，
an alarming surge from just 7 percent during the same week last month.
而令人担忧的是，就在上个月的同一周，这一数字还仅为7%。
Nationwide, it accounts for more than 18 percent of cases.
在美国全国范围内，该变种的感染病例已经占到了总病例的18%以上。
Though the death rate remains low, medical experts say XBB should be on everyone's radar.
虽然致死率仍然很低，但医学专家表示，XBB变种应该引起每个人的注意。
"So, it's concerning that it's spreading so fast and becoming dominant, not just in the Northeast, but in the next few weeks throughout the United States."
“令人担忧的是，它传播得是如此之快，不仅仅是在美国东北部，在未来几周内，它将在整个美国占据主导地位。”
Current vaccines, including the bivalent booster, don't prevent against infection from XBB, but lessen the chances of serious illness.
目前的疫苗，包括二价疫苗，并不能预防XBB的感染，但能够减少重症的几率。
The current medications used to treat COVID are less effective against this variant.
而目前用于治疗新冠肺炎的药物，对这种变体的效果较差。
"The only one we have left that's effective is Paxlovid, so that's our last backup."
“我们剩下的唯一有效的药物就是Paxlovid了，所以这是我们最后的备用品。”
Medical experts worry that packed crowds could be the reason XBB spreads even more.
医学专家担心，拥挤的人群可能是XBB传播更广的原因。
"I think what we should do is strongly encourage masking,
“我认为我们应该做的是大力鼓励戴口罩，
and point out the evidence is incontrovertible that high-quality masks like KN-95 and N95 reduce the likelihood of getting an infection."
并且亮出KN-95和N95等高质量口罩可以降低感染可能性的无可争议的证据。”
