If youve been following COVID news, then youre likely well aware theres a new variant in town thats concerning the scientific community. Known as XBB, the variant is believed to be the most immune-evasive to date and currently accounts for over 40% of infections in the United States, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That percentage is expected to grow exponentially in the coming weeks as XBB out-competes other omicron variants like BQ.1. Look at what transpired in New England : Within three weeks, the percentage of cases in the region caused by XBB jumped from 11% to 75%.

Because XBB is relatively new, scientists are still working to figure out if and how the variant behaves differently from other recent variants. Though XBBs symptoms are expected to be on par with past omicron infections, doctors say they are seeing some issues becoming more prevalent than others.

Viruses typically mutate to become more contagious and less severe; it appears that this is happening with this strain of the coronavirus, Dr. Henry Redel , the chief of infectious disease at Saint Peters University Hospital in New Brunswick, New Jersey, told HuffPost.

We asked infectious disease experts what theyre seeing in the hospital right now. Heres what they said:

The most common XBB COVID symptoms appear to be congestion and body aches.

Theres limited data on XBB, but experts suspect the symptoms associated with XBB infections will be similar to the symptoms people experienced with COVID throughout 2022.

That said, evidence has shown that the symptom profile has shifted a bit with each variant. Omicron caused more cold-like symptoms (like fatigue, runny nose, sneezing and muscle aches), for example, whereas delta and alpha more commonly triggered anosmia (loss of smell) and ageusia (loss of taste).

So, what is on the docket for XBB? In general, I think people are more achy and still have congestion and headache, Dr. Julie Parsonnet , an infectious diseases specialist with Stanford Health Care, told HuffPost. You may also expect to see the other usual symptoms: fever, chills, cough and sore throat.

Less common symptoms include loss of taste and smell and shortness of breath.

Anosmia and ageusia appear, anecdotally, to be less common with XBB. Experts dont expect ageusia and anosmia to make a comeback just yet. Since XBB is part of the omicron group, I expect that loss of taste and smell will not be common, but I have not seen data yet, said Dr. Thomas Campbell , a professor in the department of infectious disease at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

One thing doctors on the front lines are seeing less of: severe shortness of breath, Redel said. Rarely have recent patients needed supplemental oxygen, he added. Redel noted hes seeing many more COVID patients come in with classic upper respiratory symptoms like runny nose, congestion and sore throats along with fever and muscle aches.