Twenty-four confirmed and four probable cases of the most contagious strain of SARS-CoV2, the virus that causes COVID-19, have been identified in San Diego County, the Health and Human Services Agency announced today.
The new cases of the variant that emerged in the United Kingdom, known as B.1.1.7, bring the total in the region to 32. Sixteen are men and 16 are women. The new total includes 28 cases confirmed by complete genome sequencing and four probable cases that are directly linked to confirmed cases and have positive diagnostic nucleic acid tests, but have not yet been sequenced.
Two dozen new variant cases were confirmed on January 4 from samples collected from December 27 to December 31 and tested at the Helix laboratory in San Diego and its partner Illumina under a surveillance project by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
There were no COVID-19 deaths related to the variant, but a woman had to be hospitalized. She is now at home recovering.
The 24 newly confirmed patients have no travel history and come from 19 different families, but investigation and contact tracking are ongoing.
New cases have been identified in San Diego, Chula Vista, La Mesa and Lakeside. The cases occur in various age groups. While the four youngest cases are under 10 years old and the oldest is over 70, the average age of variant cases to date is 36, the same as the overall average of all confirmed cases in the county to date.
“The fact that these cases have been identified in various parts of the region shows that this strain of the virus may be spreading rapidly,” said Wilma Wooten, MD, MPH county public health officer. “People should be extra careful to avoid contagion and the spread of COVID-19, especially this variant, which research has shown to be more contagious.”
The variant was first identified on December 30 in a 30-year-old man with no travel history. Three additional cases were announced on December 31.
The county asked all test labs that have the ability to identify suspected cases of the new strain to refer specimens for genome sequencing to determine whether they are in fact cases of the variant. Local doctors were also asked to send positive tests for COVID-19 from patients with a history of travel to the UK or other places abroad where variants were detected.
“We are doing everything we can to determine how quickly this new strain is spreading, especially as the daily case count in the region has increased dramatically in recent weeks,” said Wooten.
Currently, it is believed that vaccines currently available will offer protection against new emerging variants. Scientists continue to study new strains of the new coronavirus to determine its potential impact.
County health officials say San Diegans must do the following now more than ever:
- Stay away from other people and leave the house only for essential activities
- Wear a mask
- Wash the hands
- If you are sick, get tested and then stay home and isolate yourself
For more information on COVID-19, vaccine testing and distribution sites, visit www.coronavirus-sd.com.