Illinois reported the first case of the South African variant of COVID-19 on Thursday, health officials announced.
The Illinois Department of Public Health said the first case of coronavirus variant B.1.351, first identified in South Africa, was found in the state.
The confirmed variant was located on a resident of Rock Island, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
“We expected to see more cases of variants detected in Illinois, including strain B.1.351,” said IDPH director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “These variants appear to spread more quickly, which can lead to more cases of COVID-19 and even another outbreak. Our best way to defeat this virus as quickly as possible is to use our masks and get vaccinated when it is our turn. “
In the United States, cases of B.1.351 were first reported in late January, health officials said. Studies suggest that the antibodies produced by the current COVID-19 vaccines recognize the variant, as well as offering “some protection”.
“IDPH will continue to work with local health departments, academic partners, laboratories and CDC to monitor cases. IDPH has increased its surveillance for this and other variants using genomic sequence tests on a larger number of samples,” said a statement.
The Lake County Health Department reported the first case of coronavirus variant B.1.1.7 last week, which is the most common strain in the UK in recent months.
The individual infected with the variant traveled internationally and was in contact with a sick person before returning to the United States in late December, health officials said.
According to the secretary, the individual did not show symptoms of the coronavirus.
“We hope to see more cases of these new variants in Lake County, as they appear to spread more easily and quickly than other variants,” said Dr. Sana Ahmed, Medical Epidemiologist at LCHD. “It is extremely important that you follow the quarantine recommendations and take the test if you have traveled or been in close contact with someone with a positive result for COVID-19.”
Health officials recalled that studies suggest that the currently available COVID-19 vaccine is effective against new strains.
In Illinois, the first known case of the most contagious strain was announced by health officials on Friday, January 15.
An investigation by the Chicago Department of Public Health found that the individual had traveled to the UK and the Middle East in the 14 days prior to diagnosis, officials said, noting that the department had worked to identify the person’s close contacts to alert him them about quarantine and isolation.
While there is still a lot of uncertainty about the new variant COVID-19 discovered for the first time in the UK, the Illinois chief physician said on Friday that enough was known that people could take precautions.
“… If something is more transmissible, it suggests that we need to double the use of the mask,” said Ezike, who also emphasized social detachment and hand washing. “Like all the things we’ve said … the message doesn’t really change, it just means that now it’s more important than ever to stick to them [mitigations]. ”
A UK scientist has revealed that some evidence suggests that the strain carries a greater risk of death than the original strain, although he warned that the data is uncertain.
Patrick Vallance, the British government’s chief scientific adviser, said that for a 60-year-old man with the original version of the virus, “the average risk is that for 1,000 infected people, about 10 are expected to die unfortunately.”
“With the new variant, for 1,000 infected people, about 13 or 14 people can die,” he said.
At a press conference on the coronavirus, both Ezike and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said the mitigations could be increased across the state if there were widespread reports of the new variant.
“If we see an increase in terms of the UK variant, we know that it starts to multiply very quickly, as it takes a significant stance,” said Ezike. “We know that the numbers are now very, very low. But that could change …”
The doctor had already warned that the newly discovered strain could be dominant as early as March.
The British variant was first detected in September, World Health Organization officials previously announced. Since then, cases have skyrocketed across the UK, resulting in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision to impose a national blockade.
The UK variant is one of two new contagious viral strains that have recently emerged, the CDC said in telebriefing late last month.