Sudbury health unit helping province get data in coronavirus variant surveillance program

Work is underway to track coronavirus variants in Ontario, and Sudbury's health unit is combing though testing results for clues.

Public health nurse Justeen Mansourian says it's critical to get a handle on where a variant exists.

"Because if there's a pattern in a certain community that's consistent with a variant, then that's a problem, because outside of international travel, it indicates to us that potentially there's community transmission."

Mansourian says as the virus spreads, it's taking the opportunity to mutate.

New coronavirus variants have emerged from places like the United Kingdom and South Africa.

"That U.K. variant that we're now seeing in Ontario in the cluster down south attached to travelers ... what we know is it's more transmissible."

The variant has a mutation on the virus's spike protein on the outer shell, she says, and binds more easily to human cells, "giving people the ability to pass it along to others."

'This is a problem'

New modelling shows the coronavirus variant from the U.K. could become the dominant strain in Ontario well before mass vaccination has taken place.

The deputy chief of microbiology at Public Health Ontario, Samir Patel, recently told CBC News that "trying to understand and get more data will allow the decision makers to make appropriate decisions," to slow the spread as much as possible.

Mansourian notes that if the variant enters the population, "they project that the doubling of cases will happen every 10 days versus every 40 to 45 days. So this is a problem because this pandemic is already causing a burden on hospitals."

And if the new variant strain is not controlled, "it's going to overwhelm our already overwhelmed emergency rooms here in Ontario ... not to mention our ICU beds."

All 32 health units in the province would fall under this Public Health Ontario variant surveillance program.

So far, no coronavirus variant has been detected in the Sudbury region.

"But we do know that, not too far from us, down south, there is a very small cluster. And among that cluster, I believe there's three cases that have absolutely no link to any type of travel."

'Stay focused'

Mansourian says the mutations mean the virus is succeeding. And the race is now on to out-run the new variant in the countdown to mass vaccinations.

She says that's why it's so important to practise safety measures ... like wearing a mask.

"I think we all have to pause and we have to stay focused. We have to really stay on our [public health] measures," she said.

"So even with all the new information coming out on variants, I think the most important takeaway, regardless of what type of modelling or projections or case counts that are to be expected, we have to stay focused on the public health interventions."

That means wearing a mask consistently, maintaining physical distancing, and washing hands.

"The most effective deterrent against the virus is the masking. It's the most powerful thing that we can do right now during this pandemic," she said.

"That's something that we have control over. The variant can't get through the mask."