133 coronavirus variant cases found in Lambton County

While variant of concern cases remain relatively low in Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent, neighbouring region Lambton County is reporting 133cases ofCOVID-19 virus variants.

In a news release Wednesday, LambtonPublic Health said more than 100 peoplein its region with COVID-19 have tested positive for a variant of concern. In an update sent to CBC Wednesday,Chad Ikert, manager of health protection for LambtonPublic Health, reported that74testedpositive for the B117variant first identified in the U.K.

Lambton Countycurrently has 190active cases.Forty-one active cases are variants.Just under a third (32 per cent) of the variant cases are people aged 18 and younger.

"Please stay vigilant," Lambton County medical officer of health Dr. Sudit Ranade said in a news release. "Regardless of the variant involved, the best way to stop transmission and community spread is to follow public health guidelines."

Windsor-Essexhas seen 70 variant cases, three of which are B117. Chatham-Kenthas seen 50 variant cases, four of which are B117.

In both regions, it's also unclear how many of the variant cases remain active.

Other variants in Ontario includethe B1351variant first identified in South Africa and the P1 variant first found in Brazil.

Variants associated with increased risks, more severe disease

New data released by the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table said that as of March 28 new variants of concern account for 67 per cent of all the province's COVID-19 cases.

The group also said thatvariants of concern are associated with a 63 per centincrease inrisk of hospitalization, a 103 per centincrease in therisk of needing intensive careand a 56 per cent rise in the risk of death from COVID-19.

Lambton Public Health said that data suggests the variant found in the U.K. might be more transmissible than other strains, and that there is evidence that some strains can cause more severe disease.

As for whether variant rates are expected to rise in Windsor-Essex, the region's medical officer of health Dr. Wajid Ahmed said Wednesday they likely will.

"We have raised very quickly to 70 cases of variant in our region so it will increase," Ahmed said. "I think it will be the most dominant strain we are seeing in the province and the country."

He said because of this, it's a critical time for people tostrictly adhereto public health measures and to detecttheir symptoms early so that they can get tested as soon as possible.