NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Across Tennessee, the number of people sick with COVID-19 is continuing to rise. Much of the sudden spike of active cases is due to the Delta variant, according to health officials.
"If we see a patient with COVID, we're pretty sure it's going to be Delta," said Dr. William Schaffner from Vanderbilt University Medical Center. "The thing that distinguishes Delta, among other things from the previous strain is that it's so much more contagious. It's spread so widely."
Spanish Version: Doctores hablan de las diferencias de las variantes de COVID-19 y de cómo se hacen las pruebas para detectar las cepas
He said that cases of COVID-19 now tend to involve younger people and people who are not vaccinated against it. The Knox County Health Department reported 872 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, after weeks of increasing hospitalizations and active cases.
When people are initially infected with COVID-19, there is no clinical test to tell which variant they may have contracted. However, some cases undergo genomic sequencing, depending on where a person was tested for COVID-19. For this, doctors usually send the swab used for a coronavirus test to a laboratory.
"We already know the virus is present; we're just trying to get its very detailed fingerprint, which then lets us compare it all of the databases and say what lineage it belongs to, whether it's the Delta, or whatever," said Dr. Jonatham Schmitz with Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
Genomic sequencing is done to help compile public health data, doctors said. It helps health leaders have more information about how COVID-19 is spreading in different populations.
Both doctors also encouraged people to follow recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Those include wearing masks, washing hands, social distancing and getting a vaccine.