What is happening at the Fontenelle de Chauny nursing home? A focus of covid-19 contamination has developed in this establishment in the Aisne, of which 27 residents have died.

Particularity of this cluster: the sequencing of certain samples revealed the presence of a variant “uncommon“from the virus, theRegional Health Agency (ARS) of Hauts-de-France.

106 residents and 57 professionals infected

The first case of covid in this Ehpad appeared a month ago, on January 5. And “despite the measures taken by the establishment (…), the Fontenelle de Chauny nursing home faces a cluster that has so far affected 106 residents out of 111 and 57 professionals out of 70“, or 163 contaminations in all, specifies the ARS in a press release.

27 residents have died to date but “no new cases have been detected among residents for more than 10 days and among staff for almost a week“the agency added.

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A new variant involved?

The sequencing carried out on 30 samples revealed the presence of a variant for 25 of them. This is'”a known variant, belonging to lineage 19B“, a lineage”uncommon in the world and in Europe“, according to Public Health France, indicates the ARS.

The agency specifies that viruses carrying the same mutations as this variant have been detected since the end of December 2020 in the Middle East, the United States and since January 2021 in Europe, Switzerland and, for France, in Bourgogne-Franche- County and Occitanie.

Not on the list of “variants of concern”

To date, there is no data to say whether this variant could be more transmissible, or to determine its degree of virulence compared to other variants of SARS-CoV-2, underlines the ARS.

And to date, the National Reference Center for Respiratory Infection Viruses (CNR Institut Pasteur) does not take it into account “as part of the “variants of concern”, along with the variants found in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil“, further specifies the agency.

Sequencing in progress

However, in order to identify a possible wider circulation of this variant, around ten samples from the Chauny hospital center are being sequenced.

In parallel, all positive PCR tests carried out in the agglomeration community of Chauny-Tergnier-La Fère between February 4 and 9 will also be sequenced to identify possible variants. And, finally, a large-scale screening operation must be organized in this territory next week.