NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Mike Osborne) -- Metro Nashville COVID-19 Task Force Chair Dr. Alex Jahangir has warned about a troubling new coronavirus development.
During Mayor John Cooper’s weeklypress briefing on Thursday, Dr. Jahangir noted a growing body of evidence suggesting coronavirus immunity may be fleeting.
Dr. Jahangir described a confirmed second case of COVID-19. A Hong Kong resident fully recovered from an earlier infection tested positive a second time during a mandatory airline pre-flight screening. According to Dr. Jahangir, the patient was asymptomatic.
He says subsequent testing revealed the patient had contracted a slightly different strain of the novel virus that causes COVID-19 as it continues to evolve.
Dr. Jahangir warned this news means all infection mitigation measures must continue to be observed even by those who have recovered from the illness. While the symptoms of a second infection may be light or even completely absent, an individual so infected can still spread the illness to others.
As of Thursday, well over 23,000 Nashville residents have recovered from COVID-19 infections. Statewide, more than 111,000 Tennesseans have recovered from the illness.
