Around the globe, a new strain of COVID-19 is spreading exponentially.

The COVID-19 XEC variant is derived from Omicron strains KS.1.1 and KP.3.3, says Dr. Francesca Torriani, MD, an infectious disease specialist with UC San Diego Health. XEC was first detected in Europe earlier this year, and it's now reached the US. “We expect this could become the next dominant variant,” she says. 

As health officials prepare for a potential uptick in COVID-19 cases this fall, we asked the experts to answer your FAQs. From understanding how COVID-19 is transmitted, to what precautions you should take to protect yourself from the virus, here’s what you need to know.  

How is COVID transmitted?

So far, it is understood that the XEC variant behaves similarly to other strains of the virus, Torriani says.

Exposure to COVID-19 is most likely to occur when you are in close proximity to someone who is infected with the virus, because “the main mode of transmission is through respiratory particles,” says Torriani. 

When an infected person speaks, coughs or sneezes, they send infectious particles and droplets of respiratory fluid into the air, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency. When you inhale these particles through your nose or mouth, or get them in your eyes, there is “a possibility of the virus entering the body,” Torriani says.  

Because COVID-19 particles can linger in the air, transmission of the virus is still possible at distances greater than 6 feet, per the EPA. Depending on the ventilation, COVID-19 particles can stay airborne anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, says Dr. Nezar Dahdal, Hospitalist at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center.

How long does COVID live on surfaces?

While surface transmission of COVID is possible, it is less likely than transmission by inhaling infected respiratory particles. The live virus cannot survive on surfaces for long, because “the virus needs a host to actually be effective,” Dahdal explains. “It needs to be in the human body to multiply and spread.” 

In the event that you do touch a surface that is contaminated with live COVID-19 droplets, if proceed to touch your nose, eyes, or mouth, you are “taking the virus from the surface and transferring it to your mucous membrane, where it then enters your system,” Dahdal says.

On “surfaces such as glass, or tabletops, or steel, the virus can last outside of the human body anywhere from one day to about four or five days, depending on how porous it is,” Dahdal says. The virus can survive on cardboard surfaces up to one day, and on wood surfaces up to four days, per Cleveland Clinic. 

Can you live with someone with COVID and not get it?

It is possible to live in close contact with someone with COVID, be exposed to the virus, and not necessarily get infected, Dahdal says. It’s “going to depend on a person's immune system, the variant itself, and then also the sanitary practices of the person,” he says.

When living in close proximity with someone infected with COVID, the key to avoiding infection is to be proactive about protection, he says. “If a person is frequently washing their hands, sanitizing their hands, wiping down or [disinfecting] surfaces, you have a much better chance of avoiding being infected,” Dahdal says. 

How to prevent the spread of COVID

Washing hands, wearing masks, and frequently sanitizing surfaces are simple measures that can limit the possibility of being exposed to COVID-19, Dahdal says. 

It’s also important to stay up to date on COVID vaccines, especially if you are immunocompromised or aged 65 and older, he emphasizes. 

There is a question of whether the updated COVID vaccine will offer protection against XEC. Because the latest vaccine targets circulating variants of Omicron, it should “also provide coverage and [decrease] the risk of complications in people who get infected,” Torriani says. 

More:Free COVID-19 tests are now available. Here's how you can get them.

Additional precautions against COVID include keeping windows open to promote airflow, and when possible, spending time with people outside rather than indoors, Torriani says. This “increases the turnover of the air, and therefore decreases the number of particles that might be still in the air that we might inhale,” she explains.