About 10% of the world’s population has had COVID-19, says WHO

With the cases of asymptomatic patients and without medical help, it is difficult to calculate how many people the COVID-19 pandemic has already affected in the world. According to a spokesperson for the World Health Organization (WHO), around 10% of the world’s population has contracted the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which leaves most people still unprotected and vulnerable to the pathogen.

Announced on Monday (5), this forecast was built from “current best estimates”, according to WHO Executive Director Michael Ryan. In total figures, 10% would correspond to 780 million infections in the world. However, that figure is more than 20 times higher than the 35 million officially registered cases, according to the platform developed by Johns Hopkins University.

“Our current best estimates tell us that around 10% of the world’s population may have been infected with this virus. It varies by country, varies from urban to rural, varies by group. But what it means is that the vast majority of the world is still in danger, “Ryan explained. “We are entering a difficult period. The disease continues to spread,” added the WHO director.

COVID-19 no world

It is important to understand that this part of the population that would have contracted COVID-19 is not universal, that is, the percentage may vary depending on the region of the globe. “It varies by country, it varies from urban to rural areas, it varies by group,” Ryan said during a meeting of the WHO Executive Board.

At the time, the director also warned of the fact that coronavirus infection outbreaks are increasing in parts of Southeast Asia. Also noteworthy is the increase in cases and deaths in areas of Europe and in the Eastern Mediterranean region, which allegedly already controlled COVID-19.

According to the interactive map from Johns Hopkins University, there are officially 35.3 million cases of COVID-19, with more than a million deaths from the infection. Among the countries, the United States, India and Brazil register the highest number of infections in the international ranking of the disease. Additionally, 185 countries are currently affected to some degree by the coronavirus pandemic.

Source: Agência Brasil and Folha de São Paulo