The alarming situation in Lithuania: in less than a month – almost 45 thousand. coronavirus cases

It is the number of cases in which the circumstances of the infection cannot be determined that is of greatest concern to professionals. In July, there were 18% of such cases, in August – 19%, in September – 20%, in October – 25%, in November – even 38%. (November 2 to 29). This means that the risk of contracting a coronavirus infection is now high in all places where people come into contact with people, especially indoors.

According to Robertas Petraitis, director of NVSC, the increasing trend in the number of cases in which we cannot find a source of infection and isolate it illustrates the seriousness of the situation.

“This is a serious sign that the virus is circulating in different environments and we cannot assess the situation as we could in the spring or summer, when we clearly tracked where people were infected, they had local outbreaks controlled in treatment, supportive care , nursing homes. Currently, the proportion of untraceable cases is high, indicating a significant prevalence of the disease in society. Generally speaking, we now see a situation where the virus can enter our environment even after of a brief conversation with a colleague at work, without the use of personal protective equipment, ”says R. Petraitis.

Evaluation of the general structure of cases by infection sites, about 3 percent. people were infected with the coronavirus in educational institutions, that is, kindergartens and schools, in November. The number of cases in educational institutions may have decreased due to the pause of face-to-face education, as well as the introduction of the coeducational method and the use of teleworking in parents’ workplaces.

There is a correlation between the number of cases of infection in families and the number of cases of infection in the workplace. It is estimated that the virus circulates in a circle that includes educational institutions and workplaces through relatives. Generally speaking, the infection reaches families of different social origins and continues to spread to other social settings where members of those families work, study, or visit.

It is estimated that nearly a quarter of all people with COVID-19 confirmed their infection in families in November. At the time, just over 22 percent were related to outbreaks in the workplace. cases.

It is important to highlight that the data from epidemiological investigations show that the infection in treatment, nursing and healthcare facilities where COVID-19 outbreaks are registered generally comes from the workers’ social environment, with links to the social environment of their relatives.

This suggests that the extent to which families successfully cope with an infection when one of the family members has a risk contact or becomes infected has a significant impact on the spread of infection in the country today. Compared to the first wave of infection, it is observed that during the second wave, and especially in November, it becomes extremely difficult to follow the principles of isolation when a case of infection is detected in families.

It can be seen that family members often live with the sick, not properly isolated. The same trend is observed in other European countries. The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control has already commented on this, most recently on November 18. Family members, even if they are just so-called “contact contacts,” say that isolation is recommended.

Although the proportion of infection-related infections (7.2%) in the overall structure of infection sites also remains significant, experts believe that the risk of spreading the virus in treatment facilities is lower than in society based on preventive testing of staff and patients. Infection control measures that help prevent the spread of the disease.

According to Rolanda Lingienė, head of the Vilnius department of the NVSC, the data collected by epidemiologists allows us to see the route of the virus spread. In Lithuania, it is not as unique as in the rest of the world.

“The data collected by specialists shows that it is not possible to distinguish certain activities or specific areas where the risk of infection would be assessed as low. However, in epidemiological studies, we clearly identify the priorities on which we should focus. These are jobs, educational institutions and, of course, families. Of course, the virus spreads especially easily indoors, and only the specific application of integrated measures is essential to prevent the spread of the disease. We have to understand that until there is a vaccine, we have the only way: to take care of ourselves and thus protect our loved ones, ”says R. Lingienė.

Regarding the number of cases investigated, of the total number of cases detected in November, 4,520 cases (that is, 10%) were not investigated. The absolute majority of them are 4036 cases or 90%. – not investigated because the NVSC does not have the contact details of these people and cannot contact you

The NVSC also notes that the information provided to the public that the NVSC has not investigated cases since the summer is false: the NVSC provides information on a daily basis on epidemiological investigations carried out and their results. At that time, detailed descriptions of each case of infection were provided to the public on a daily basis until October, with details of the epidemiological study, that is, how the person was infected, how many people had been exposed to the risk and other significant circumstances.