No second wave of coronavirus infections, just a spike – WHO

MANILA, Philippines – The increase in COVID-19 cases in the Philippines, particularly in Metro Manila, cannot be considered a second wave of coronavirus infections, as the country has not yet slowed the first wave, the World Health Organization said. (WHO). on Tuesday.

“I wouldn’t classify this as a second wave because if you’re talking about a second wave, we should have seen a complete flattening of the curve. And in the case of [Metro Manila]We didn’t see that kind of flattening, ”Rabindra Abeyasinghe, WHO representative in the Philippines, told a news conference at the Department of Health.

“Squashing the curve” is a community strategy to slow the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in order to keep infections at manageable levels.

While “the numbers dropped at some point” (from 300 to 400 new infections a day), they still reflect “significant levels of transmission in the country,” Abeyasinghe said.

Significantly low

He said he would rather call the current increase in infections a “spike.”

“There is really no value in classifying it as a second wave,” Abeyasinghe said.

But while more than 3,000 new infections a day are high, the number is still significantly lower than the average of more than 6,000 a day at the height of the epidemic in the country last year, he said.

On Tuesday, the DOH reported 2,668 additional coronavirus infections, bringing the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country to 600,428 overall.

The DOH said seven more patients had died, bringing the death toll to 12,528. He said an additional 171 patients had recovered, bringing the total number of COVID-19 survivors to 546,078.

That left the country with 41,822 active cases, of which 91.6 percent were mild, 3.9 percent asymptomatic, 0.80 percent moderate, 1.9 percent severe, and 1.8 percent. critical hundred.

Abeyasinghe said that part of the increase in cases in Metro Manila can be attributed to variants of the COVID-19 coronavirus, but added: “[W]We believe that the new variants do not fully drive it because the number of detected and confirmed cases compared to the number of samples tested is limited. “

The number of known variants is simply too small to conclude that these variants are increasing cases, Abeyasinghe said.

The UK and South African variants of SARS-CoV-2 are more transmissible, and studies indicate that some vaccines may not be effective against the South African variant.

Household grouping

Abeyasinghe said reports from countries with variant cases showed that the variants caused a higher viral load in the respiratory tract of infected people, making the variants more transmissible.

“This may be what we are seeing here in Manila, where we are receiving reports from the city’s health divisions, units in Pasay City and other affected cities. That where the new variants have been confirmed, they are not seeing individual cases in households, but that practically all members of the household are infected, ”said Abeyasinghe.

He said the WHO was working with local officials to contain the infections and avoid entering another general lockdown.

Abeyasinghe reminded Filipinos that they must comply with minimum public health measures, such as wearing masks and face shields and observing physical distancing.

President Rodrigo Duterte blamed the outbreak on the abandonment of sanitary measures by people tired of the quarantine and the numerous meetings during the last Christmas season.

“We are seeing the result now,” Duterte said in a televised briefing Monday night.

The president called on the public to strictly comply with health regulations and trust the advice of government officials, especially Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.

Duterte said the government was looking for ways to combat the variants and asked people to cooperate.

“We hope it can help the country. Follow, continue [the health measures] and maybe we could lower the COVID-19 cases, “said the president.

Increased growth rate

Duque reported in the briefing that the growth rate of infections in two weeks had increased in Metro Manila, Calabarzon, Central Luzon and Central Visayas.

In Metro Manila, he said, the cities of Pasay and Malabon are at critical risk, while Navotas, Makati and San Juan are at high risk.

Duque said health authorities were making sure hospitals had the capacity to handle COVID-19 cases.

He highlighted the need to strictly comply with minimum health measures to prevent further spread of the virus.

According to the OCTA group of researchers from the University of the Philippines and the University of Santo Tomás, the number of COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila has already exceeded its projection and, unless viral spread is reduced, the number of cases. infections recorded at the peak of the epidemic last year.

OCTA said on Tuesday that actual numbers began to exceed its projection late last week, as the daily average reached 1,600 in Metro Manila.

He said the reproduction rate, or how quickly the infection spreads, also increased to 1.8 percent from 1.6 percent in February.

“That is why we are sounding the alarm. It’s very urgent [and] we do not want this trend to continue. Even if we say that there is a low death rate, it could still overwhelm health care. [system]”Said OCTA partner Guido David.

5,000 cases by end of March

On February 17, OCTA projected that COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila could reach 2,400 daily by March 26. If the current trend continues, David said, daily cases in the metropolis could reach 4,000 to 5,000 by the end of March.

Guido said OCTA supported the imposition of local closures in areas with a growing number of infections.

The group also recommends enforcing the curfew again and temporarily limiting the workforce and reducing the capacity of restaurants to 30 percent to reduce people’s mobility.

Also Tuesday, the Association of Philippine Medical Colleges Inc. suspended in-person internship rotation at all Metro Manila hospitals due to the increase in COVID-19 cases.

In a notice dated March 7, Manuel Dayrit, the association’s president, said that all learning activities could continue virtually, and warned everyone who was eligible to get vaccinated.

In areas outside of Metro Manila with growing infections, Dayrit said hospital directors may decide to suspend the rotation in person according to guidelines or announcements from the national government.

—WITH REPORTS FROM LEILA B. SALAVERRIA, MARICAR CINCO AND MEG ADONIS

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For more information on COVID-19, call the DOH hotline: (02) 86517800 local 1149/1150.

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