Covid-19/ The number of hospitalized patients in Greece is increasing, the Eris variant dominates, "Pirola" is expected

2023-09-15 09:00:00, Shëndeti CNA

Covid-19/ The number of hospitalized patients in Greece is increasing, the Eris

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Concern is intensifying about the spread of the latest and highly contagious sub-variants of the coronavirus. The spread of the new "Pirola" variant on European soil, with the discovery for the first time in Germany and the declaration of cases in the United Kingdom, increases the risk of its arrival in Greece as well. At the same time, admissions to hospitals are constantly increasing, with the arrival of autumn.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany's epidemiological surveillance agency announced the discovery of BA.2.86 - or 'Pirola' as it has been called. According to the Institute, since the beginning of July, the German health authorities have registered an increase in cases of acute respiratory infection, in relation to the increase in confirmed infections with the coronavirus.

UK braces for community wide spread of 'Pirola' after reported outbreak at nursing home. The UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA) stated that there is currently insufficient evidence to determine whether the subvariant has changed clinical severity or will become prevalent in the UK.

This subvariant involves many mutations in the spike protein of the virus and has been under the microscope of World Health Organization (WHO) experts since mid-August. It was first detected in Denmark in late July and since then cases have been reported in many countries including Canada, Israel, Portugal, South Africa, Sweden, USA.

13% increase in beds in one week

In Greece, the "Eris" subvariant remains dominant, representing 41% of coronavirus cases, according to yesterday's epidemiological surveillance of EODY. The positivity in all tested samples showed a slight decrease compared to last week. However, the number of Covid-19 admissions showed an increase in the past week and a 12% increase in the average weekly number of new admissions over the previous four weeks.

According to information, until Tuesday night, 528 people with coronavirus have been admitted to the hospital, while another 127 people have been admitted to the Intensive Care and Advanced Care Department. In total, more than 650 patients are treated in nursing institutions. A week ago, 579 patients were admitted. So, an increase in beds by 13% is noted. At the same time, around 100 patients are infected with Covdi every day. In the last week, a total of 688 cases were registered./ CNA