Tuesday Dec 24, 2024
Tuesday Dec 24, 2024
Thursday, 24 February 2022 00:15 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya
COVID-19 detections in the country exceeded 640,000 yesterday with the detection of 1,281 COVID-19 patients.
The Department of Government Information states that all patients detected yesterday were from the New Year cluster.
The previous day, 1,253 persons from the New Year cluster and one Sri Lankan returnee from overseas tested positive for COVID-19. The Health Promotion Bureau states that 6,089 PCR tests and 3,000 rapid antigen tests were conducted on Tuesday.
The country’s total COVID-19 case count currently stands at 640,578.
This includes 534,832 persons from the New Year cluster, 82,785 persons from the Peliyagoda cluster, 9,154 persons from the Prisons cluster and 3,059 persons from the Divulapitiya cluster.
In terms of imported cases, 7,225 Sri Lankan returnees from overseas and 328 foreigners have tested positive for COVID-19.
The Epidemiology Unit states that 132,418 patients from Colombo, 111,221 patients from Gampaha, 56,672 patients from Kalutara, 42,314 patients from Galle, and 30,507 patients from Kurunegala are among the country’s COVID-19 detections.
During the third wave of the pandemic, 100,121 persons from Colombo, 92,687 persons from Gampaha, and 49,614 persons from Kalutara tested positive for COVID-19.
According to the Epidemiology Unit, 257 COVID-19 patients were discharged yesterday, raising the country’s COVID-19 recoveries to 607,583.
At present, 16,909 persons are under medical or home-based care and 1,351 persons suspected of having COVID-19 are under observation.
According to Health Services Deputy Director Dr. Hemantha Herath, 5,473 beds at COVID-19 treatment centres and 76 ICU beds are currently occupied.
He added that the number of undetected COVID-19 patients in the community could be higher than the number of patients detected. This is why strict adherence to safety guidelines was important, Dr. Herath stressed.
“Due to the nature of the Omicron variant, among patients are those with no or very mild symptoms. Such persons may not even go for a rapid antigen test, so I agree that there could be more patients in the community than are reported to us,” he explained.
According to Dr. Hemantha Herath, the country did not see a sharp increase in COVID-19 detections, but daily detections exceed 1,000, pointing to the gravity of the COVID-19 situation in Sri Lanka.
“Approximately thirty fatalities are reported each day. One of the main reasons for these fatalities, as per my view, is that this disease is spread to high-risk groups through seemingly healthy but infected persons. To prevent this, we need to bring down the overall detections,” Dr. Herath added.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka College of Internal Medicine Vice President and Colombo South Teaching Hospital Physician Dr. Nandana Dikmadugoda said units have been set up at hospital clinics for the treatment of post-COVID conditions.
He explained that fatigue is one of the main post-COVID conditions, affecting 20% to 80% of patients. Other conditions include heart-related issues like blood clots, long-lasting cough, breathlessness, and bacterial lung infections.
Post-COVID conditions also include nerve and memory issues, sleeping more or less, and a loss of smell or taste that can last three to six months.
“Studies on the post-COVID condition reveal that various mental health conditions, like depression and insomnia, can occur,” Dr. Dikmadugoda added.
