The incidence of coronavirus drops from a thousand cases, figures prior to Christmas

The cumulative incidence of coronavirus has fallen below one thousand cases (984) per 100,000 inhabitants, a figure that has not been seen since December 23, the eve of the Christmas holidays. The number of deaths this Thursday is again high, 360, and a progressive decline in hospital occupancy continues.

The incidence of coronavirus cases falls below a thousand cases, figures prior to Christmas. EFE / Orlando Barría

This sixth wave, which began in early November, gained strength in December with the arrival of the omicron variant and skyrocketed at Christmas, reaching the peak and record for the entire pandemic on Friday, January 21, with 3,418 cases per 1,000,000.

Almost a month later, the curve has dropped rapidly and the 14-day cumulative incidence drops from 1,000 cases this Thursday, 984 compared to 1,060 yesterday.

The autonomous community with the highest incidence is Galicia (1,575) and the lowest is Andalusia with 473.

The incidence is low in all age brackets. The group from 12 to 19 years old is in the lead with 1,451 cases, followed by those under 11 with 1,307.

Deaths: 360 more

The Ministry of Health Today, it has notified 360 more deaths, a figure that is still high (yesterday 444) and many of them correspond to delayed notifications by the autonomous communities.

The total number of deaths since records are available in this pandemic is 97,710 and the lethality is 0.9%.

The infections: 34,210

Coronavirus infections continue to decline and the latest report shows 34,213 (53,055 last Thursday).

The daily record of positives in this sixth wave was reached on Thursday, January 13, with 179,125.

Since the start of the pandemic, the Ministry of Health has recorded 10,778,607 coronavirus infections in Spain.

Steady drop in hospital occupancy

The ICUs go from high to medium risk, having an occupation of 14.48% with 1,351 patients, 28 less since yesterday.

Above the very high risk of occupation (25%) are still critical units in Catalonia (28.18%).

In Spanish hospitals, on the ward and ICU, there are 10,251 covid patients (8.25% occupancy, low risk), 647 fewer patients than yesterday.

Hospital discharges (1,557) exceed admissions (907).

vaccinations

In total there are 38,396,333 citizens, 91% of the population over 12 years of age, with the complete schedule of the covid vaccine.

In addition, 23.6 million people have already received the booster dose, 78.6% of those over 40 years of age, 39.3% of those between 30 and 39 years of age and 29.3% of those between 20 and 29. years.

56.7% of children aged 5 to 11 years (1.8 million out of 3.2 million) have received the first dose of the vaccine since the campaign began on December 15 and the first are already being inoculated with the second doses after the 8-week interval.

Coronavirus infections drop to mid-December figures

This Tuesday, 34,380 coronavirus infections have been reported, one of the lowest figures since mid-December when the omicron variant was already beginning to increase the number of positives. The number of deaths remains high, 310 more since yesterday, and hospital pressure continues to decline.

Several people wait their turn at the WiZink Center to get vaccinated without an appointment. EFE/Miguel Osés

The sixth wave has been the one with the highest number of infections since December. On Thursday, January 13, the daily record for positives was reached, 179,125.

It did not drop below 35,000 daily since Friday, December 17, when more than 33,000 were reported and from then on the rise of the wave was more evident due to the effect of the omicron variant

Since the start of the pandemic, the Ministry of Health has recorded 10,707,286 coronavirus infections in Spain.

The positivity rate of diagnostic tests continues to drop to 26.85% (27.66 yesterday).

The incidence: More than 100 points down

The cumulative incidence 14 days later it falls 102 points from yesterday to 1,142 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Most regions are in the decline phase and between 1,000 and 2,000 cases per 100,000. Those with the highest incidence are Galicia (1,790); Murcia (1,669); Valencia (1,605) and Cantabria (1,602).

At the other extreme, below 1,000, Andalusia stands out with 511 cases; Canary Islands with 544; Melilla with 776; Madrid with 835 cases, Castilla-La Mancha with 859 and Ceuta with 906, according to data released this Tuesday by the Ministry of Health.

For age bracketsthe incidence falls in all groups and for the first time in weeks that of those under 11 years of age, whose incidence has skyrocketed in this sixth wave as they are not yet largely vaccinated, is placed behind those between 12 and 19 years with an incidence of 1,604 versus 1,676.

Deaths: 310 more

On the other hand, deaths continue to show high figures in part due to the delay of some communities in providing the data.

Yesterday the highest number of deaths was recorded after a weekend of this sixth wave, 601. And this Tuesday there are 301 more deaths.

The total number of deaths from this pandemic since records are available is 96,906 (9,989 in the sixth wave that began on October 14) and the lethality is 0.9%.

Lower blood pressure in hospitals

The ICUs are at 15.6% bed occupancy with 1,459 patients, 63 fewer since yesterday.

Above the very high risk of occupation (25%) are still the critical units of Catalonia (30.2%) and Aragon (26.2%).

In Spanish hospitals, on the ward and ICU, there are 11,438 covid patients (9.2% occupancy), 732 fewer patients than yesterday.

Hospital discharges (1,632) exceed admissions (1,027).

vaccinations

In total there are 38,385,465 citizens, 91% of the population over 12 years of age, with the full schedule of the covid vaccine.

In addition, 23.3 million people have already received the booster dose, 78.3% of those over 40 years of age, 38.2% of those between 30 and 39 years of age and 27.5% of those between 20 and 29. years.

56.4% of children aged 5 to 11 years (1.8 million out of 3.2 million) have received the first dose of the vaccine since the campaign began on December 15 and the first are already being inoculated with the second doses after the 8-week interval.

They grow 8% but without record figures due to the pandemic

The pandemic has once again prevented Spain from recovering the record numbers of donations and pre-Covid transplants, but its effect is beginning to be mitigated, remaining a world benchmark: in 2021, 8% more were made than in the previous year.

The Minister of Health, Carolina Darias (l), and the general director of the National Transplant Organization (ONT), Beatriz Domínguez-Gil (r), present the annual balance of donation and transplant activity for 2021. EFE/Javier Lizón

Transplants in Spain in 2021 grow by 8% and continue to be a world benchmark

In 2021, 4,781 transplants were carried out, 8% more than in 2020, thanks to the 2,229 people (40.2 per million population) who gave their organs.

After the drop in transplants last year, Spain recovers the positive trend and remains a world benchmark, doubling the rate of the EU (18.4) or quadrupling that of Germany (10.9), highlighted the Minister of Health , Carolina Darias, in the presentation of the balance of activity of the National Transplant Organization (ONT) together with the general director of the organization, Beatriz Domínguez-Gil.

During the second year of the pandemic, 2,950 kidney, 1,078 liver, 362 lung, 302 heart, 82 pancreas, and 7 intestinal transplants were performed, bringing the rate of donors per million population (pmp) to 101; Living donor kidney transplant activity increased by 25%, with a total of 323 procedures, an activity very similar to that of 2019.

In total, 4,781 transplants, 159 of them children, which were possible thanks to 1,905 deceased donors, with whom the donation rate stood at 40.2 pmp In addition, there were another 324 living donors, 323 of them a kidney and 1 from your liver.

Photograph provided by the La Paz hospital of the first infant lung transplant. EFE

The profile of donors in 2021

The main cause of death for donors is stroke, while those who died in traffic accidents remain very low, just 4.7%. On the other hand, the 35 donors who died from neurodegenerative diseases stand out.

More than half of the people who donated their organs, 53.7%, are over 60 years old, just over a quarter (27.5%) are over 70 and 3.8% are over 80, a lower percentage than in previous years, something that is probably due to the need to be more selective at critical moments of the pandemic. Refusals to donate were 17%.

By communities, Cantabria was once again at the top with a rate of 72.4 donors pmp, followed by Navarra (62.1), Murcia (52.3), Asturias (51.5), the Basque Country (50.7) and Valencian Community (50.3).
At the other extreme are La Rioja (22.6); Madrid (27.1) and Aragon (29.5).

These are figures that do not reach the historical maximums of 2019, when Spain returned to being the leader in transplants and donations for the 27th consecutive year, but they do show a recovery from the ravages of the pandemic, since transplants have recovered 8% in transplant and donations 7% compared to 2020.

Despite the rise, there is still a large number of patients on the waiting list waiting for an organ: as of December 31 there were 4,762, similar to the 4,794 in 2020, according to data on transplants in 2021 from the HAVE.

However, the drop in the children’s list stands out, which that year added 92 children compared to 66 in 2021, a drop caused by the measures adopted by the ONT to facilitate access to pediatric transplantation.

Organs from donors with positive PCR

The protocols deployed for the evaluation and selection of organ donors and recipients have allowed 143 patients to be able to transplant from 61 donors who have passed the covid, six of whom had a positive PCR, which benefited 14 of the transplant recipients.

Domínguez-Gil has valued “the good data” of activity thanks to the adoption of specific measures agreed by the organization and the communities in collaboration with scientific societies, such as the development of protocols for the evaluation and selection of Sars donors and recipients -CoV-2, which have been adapted as the available evidence increased.

This has allowed, after an individualized evaluation, the transplantation of organs from donors who have had the disease, including those who persist with a positive PCR at the time of their death.

“Initially, clinical and microbiological cure was required, but we consider that, based on the available literature, this did not entail a risk for the transplant recipient”, explained its general director, Beatriz Domínguez-Gil, at the presentation of the body’s activity balance. that the possibility that donors can transmit the virus to patients is “remote”.