Planned hospitalizations in children’s hospitals in Moscow will be suspended for three weeks due to an increase in coronavirus cases among children, the Health Ministry reported. The mayor of the city suggested the day before that the increase in cases would continue for another two weeks.
Over the past day, a record number of new cases of Covid-19 have been detected in Moscow, and overall the daily increase in the country has exceeded 74,000 for the first time during the pandemic. According to the city authorities, the number of children infected with the coronavirus in Moscow has increased by a factor of 14 in two weeks, and the number of hospitalizations has increased by a factor of 10. “It is important to note that about half of the children hospitalized with Covid-19 are transfers from other hospitals where they were receiving planned treatment for other diseases,” the message from the city health department said. The measures do not apply to children with oncological and hematological diseases.
Earlier, the city administration asked adult residents of the city to postpone planned visits to the clinic for two to three weeks due to increased workload of doctors. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin noted that the “Omicron” strain continues to displace the “Delta” variant in the capital, so most likely there will be no significant burden on hospitals.
Yesterday, the head of Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, reported that the highest rates of coronavirus infection in Russia last week were observed among teenagers aged 15-17 and adults aged 30-49. In St. Petersburg, COVID-19 restrictions have been tightened, prohibiting minors from visiting museums, zoos, swimming pools, fitness centers and other facilities.
Clinical trials of the “Sputnik-M” coronavirus vaccine for children aged 6 to 11 began in Russia this week. As Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said, the vaccination will be carried out “only on a voluntary basis and on the basis of a written request from one of the parents or legal representatives”. The director of the Gamaleya Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Alexander Gintsburg, previously mentioned that it is desirable to vaccinate 10 million teenagers within six months in order to protect them from serious disease progression. According to a study published by the job search portal Superjob, the proportion of parents willing to vaccinate their children has increased from 26% to 33% in the last three months.
We explain quickly, simply, and clearly what happened, why it matters, and what happens next. Episodes End of story Podcast advertising For the sixth consecutive day, Russia’s maximum number of newly detected cases of Covid-19 is updated daily. In the past 24 hours, 74,692 infections have been reported in the country – 6,883 more than the day before. 657 Covid-19 patients have died. For the first time during the pandemic, the daily increase has exceeded 74,000. On Tuesday, the operational center reported 67,809 new cases – 2,700 more than the previous day. At the same time, the number of people hospitalized in the country more than doubled to 12,837. On Wednesday, according to the headquarters, the number of hospitalizations was slightly lower – 12,226. In Moscow, too, the number of new cases is on the rise again – on Wednesday a record 19,856 new cases were recorded during the pandemic, while on Tuesday, for the first time since January 16, the number of infections was lower than on the previous day (18,935). During the day, 1,188 people were sent to hospitals (on Tuesday, there were reports of 1,126 hospitalizations). Sobyanin had warned the day before that “the increase in the number of cases will continue for at least two weeks”.
The Russian Ministry of Health has released a memo for citizens in case of infection with Covid-19. For those who have either been vaccinated or have recovered from the coronavirus less than six months ago, are not in a high-risk group, and have no symptoms, no treatment is required – only self-isolation and “monitoring body temperature at least once a day”. In case of symptoms of acute respiratory viral infection (cough, runny nose, tickling or sore throat, single temperature rise not exceeding 37.5) and a negative result of the Covid-19 test, it is necessary to stay at home. If you need to stay home, please call the clinic. “The possible use of antiviral medications, nasal drops or sprays (e.g., containing interferon-alpha) is mentioned in the memo. Saline solutions, including those based on seawater, may be used for nasal congestion and runny nose,” the advisory states. It also recommends “isolating yourself as much as possible” from other family members.