In St. Petersburg, the number of severe cases of "covid" is growing

The St. Petersburg department of Rospotrebnadzor explained the increase in the incidence of CORONAVIRUS observed in recent weeks by “high activity of the population on holidays.” The HEAD of the department’s epidemiological surveillance department, Irina Chkhingeria, in particular, reminded journalists about the participation of citizens in public events, “including unauthorized ones,” but did not specify what kind of events they were talking about.

According to Chkhingeria, Petersburgers began to neglect the requirements of Rospotrebndzor to wear masks and observe social distance in public places. The department recorded such violations in public transport and in stores. She noted that in the nineteenth calendar week (from May 3 to May 9), the incidence rate increased by 3% compared to the previous week; and in the twentieth - the increase in patients was 9%. The incidence is increasing among all age groups of children and adults, with the exception of the population over 65 years of age. “We note the aggravation of the clinical course of a new coronavirus infection. The number of diseases in the form of pneumonia has increased, the number of hospitalizations of patients has increased,” said Irina Chkhingeria.

The head of the city HEALTH committee, Dmitry Lisovets, in turn, explained that over the past two weeks, compared with the previous two weeks, the number of hospitalizations has increased by 30%. “I can say that the minimum number of hospitalizations was observed in mid-April, when about 1,870 adults were hospitalized in a week. Compared to last week, the increase in the number of hospitalized was 40%,” said Lisovets. At the same time, he noted that in the first wave of the pandemic in the spring of 2020, twice as many people were hospitalized with covid in St. Petersburg. According to the head of the Komzdrav, the increase in the number of cases now may be due to the fact that people who underwent covid-19 in the first wave have decreased immunity.

The regional Rospotrebndzor does not have a forecast for the epidemiological situation in St. Petersburg, Irina Chkhingeria said; however, the department has the hope that the incidence will decline in the summer. “We hope that with the onset of summer, with the onset of heat, [when] respiratory infections are reduced, we hope that this infection will also decline,” she said.