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Head of the National COVID Vaccination Coordination Committee (CNCAV), doctor Valeriu Gheorghita, declared on Tuesday that the number of COVID cases recorded in week 28 (July 11-17) was by 38.9 percent higher than in the previous week, emphasizing that there is a slight rising trend in the number of infections in the next period.
"The estimates for the basic reproduction rate show us that this number is currently around 1, even 1.1, but there is a slight rising tendency in the number of cases in the next period, which is of course very important and epidemiological monitoring remains decisive for the next period," Valeriu Gheorghita explained at the Victoria Palace of Government.
He specified that the average number of cases in Romania in week 28 was 56.6, as to 40.7 in week 27, agerpres.ro confirms.
Gheorghita also spoke about the prevalence of variants of concern at the moment, stating that "101 strains of Delta viral variants have been confirmed, which represents 6 percent" of the total variants of concern diagnosed following sequencing, according to the weekly report presented by the National Public Health Institute.
"As many as 2,415 samples have been sequenced until week 28 included and viral variants of concern have been identified in 75 percent of the cases. Of the 1,817 viral variants of concern, 101 are Delta variants, which accounts for 6 percent of the variants of concern in Romania, by 1 percent more than in the previous week," Gheorghita explained.
He also mentioned that 54 percent of the Delta infection cases are in 23 outbreaks, five more than in week 27 - of which 17 are family outbreaks and six are community outbreaks.
"In 34 percent of the identified Delta cases, no epidemiological link was found to the travel history or contact with persons known to have been infected with the Delta variant, which, of course, is an important factor in community transmission, even if data available so far does not support a nationwide community transmission. Also, eight of the 101 confirmed Delta cases were in vaccinees (six of whom with a complete two-dose scheme), representing 8 percent of the total. Basically, 6 percent of the 101 confirmed Delta infection cases were in fully vaccinated people," Gheorghita explained.
The head of Romania's vaccination program mentioned that there were also four deaths caused by infection with the Delta variant, the latest being a 90-year old woman from Iasi County, not vaccinated and with underlying medical conditions.
