Greece in grip of second coronavirus wave as new cases reach 2,166 on Tuesday

New coronavirus cases on Tuesday reached 2,166. Of these, 22 relate to clusters, and 40 were identified at entry points to the country.

The total infections in Greece since the start of the pandemic are 44,246. Of these, 4,225 relate to travel abroad and 14,111 relate to known cases.

Intubated patients remained high in hospitals, with 169 people in ICUs. Their median age is 65 years old, 89.3 pct have an underlying condition or are 70 years or more, while 38 are women.

Another 300 have been discharged by ICUs since the start of the pandemic.

The National Public Health Organization also said that there were another 13 fatalities, bringing Greece's total to 655. Of the deceased, their median age was 79 years old and 96. pct had an underlying condition and/or age 70 or more; 255 were women.grea

Geographic distributions showed that most of the infections were in the regions of Attica (542) and Thessaloniki (595). Also noting high, three-digit daily infections on Tuesday were the regions of Rodopi (108) and Larissa (106). Regions with infections showing between 42 and 60 infections on Tuesday included the following: Kavala and Pieria (32 each), Chalkidiki peninsula (38), Serres (37), Evros (42), Drama (46), Messinia (51), and Imathia (53). Pella cases rose to 78.

Ioannina, Kastoria, and Kozani, which recently recorded high daily infection rates, managed to limit the pandemic's spread and on Tuesday recorded 27, 8 and 22 infections, respectively.

Thessaloniki infections rate

Daily new infections in Greece have surpassed the 2,000 mark, with northern Greece currently leading the coronavirus pandemic and Attica region showing a 30 pct rise in new infections compared to last week, said University of Athens professor Gkikas Magiorkinis at Tuesday's regular live briefing.

However, the virus' spread in Thessaloniki region is five times faster than that of the Attica region, the Health Ministry coronavirus committee member pointed out. He added however that it is too early to tell if Attica will follow Thessaloniki's rate, since the extra measures in the capital's region went into effect today (Nov. 3). A 30 pct increase for the region "is not too high for Attica", the highest-density area of the country, Magiorkinis said. 

In terms of age breakdown, the disease specialist said that young people aged 19-39 exceed 350 infections per one million people, followed by the 40-65 year-olds (slightly over 250 positive tests per one million citizens). But he expressed particular concern for "the first time we have seen a rising trend" in the over-65 age group infections, particularly in northern Greece. 

Magiorkinis attributed the rise in infections to lack of wearing a mask and keeping distances, saying that colder weather had driven people indoors, where the rate of infection without masks increased ten-fold compared to the outdoors. When small groups of people need to eat together, he advised them to keep seating distances, not talk while eating, and ensure that the area is well aired.

School infections extremely low

At the same meeting, Deputy Minister for Civil Protection & Crisis Management Nikos Hardalias highlighted that as of Tuesday 46 of the country's 74 regions are in the increased monitoring zone (Level-A) and 26 regions are in the high-risk zone (Level-B).  

Hardalias said that although the two-week lockdown in Thessaloniki and Serres that began on Tuesday also meant that high-schools (grades 10-12) were shut down, the infection rates at schools throughout Greece is extremely low. He cited as examples Kozani and Kastoria regions, which had a heavy virus load recently, where only 4 of 661 samples among teachers and students came out positive. Even in areas with a high epidemiological load, he said, schools have not become hubs of infection. 

ICU beds

As for the availability of ICU beds for coronavirus patients, Deputy Health Minister Vassilis Kontozamanis said at the briefing that Greece had a total of 331 beds dedicated to Covid-19 patients. Of these, he said, 122 were still available, while the total of ICU beds in several specialities or hospital departments nationwide is 997, with 696 already occupied.