COVID-19 Around the world weekly highlights: Variants of concern, lottery, and zero COVID deaths…
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Due to the rapidly changing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, we at Medscape would like to share with you the most impactful and clinically relevant articles across our[ [[network]] from the past week.
This is a snapshot of emerging best-practices during a rapidly evolving pandemic. Any and all information currently available related to COVID-19 is subject to change as more details become available. Some of the information below may also be contradicted by local or global health authorities.
In the UK, COVID-19 restrictions were further eased from May 17, so that millions of people in all England, Scotland and Wales are now allowed to socialise indoors in limited numbers, have close contact, and visit pubs and restaurants indoors. Cinemas, museums, and other indoor attractions can open their doors. As step 3 of the UK government’s roadmap to a return to normality took effect, Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged a “heavy dose of caution”, largely due to uncertainties about the B.1.617.2 'Indian' variant.
Consequently, Johnson advised anyone eligible for a vaccine who has not yet had one to take up the offer, and said that second doses for the over 50s, currently set to be 10-12 weeks from the first dose, would be moved forward so that the gap is only 8 weeks. More than 36 million people have now had one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in the UK and over 20 million have had both doses. The vaccine rollout continues this week with people in their 30s being invited to book a first dose.
In Belgium, Corona figures are finallyheading in the right direction, and 33% of the population have received at least one shot of the vaccine so far. Belgium has decided toadminister third vaccine doses to boost immunity as of Q4 2021. People who have received just one shot of a coronavirus vaccine may be able to use proof of vaccination on the Digital Green Certificate to travel between the European Union member states this summer.
In Portugal, experts discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the health of recovered patients. In an interview with Agência Lusa, the president of the Portuguese Association of General and Family Medicine (APMGF), Nuno Jacinto, MD, acknowledged that the sequels of infection by the SARS-CoV-2 virus are ʺa very grey areaʺ, over which Portugal “does not yet have fully defined guidelines'' with regard to the follow-up of patients.
According to the report of the General Directorate of Health (DGS) dated May 18, new cases are rising and hospitalizations are decreasing. On Tuesday (18), a decree was published regulating access to the beaches from June 12. Those who do not comply with the rules may be fined. According to one of the rules, it is mandatory to wear a mask until you reach the sand area if it is impracticable to maintain the recommended social distance.
By May 18, Portugal had administered 4,515,124 doses of an anti-COVD vaccine (in absolute numbers). The total number of deaths from the beginning of the pandemic to that date is 17,009 and the total confirmed cases of infection are now 842,381 (DGS data). On the May 14, the Portuguese government announced that it would make 24,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines available to Cape Verde because of the worsening pandemic in that archipelago.
In France, Wednesday May 19, terraces, cafes, theatres, cinemas and monuments reopened with limited numbers. As of May 18, 17,210 new cases of COVID-19 have been identified. The incidence rate has decreased to 148.87 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Regarding vaccination, 31.5% of the total population and 40.2% of the major population received one dose of vaccine and 13.6% of the total population and 17.4% of the major population received two doses.
Regarding pharmacovigilance, four new atypical thromboses associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine, two of which resulted in death, were reported in France between April 23 and May 6. The people affected were two men in their fifties, and two women, in their sixties and seventies. A total of “34 cases, including 11 deaths” of rare thrombosis occurred in France out of more than four million injections performed as of May 6, said the French Medicines Agency (ANSM).
The French Health Authority (Haute Autorité de Santé) has maintained the indication of Vaxzevria for those over 55 years old only.
Italy is revising its roadmap for easing the COVID-19 restrictions. On Monday, the Italian government announced an overhaul of its reopening schedule, as the health situation continues to improve across the country. Changes include allowing gyms to reopen earlier than scheduled and pushing the curfew to 11 PM. The country started relaxing restrictions from April 26. Schools, museums, cinemas and shops are now open in Italy’s lower-risk yellow zone (19 out of 20 Italian regions).
Starting from May 22, shopping centres will be allowed to reopen on weekends. By May 24, gyms will also reopen – a week earlier than planned. They will have to follow safety guidelines, including limiting the number of people, requiring face masks in communal areas and asking to book training in advance. By June 1, bars and restaurants without outdoor seating will reopen with indoor lunchtime service.
The Minister of Health, Roberto Speranza, has signed a document allowing entry from the countries of the European Union and the Shengen Area, as well as from Great Britain and Israel, with a negative swab test, taken in the 48 hours prior to arrival in Italy, without compulsory quarantine. However, the restrictions against Brazil have been extended until 30 July 2021.
The Minister has also ordered the extension of trials of ‘COVID-tested’ flights, already operating at Rome and Milan airports, to Venice and Naples. Passengers on those flights must take a molecular or antigen test before departure and, upon arrival, are authorised to enter and travel in Italy without having to quarantine. Until now, COVID-tested flights were only available between the United States and Italy but will be extended to departures from Canada, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.
Austria will stop using AstraZeneca vaccine due to vaccine delivery issues and bad press. This decision follows those of Norway and Denmark, which had justified their choice by the rare but serious risks of atypical thrombosis.
In Germany, the 3rd wave of the pandemic is now considered to be broken. One reason for this seems to be the advancing vaccination campaign. Ten percent of people have been vaccinated twice, and one third have been vaccinated once. Nationwide, the 7-day incidence of more and more regions fall below the threshold of 100. Finally, on June 7, vaccination prioritization will end nationwide.
At the beginning of the week, an alleged scandal shook the public: In the so-called “Divigate”, a group of authors accused the German Society for Intensive Care Medicine (DIVI) of having lied in its presentation of the pandemic. By exaggerating the seriousness of the situation during the first and second wave they allegedly made financial gains. However, the authors' claims are hardly tenable and easily refuted. The criticized association speaks of a “slap in the face of intensive care personnel”.
Spain has returned to “medium risk” for the first time since the end of March, with an incidence at 14 days of ~ 130 per 100.000 habitants. On Wednesday, the central and regional governments will discuss the road map for the return to non-university classrooms. The syndicates have denounced that Spain needs 9,500 General Practitioners to reach the European ratio.
Regarding the vaccination campaign, the last report confirms that 1 in 3 citizens have already received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which represents a 32.2% of the Spanish population. The Public Health Commission of the Ministry of Health has approved administering the Pfizer vaccine to those people under 60 years of age who had already received the first dose of AstraZeneca. This decision comes after the publication of the preliminary results of the Combivacs study: the administration of the AstraZeneca vaccine followed by a Pfizer dose is safe and effective.
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) confirmed that the four variants of concern have been detected in the Americas region: B.1.1.7, B.1.352, P.1 and B.1.617.
In the U.S.,COVID cases and deaths continue to decline as vaccines are now available to anyone aged 12 and older. With more than one-third of Americans fully vaccinated, the CDC issued controversial new mask guidance last week, saying that people who are at least two weeks past their last vaccine dose can remove their mask in most settings. States have used the new guidance to drop mask mandates.
Despite America’s good fortune to have a glut of highly effective vaccines, the pace of vaccination has slowed, prompting some states to offer incentives to try to convince people who are hesitant to get the shots. Ohio, for example, is offering 5 prizes of $1 million each in a lottery people can enter if they get vaccinated. It seems to be working.
President Biden said he would send 20 million morevaccine doses to other countries, bringing the total number pledged to international aid to 80 million. Critics say America is not doing nearly enough to help the rest of the world.
In Mexico, on Sunday, May 16, the Ministry of Health reported that infections have been declining for 17 consecutive weeks. On May 18, vaccination of educational personnel began with the CanSino vaccine, as part of the plan to immunize the entire Mexican population before the end of October. The Mexican Chancellor announced that the first batch of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine packaged in Mexico is expected to be ready by May 24 or 25.
In Chile, elections were held on May 15 and 16 to elect the members of the convention that will draft the new Constitution. During that weekend, the Minister of Health reported a total of 6,769 new cases of COVID-19. So far, 39.78% of the population in the country has been vaccinated.
In Paraguay, on May 18, the Ministry of Health reported the highest number of deaths due to COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic: 110 deaths. On the same day, vaccination of persons 65 years of age and older began.
In Bolivia, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador, a night-time curfew has been declared to reduce the number of infections. Meanwhile, on May 17, Panama reported its second consecutive day without any deaths from COVID-19.
In Argentina, Tuesday, May 18 saw the highest record number of cases since the pandemic began in 2020: more than 35,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 72-76% occupancy of intensive care units.
In the past two weeks, Brazil has recorded a 19% drop in the moving average of deaths from COVID-19, according to the consortium of press outlets that monitors the pandemic in the country. But experts are concerned because on Sunday (16) the average death rate rose again. Vaccination remains slow. According to a recent projection by The University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, the country could reach more than 750,000 deaths by the end of August if the pace of vaccination does not improve. To date, 18.54% of the population (39,263,416 people) have taken the first dose of a vaccine and 9.17% (19,423,560 people) have been fully vaccinated.
New guidelines for in-hospital treatment of patients with COVID-19, prepared by the Ministry of Health, is under analysis by the commission that approves technologies and drugs for the Unified Health System (SUS). The new guidelines do not recommend hydroxychloroquine – proven to have no effect against COVID-19 nor indicates other drugs that are part of the so-called “COVID kit” for an alleged “early treatment of COVID-19”, such as ivermectin and azithromycin. Surprisingly, the Ministry’s movement is contrary tothe policy adopted by the federal government and disseminated by the former Minister of Health, General Eduardo Pazuello. The use of these drugs causes indignation in most physicians, but the country’s Federal Council of Medicine has not been opposed to this fact so far.
Despite a decline in daily cases over the past few days, Indiahit yet another record for daily COVID-19 deaths on May 19, with 4,529 fatalities recorded in the last 24 hours.
Singaporewill shut most schools starting May 19 after the Education Minister Chan Chun Sing warned that new SARS-CoV-2 variants, including the B.1.617 variant first detected in India, were affecting more children. Additionally, the country is also preparing plans to vaccinate youngsters.
On May 14, Japanwidened its state of emergency to 3 more prefectures, Hokkaido, Okayama and Hiroshima hit badly by COVID-19. On May 18, the number of seriously ill COVID-19 patients in the country hit a record high of 1,235. Meanwhile, public opposition to the summer Olympics in Tokyo continues to grow. A new survey found that 43% of respondents wanted the games to be cancelled, while 40% wanted them to be postponed further.
Taiwanhas reported a surge in domestic cases of COVID-19, leading to new restrictions being implemented. The nationwide alert level has been raised to Level 3 within a 4-tier system, which mandates wearing masks outdoors and limits public gatherings to 5 indoors and 10 outdoors.
-Univadis, Medscape, Coliquio, & Mediquality editorial teams