Cyprus is witnessing another surge in COVID-19 cases, as health authorities report that the island’s 14-day notification rate has increased by 21% reaching an average 3,771.2 daily from 3116.4 reported two weeks ago.
Specifically, in the first 14 days of March, a total of 33,488 coronavirus cases have been reported out of 49,534 PCR and 1,208,489 rapid tests.
The new surge follows a dropping trend for several weeks, while a month ago, the island’s 14-day notification rate had been higher at 4,056.1
“The new upward trend in diagnoses is recorded in all age groups and in all districts,” said the health ministry, in a comment attached to the report.
The ministry noted that despite a jump in cases in recent weeks, fewer hospitalisations have been recorded so far.
As of March 16, about 100 people were treated in state hospitals with the virus with a median age of 73 years, five of whom were in the ICU, putting to rest concerns over tightening of measures.
Patients in COVID wards have halved compared to a month ago, when some 196 patients were being treated at a state hospital for the virus, with 32 in need of intensive care.
A third of cases are children
According to the report, almost a third of the cases (31.8%) detected in the period from 1 to 14 March, concerned children and teenagers up to the age of 19.
The majority, 57.9%, were aged between 20 to 59 age group while just 10.3% of the cases concerned people aged 60 and older.
On a district level, 36% of cases were detected in Limassol, followed by Nicosia with 31.7%, 14.6% in Larnaca, 13% in Paphos, 4.5% in Famagusta, while 45 cases had a residence abroad.
According to the report, the vast majority of cases involved local infections, as just 2.4% were imported.
Up until 16 March, 904 people had lost their lives to COVID-19, 550 of whom were males. Half of the deaths concerned people aged 69 to 86, while just five were under 34.
The ministry noted that one out of ten people who died from COVID-19 in March, involved people over the age of 70 who had not been vaccinated against COVID-19. Some 42 people died from COVID-19 in March.
On Friday morning, the health ministry revised upwards the death toll by another five COVID-19 patients, for whom death certificates were issued late.
These involved four women and one male, aged 66 and 96, who passed between August and October last year.
Along with a death announced on Thursday night, the total number of COVID-19 deaths now stands at 910.
The health ministry on Friday also revised the number of COVID-19 cases, removing cases that had been reported more than once, adjusting the figure of total cases to 355,493 from the beginning of the pandemic two years ago.
On Thursday night, health authorities reported another 3,951 new cases and one death.
