On the afternoon of April 17, at an online briefing conference of the Hanoi People's Committee with administrations in districts on disease prevention and control, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Health Vu Cao Cuong said that the number of Covid-19 cases in the city is presently increasing rapidly.

Through gene sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus with some Covid-19 cases in Hanoi, the health agency discovered that a new Covid-19 variant, XBB.1.5, is spreading rapidly throughout many countries including the UK, Germany, USA, France, Singapore, and the Philippines.

From April 12 to 16, the average number of Covid-19 cases in Hanoi was 96 people per day. The number of cases increased rapidly, so the demand for medical care also increased, the number of people hospitalized was 30-50 patients per day.

The number of cases requiring medical care are mainly the elderly, with underlying medical conditions, and children account for 2-6 percent.

In particular, the results of gene sequencing of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Nam Tu Liem district with 2 samples gave the results of strain XBB.1.9.1 - a strain found in many countries in the UK, Germany, USA, France, Singapore, and the Philippines - characterized by rapid spread and mild clinical course.

Deputy Director of Hanoi Department of Health during the week, the number of cases kept continuing to increase compared to the previous week, the Covid-19 pandemic may still be complicated and unpredictable because the virus has constantly changed to create new variants capable of spreading quickly, avoiding immune system. Therefore, people’s negligent attitude to the disease will result in failure in prevention and control tasks.

At the meeting, Vice Chairman of Hanoi People's Committee Vu Thu Ha noted people will travel extensively during the long upcoming holidays of April 30 and May 1, so localities and health authorities must take heed of disease prevention and control, especially the Covid-19 epidemic.

At the same time, localities should pay special attention to the elderly, people with underlying diseases, immunocompromised people, children and pregnant women.

The Hanoi Department of Information and Communications actively grasps and orients to ensure correct information about the city's disease prevention and control, so as not to create panic or negligence amongst people.

Source: SGGP