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Analysis of PCR tests (in a laboratory in Hanover)
Photo: Julian Stratenschulte / dpa
New highs for new corona infections and the seven-day incidence are currently being reported every day.
In view of the continuing omicron wave, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) is now also increasing the burden of disease in the population in evaluations of the corona situation
by Covid-19 in view.
The background to the introduction of the supplementary data is that the reports on the number of people with a positive PCR test are becoming less complete according to the RKI.
Laboratories and health authorities are at the limit in many places.
The PCR test capacities could soon no longer be sufficient to really find all infected people.
The RKI expects that the maximum deflection of the omicron wave in Germany will probably not be able to be precisely measured by reporting data.
In the current Corona Weekly Report, the experts provide estimates of people infected with Covid 19 symptoms of various degrees of severity.
These are based on the Institute's existing systems, which are used to monitor the development of acute respiratory diseases in the population.
Not all people who contract Covid-19 have to go to the hospital.
The RKI has now also taken a closer look at the cases that recover at home and only see their family doctor.
The report states that in the week up to January 16 per 100,000 inhabitants, around 178 corona infected people with symptoms of an acute respiratory disease saw a doctor.
This corresponds to around 148,400 visits to the doctor.
more on the subject
Omicron in the federal states: everything only half as bad? By Patrick Stotz
Bottleneck in PCR tests: why the corona numbers are becoming increasingly inaccurateBy Holger Dambeck
After the number of doctor consultations, after a high in the fourth wave, had decreased since the end of November, according to the RKI, there has been an increase again since the turn of the year. This increase continued in the week ending January 16, but only among 0-14 year olds. In the other age groups, the number of those who consulted a doctor because of symptomatic Covid 19 disease stagnated or decreased slightly.
According to the RKI, an estimated 0.4 to 1.2 percent of children and adolescents up to the age of 14 and 0.5 to 1.1 percent of the population aged 15 and over with symptoms of an acute respiratory disease contracted Covid-19 in the past week. In relation to the population, this corresponds to 412,000 to 893,000 people in Germany. The RKI estimates the number of people admitted to a clinic because of severe Covid 19 symptoms at 3900 in the past week.
According to the institute, a complete recording of all infected people was never intended. However, the reporting data would not become irrelevant. They remained important for management and decisions about actions on the ground. The magnitude and the decisive trends in the epidemiological development would continue to be reliably displayed. According to the institute, however, the additional data is gaining in importance. The RKI has long insisted that situation assessments should not be based on individual indicators.
What was already available is data on corona intensive care patients from the so-called Divi intensive care register.
As a result, the number of patients treated there continued to fall.
According to the daily report from Friday, 2418 people with Covid-19 are currently being treated in the intensive care unit.
However, the RKI writes that the current infection process there is likely to be delayed.
The RKI has also been reporting an incidence of Covid 19 hospital admissions for some time.
The RKI gave this hospitalization incidence on Friday at 3.77.
However, the value has the shortcoming of a relatively large reporting delay.
However, with the Omicron variant and, according to initial findings, the less serious courses compared to Delta, experts fear an increasing burden on normal wards.
mar/dpa
