Hospitals seeing patients with more severe virus cases due to variants, says expert

ISTANBUL

Patients with more severe cases are being admitted to hospitals’ intensive care units (ICU) due to COVID-19 variants, an expert has said.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca recently said the U.K. strain of the coronavirus, which had been detected in 81 provinces, accounted for 75 percent of all cases in the country.

The South African, Brazilian and California-New York variants were also found in several provinces.

“Excluding those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine, more and more patients aged between 50 and 65 are coming to hospitals,” said Professor İsmail Ciner from the Turkish Society of Intensive Care.

The COVID-19 variants are spreading more easily and quickly, he stressed. “The measures will be tightened during [the Islamic holy month of] Ramadan. But we still have some 10 days ahead. If the cases continue to rise at their current pace until then, the situation will become chaotic,” Ciner warned.

Since the start of April, the daily virus cases have been hovering above 40,000.

Meanwhile, another expert suggested that the public’s complacent behavior in the wake of the vaccination drive could be the reason behind the spike in infections.

“In January, the number of daily injections dropped to around 7,000. And people had this perception that the virus is not spreading as fast as before and the effects of the virus became weaker.”

This was a false perception, the infections fell because of the measures introduced at that time, Professor Muhammed Emin Akkoyunlu told daily Milliyet.

He noted that Turkey rolled out its vaccination program in mid-January and it takes at least one-and-a-half months for the jab to be effective.