Country’s daily Covid-19 infection rate hits record high
Rising infection rates mean the number of patients is also increasing, but many of them are undiagnosed, according to experts
Highlights:
- Total Infected: 193,590 or 19.75%
- Death Toll: 2,457 or 1.27%
- Total Recovery: 105,023 or 54.25%
- Total Sample Tested: 980,402
- Isolated: 17,864
- In Quarantine: 61,237
Bangladesh recorded an all-time daily high of 25.23 percent confirmed Covid-19 infections against the total number of tests conducted in the last 24 hours till Wednesday at 8am.
During this period, 14,002 samples were tested and 3,533 were found positive for Covid-19.
Nasima Sultana, additional director general of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) disclosed this during an online briefing on Wednesday.
The previous high of 24.95 percent was recorded two days ago.
The overall infection rate in the country currently stands at 19.75 percent.
The infection rate had been fluctuating between 20 percent and 23 percent since June. In the second week of this month, the infection rate increased to 24 percent.
Although there has been a slight drop in the number of tests since the beginning of this month, following the imposition of test fees, the infection rate has been rising.
Professor Nazrul Islam, a noted virologist and former vice-chancellor of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, told The Business Standard that infections are on the rise because there is no lockdown, no identification of patients and no isolation.
"Patients are being identified in fewer numbers because the number of tests is low. Rising infection rates mean the number of patients is also increasing, but many of them are undiagnosed," he argued.
"If we collect 20 samples from each upazila of the country and if more samples are collected from hotspot areas in Dhaka and Chattogram, the number of tests will be around 20,000 per day. A somewhat accurate idea about the Covid-19 infection rate in the country could be found if 20,000 tests were done every day," maintained Nazrul Islam, also a member of the National Technical Advisory Committee on Covid-19.
Meanwhile, 33 more people died of Covid-19 in the country in the last 24 hours. The death toll now stands at 2,457 and the current death rate is 1.27 percent.
"Of the dead patients on Wednesday, 27 are men and six are women. Moreover, 16 of them hailed from Dhaka, seven from Chattogram, five from Khulna, three from Rangpur, and two from Rajshahi division," said Professor Dr Nasima Sultana of the DGHS.
"Twenty-seven of them have died at different hospitals and six in their homes," she added.
Bangladesh registered its maiden Covid-19 cases on March 8. So far, 1,93,590 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the country.
Dr Nasima said, "Some 14,308 samples were collected in the last 24 hours and 14,002 were tested in 79 labs across the country. So far, 980,402 samples have been tested."
Additionally, some 1,796 patients recovered from Covid-19 during the last 24 hours, increasing the tally of recovered patients to 105,023. The current recovery rate is 54.25 percent.
A total of 949 people were placed in isolation in the last 24 hours.