Politics

Iraq, Kurdistan Region report nearly 4,600 new COVID-19 cases in a day

Iraq’s total tally has now crossed 340,000 cases, of which about 60,000 remain active, according to official figures provided by the health ministry.

Kurdistan 24 2020/09/25 21:56

middle east Kurdistan Iraq Baghdad Erbil COVID-19

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Iraqi health authorities on Friday reported nearly 4,600 new coronavirus cases in a single day, along with 68 new fatalities due to the disease.

According to the ministry, the test positivity rate for Friday was just over 22 percent. The figure is derived by dividing the tests that came back as positive by the total number of tests carried out that day.

The test positivity rate is a measure that helps better understand how the infectious disease is spreading, with a lower percentage generally indicating that authorities are conducting enough testing to find the virus.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a test positivity rate of less than five percent for two weeks running is among critical indicators that the disease is under control in a region.

Iraq’s total tally has now crossed 340,000 cases, of which about 60,000 remain active, according to official figures provided by the ministry. Fatalities from the disease are also reportedly nearing 9,000. Additionally, to detect the virus, health workers have conducted over 2.1 million tests.

Of the total, the Kurdistan Region has carried out about 450,000 of coronavirus tests in Iraq. There have also been nearly 45,000 infections, and about 1,600 fatalities. Nearly 14,400 cases remain active.

Across Iraq, according to the government, over 270,000 patients have recorded from the disease. It should be noted, however, that a patient classified as a "recovery" means they are no longer being actively treated by health professionals, not that they have fully recovered.

According to a recent study published by the New England Journal of Medicine, as reported by the Washington Post, the coronavirus appears to compromise the lining of blood vessels in organs such as the brain, kidneys, heart, and lungs.

"More than 20 million patients who have 'recovered' could be living with serious damage to their blood vessels," said the Post. "That could unleash a global surge in vascular diseases, from stroke and atherosclerosis to myocarditis and heart attack."

Breaking Records

The Kurdistan Region and Iraq have been recording an increasingly higher number of cases in recent months amid relaxed lockdown measures and tough economic conditions.

The highest number of infections recorded in a day across Iraq so far came two days ago, when health authorities said they had confirmed over 5,000 cases across the country. That same day, the Kurdistan Region also broke a new milestone, reporting nearly 1,000 coronavirus infections.

On Monday, Iraq said it was joining an alliance of 156 countries aimed at achieving a rapid and equitable distribution of any future coronavirus vaccines that are developed and to protect vulnerable healthcare systems and frontline health workers.

The effort, known as "COVAX," is being led by co-led by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), the GAVI vaccine alliance, and the World Health Organization (WHO), which characterized the program as "a global initiative that brings together governments and manufacturers to ensure eventual COVID-19 vaccines reach those in greatest need, whoever they are and wherever they live."

The coronavirus has infected more than 32.5 million people worldwide and killed near one million, according to Johns Hopkins University’s database. The actual figures could be dramatically higher due to insufficient testing capabilities or underreporting.