Coronavirus: More Than 1 Mln Tests Conducted- Official

The Presidential Adviser for Health Affairs Dr. Mohamed Awad Tag El-Din said on Thursday that the number of laboratory tests of the novel coronavirus in Egypt exceeded one million, adding that the increase in the number of cases of the COVID-19 disease is still within the expected limits and according to the rates of horizontal increase.

In an open press interview with a limited number of representatives of foreign media in Egypt, Tag El-Din said that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi follows daily developments in the numbers of infected people, the map of the spread of the virus in various governorates, hospital preparations, and places of quarantine.

Tag El-Din, who previously held the post of Minister of Health and Population, explained that the health infrastructure in Egypt is working efficiently, and that all medical supplies, protection and protection tools are available to medical staff in various governorates.

He stressed that all hospitals have enough of their medical staff and their personnel with protective tools for at least 15 days, pointing to the thousands of intensive care rooms in Egyptian hospitals ready to receive any cases, if the need arises.

In a related context, Tag El-Din said that quarantine hospitals began their work since the outbreak of the disease in Wuhan, China, last December; the Matrouh hospital welcomed the Egyptians returning from China for two weeks, which is the incubation period of the virus.

Regarding the outlook for disease decline in Egypt, Tag El-Din said: "No one can expect a specific date for the disease to begin to recede, but what we emphasize on the readiness of hospitals, places of quarantine and residence to deal with any increase in the number of infection cases."

He stressed the need for citizens to take precautionary measures, adhere to social distancing, wear masks, and stay away from crowds and places of congestion, to reduce the chances of infection.

Coronavirus Map in Egypt

Moreover, the official pointed out that about 85 percent of the infected cases may not feel the symptoms of the disease or feel minor symptoms, and that "the death rate in Egypt is high, but most of the patients with the disease suffer from chronic diseases.”

Egypt eased restrictions imposed to curb the spread of the virus during the month of Ramadan, allowed some commercial activities to reopen, and reduced the duration of the curfew.

Egypt confirmed on Thursday 393 new coronavirus cases, upping the total number of confirmed cases to 7,981.

“Thirteen more deaths were confirmed; raising the total number to 482,” Khaled Megahed, the Health Ministry’s spokesman, said in a statement.

“Up to 1,887 coronavirus patients have recovered so far,” the spokesman said.

“As many as 72 Egyptians were among the recovered patients today,” he added.

Also, the number of coronavirus patients who had now been retested for the virus and had received negative results has reached 2,378 after getting excellent treatment in coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO).

Earlier, Health Minister Hala Zayed said that 61% of the positive cases are from males and 39% from females.

[caption id="attachment_114186" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Health Minister Hala Zayed and The Premier[/caption]

Zayed mentioned that 30% of deaths had died before checking in at the isolation hospitals.

“About 94% of the deaths were in the age group of over 50,” Zayed pointed out, adding: “22% of the confirmed cases are in the age group of 50 to 59.”

“100% of the deceased had chronic diseases and tumors,” the minister affirmed.

The Egyptian government took gradual measures to curb the spread of the virus, including the closure of schools and universities and preventing crowds, WHO representative stated.

In Egypt, 85% of the positive cases had recovered without treatment because their symptoms were simple, he said.

The death rate in Egypt reaches 7.6% and 13% of the confirmed cases are from the medical staff, he added.