Hospitalizations for respiratory symptoms increase sharply in São Paulo

The city of São Paulo again registered an increase in hospitalizations for suspected Covid-19. In the last seven days, 1,170 admissions were computed, an increase of 47.5% compared to the previous seven days, when there were 793 new patients.

The numbers were analyzed by the Covid-19 Br Observatory based on data from the hospital census organized by Fundação Seade, which compiles admission records provided by hospitals on a daily basis.

For Roberto Kraenkel, a professor at Unesp (São Paulo State University) and a member of the Observatory, this rise is explained by the presence of a new infectious agent, which may be the omicron variant of the coronavirus or the H3N2 influenza virus, which has caused a flu epidemic in several Brazilian states.

wanted by leaf, the municipal secretary of Health, Edson Aparecido, denied there are signs of an increase in hospitalizations in the municipal network, despite recognizing the high number of visits due to the flu-like illness. According to him, the capital currently has only one hospital referred for the treatment of Covid-19.

Currently, the city has 32% occupancy of ICU beds and 41% of the infirmary. In total, there are 963 inpatient vacancies for the treatment of Covid in the capital of São Paulo.

The City of São Paulo confirmed the community circulation of omicron last week, when seven cases of the variant were counted among people who had no contact with travelers.

According to Mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB), 300 people are being monitored for having participated in a party at which a 67-year-old elderly man was infected without having a history of traveling abroad.

According to the specialist at the Observatory, new hospitalizations in the city have doubled in an interval of 3 to 5 days, which coincides with the pattern seen in Europe in relation to hospitalizations caused by the omicron variant. “There is still confusion with [o diagnóstico] of flu, but it’s a public health emergency anyway,” Kraenkel says of the increase in inpatients.

The confusion is caused by the similarity of symptoms caused by the two diseases. In addition, according to the member of the Observatory, few patients are tested to find out if they were infected by the coronavirus or the flu virus.

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), the transmission speed of the omicron variant continues at an unprecedented pace, and the new strain has already been found in 77 countries.

The influenza A H3N2 virus, the same one associated with the recent flu epidemic in Rio de Janeiro, is circulating in the city of São Paulo and is already causing an increase in emergency room visits and admissions to public and private hospitals.

Since the beginning of last week, the city has been testing for Covid-19 all patients with flu symptoms who seek the municipal network. According to the folder, testing is done by the antigen method.

The number of people with flu symptoms in the municipal network in the first half of December represents 82% of records in the 30 days of November, according to data from the Department of Health.

The growth rate in hospitalizations seen in the last two weeks is equivalent to the first months of the pandemic in the city and also to the initial period of community circulation of the gamma variant, discovered in August, when there was greater occupation of ICU and nursing beds.

For Kraenkel, the numbers are a warning sign and demand urgent measures, such as accelerating the application of the third dose of the vaccine and the vaccination of children.