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Over 1/4th of National Hospital Covid patients O2 dependent

03 Feb 2022

 
  • Majority ICU Covid patients unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated with booster  
  • Omicron as severe as Delta on unvaccinated: NHSL doctor
  BY Buddhika Samaraweera As of yesterday (3), more than 75 out of the 325 Covid-19-infected patients receiving treatment at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL) in Colombo were dependent on supplemental oxygen (O2) with the majority of intensive care unit (ICU) patients being unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated with the booster third dose, according to the NHSL’s Dr. Harsha Sathischandra. Speaking at a media briefing organised by the Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) yesterday, he also said that many of the Covid-19 patients being treated in the ICU had either not been vaccinated with the Covid-19 vaccines or had not been fully vaccinated (three doses including the booster third dose). “As of yesterday, 325 Covid-19 patients are being treated at the NHSL. The serious situation is that more than 75 of them are dependent on supplemental O2. Also, many Covid-19 patients who are treated in the ICU have not obtained the vaccines, while some of them have not been vaccinated fully. They are worried about that now,” he said. Dr. Sathischandra further said that young people who received the Covid-19 vaccine properly are not being treated in the ICUs, adding that the Covid-19 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant could be as severe as the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant on those who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19. The number of Covid-19 infections reported daily in Sri Lanka has increased significantly over the past few days. Over the past few weeks, 600-700 cases of Covid-19 infections have been reported daily. However, the Health Ministry announced that a total of 1,156 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 on 2 February. According to the Epidemiology Unit, as of 10 a.m. yesterday, Sri Lanka had recorded 15,492 Covid-19 deaths while the total number of infections stood at 613,478, of which a total of 579,780 patients had recovered. The Morning, on 25 January, reported that the number of Covid-19-infected patients being admitted to the NHSL in Colombo, including those reliant on supplemental O2, has risen significantly, and that therefore, priority for routine surgeries would have to be reduced. Pointing out that there is a significant increase in the number of Covid-19-infected patients being admitted to the NHSL these days, NHSL Deputy Director Dr. Chandana Gajanayake at that time said that given the said increase, priority for routine surgeries would have to be reduced.


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