How autumn changes the way coronavirus spreads
Autumn coronavirus in figures
The autumn has brought new “records” for coronavirus disease: for the second day in a row, a record daily death rate of 346 people is recorded at the federal level in Russia. In Tatarstan, the daily increase in cases has recently reached 55 people — a “record” since June. As the deputy head of the regional department of Rospotrebnadzor, Lyubov Avdonina, notes, COVID-19 is also a viral respiratory infection and it is seasonal, so a growth was expected.
Currently, the rate of increase in morbidity in Tatarstan is 0,6% compared to 0,3-0,4% in early September. The distribution of cases by age category generally does not change much — the largest increase remains in the category from 40 to 64 years, children make up only 3,4% of the total number of cases. However, in the past few weeks, there has been an almost twofold increase in the incidence among people over 65 years of age, Avdonina added.
Since September, 111 teachers and 37 schoolchildren have been diagnosed with coronavirus in Tatarstan. Together, these cases do not have a significant weight in the overall structure of morbidity, according to Rospotrebnadzor: their share is only about 8%.
Besides, the number of imported cases is falling in Tatarstan: over the past few weeks — by 32%, in total, the share of such cases from the total number is 4,4%. For example, from Turkey, only 12 people brought COVID-19 to Tatarstan.
However, in the autumn, the ways of infection with coronavirus have changed. In September, COVID-19 was transmitted mainly through close household contacts — 47% of the total number of cases. Now the number of such cases has fallen to 39%, and infections in labour collectives have come to the fore.
In this context, Avdonina again reminded employers about preventive measures, which, according to her, they often violate. Among the violations in the first place is the neglect of “morning filters”, that is, measures to detect symptoms in employees coming to the enterprise. “Employees still come with a runny nose, with a high temperature. Employers need to strengthen control in this area," Avdonina told reporters.
It turned out that according to the results of the survey of 149 foci in working collectives of the republic, violations were detected in 100 of them. In addition to non-working “morning filters”, violations were found in terms of air disinfection, social distance, to a lesser extent — about wearing masks. “Masks are already firmly embedded in our lives," the deputy head of the regional department of Rospotrebnadzor stated.
Decision on public catering in Tatarstan will be made this week
The recent order of the federal Rospotrebnadzor on strengthening restrictive measures throughout Russia caused a lot of questions. The main points in it were the establishment of universal mask regime in public places, regardless of the region, as well as the recommendation to limit the opening hours of entertainment and catering establishments from 11.00 PM to 6.00 AM. At the same time, not all regions swiftly followed these instructions.
Avdonina noted that the decree is binding on the territory of Russia. Many restrictions are already in effect in Tatarstan. As for the mask regime, the federal decree also adds elevators and parking lots to the objects where masks must be worn. “In this part, our (Tatarstan's — editor's note) regulatory document will be changed," Avdonina stated.
The point about catering is not so simple — it refers to, let's call it, the “recommendation part” of the resolution. “Today, this issue is being under discussion, based on the situation that is taking place. By Friday, we will know about the decision that will be made," Avdonina said.