Active Covid cases cross 1,400 mark in Karnataka

BENGALURU: Active Covid-19 cases in Karnataka have crossed the 1,400 mark, with Bengaluru Urban alone accounting for 59% of the new cases, reports Mini Thomas. The state reported 284 fresh cases on April 1 and the state's daily positivity rate stands at 3.2%.
The BBMP's audit of three Covid-19 deaths reported from March 1, 2023 till date in the city has found that they were all incidental Covid findings where testing was done after admission.
XBB.1.16 continues to be the predominant variant. "A large proportion of the infected still are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic," said health & family welfare commissioner D Randeep.
Hospitalisations less likely: Doctor
D Randeep, Karnataka's commissioner of health and family welfare services, told TOI: "The patients had comorbidities and the primary cause of death in those cases was not Covid-19."
"Any surge in cases is concerning. But what we are tracking closely are the hospitalisations, and that has not proportionately risen. A large proportion of the infected still are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic," said Randeep.
According to Dr Nagaraj, director, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, Bengaluru, hospitalisations seem to be less likely with XBB.1.16.
Dr Govindaiah Yatheesh, president of the Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association, said, "At Apollo Hospitals, Jayanagar, we have admitted five patients admitted due to Covid in the past 20 days and most of them had comorbidities."
At Bowring hospital in Bengaluru, four patients have been admitted with Covid symptoms, one of whom suffers from diabetes. All are stable. Nonetheless, Karnataka has ramped up testing. "The WHO norm of 140 tests per million would mean we need to do 9,000+ tests in the State. We have been doing over 10,000 tests over the past week," said Randeep.
"Of the 498 Covid-positive samples sequenced during the January-March period in Karnataka, 295 are XBB - almost 60%. XBB.1.16 alone would be over 75 at least," he said.