New COVID-19 cases - Weekly review: 21 - 27 March 2022

The number of people testing positive for COVID-19 has increased from 7,791 to 9,550 cases (+23%) for the week of 21 to 27 March 2022.

Among the 9,550 new infections, the incidence rate of positive non-vaccinated persons is 1,407.7 per 100,000 inhabitants and 1,541.2 per 100,000 inhabitants for those who had a complete vaccination.

Among hospital admissions, 17 out of 32 patients in normal care were not vaccinated (15 patients had a complete vaccination), while 3 out of 4 patients of intensive care were not vaccinated.

The calculated incidence rate per 100,000 hospitalised persons (5 years and older) with a complete vaccination pattern is 3.27 in normal care and 0.22 in intensive care. The calculated incidence rate per 100,000 non-vaccinated hospitalized persons (5 years and older) is 11.87 in normal care and 2.09 in intensive care.

The number of PCR tests performed during the week of 21 to 27 March has increased from 20,255 to 24,603.

95 people reported a positive rapid antigen test (RAT) for the reporting week, compared to 75 the previous week, bringing the number of positive results performed by a health-care worker to a total of 2,392. It should be noted that positive RATs are not included in the calculation of the positivity rate.

As of 27 March, the number of active infections has increased to 17,502 compared to 13,945 on 20 March, while the number of people healed increased from 186,769 to 192,745. The average age of those diagnosed as positive for COVID-19 is 35.6 years.

For the week of 21 to 27 March, 17 new deaths related to COVID-19 have been reported. The average age of the deceased is 78 years.

In the hospitals, there were 32 new admissions of confirmed COVID-19 patients in normal care, compared to 36 the previous week. In intensive care, the number of occupied beds increased from 3 to 4. The average age of hospitalised patients is 55 years.

Positivity rate and incidence rate

For the reference period, the effective reproduction rate (R) increased, with 1.18% compared to 1.12% the previous week, while the positivity rate on all tests performed (prescriptions, contact tracing) increased from 38.46% to 38.82%.

The 7-day incidence rate increased to 1,505 per 100,000 inhabitants, compared to 1,226 per 100,000 inhabitants the previous week.

Re-infections as well as certified self-tests in schools were included in the calculation of incidence rates. Compared to the previous week, the incidence rate has increased in all age groups.

The largest increase was recorded in the 0-14 age group (+37%), followed by the 75+ age group (+23%). It should be noted that in the week of 21 to 27 March, school-certified self-tests accounted for 28% of cases among 0-14 year olds and 14% of cases among 15-29 year olds.

The lowest incidence rate is recorded in the 60-74 age group (966 cases per 100,000 inhabitants), while the highest incidence rate is recorded in the 0-14 age group with 2,525 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Contaminations

As the number of new infections remains high, the identification of sources is currently not possible for all cases. Among the 11,497 resident cases registered in the week of 21-27 March 2022, only cases with a result date of 21 or 22 March were called. The cases were examined and the source was determined.

The family circle remains the most frequent source of transmission of COVID-19 infections (33%), followed by education (22%), work (4.9%), leisure activities (4.7%) and travel abroad (3.4%). The percentage of undetermined sources has slightly decreased (25.8%).

Vaccinations: update on the situation

For the week of 21 to 27 March, a total of 1,776 doses were administered. 145 people received a 1st dose, 476 a 2nd dose, 937 people received one complementary dose to a full vaccination, and 218 received a second complementary dose to a full vaccination, bringing the total number of vaccines administered as of 29 March to 1,274,609.

471,914 people have a complete vaccination pattern, which corresponds to a vaccination rate of 78.5% of the eligible population (i.e. the 5+ population).

"Pop Up" Vaccination: Lëtzebuerg léisst sech impfen

To increase vaccination coverage, the Government continues to facilitate access to vaccination by deploying temporary vaccination spots ("Pop Up" Vaccination) and mobile teams will be present in high-traffic areas (pedestrian zones, shopping malls, events organised by some municipalities).

The evolution of the variants

Variant sequencing data are published every Friday on the website of the National Health Laboratory (Laboratoire national de Santé, LNS) https://lns.lu/en/publications-en/.

Wastewater monitoring in Luxembourg as part of SARS-CoV-2

According to the latest CORONASTEP report drawn up by the LIST (Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology), the contamination level of the 13 wastewater treatment plants analysed during the twelfth week of 2022 still shows a high prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater at national level. The SARS-CoV-2 levels measured this week are very similar to those observed last week. Similar trends were observed for the different treatment plants analysed.

All CORONASTEP reports are available on the LIST website: https://www.list.lu/en/covid-19/coronastep/.

 

Press release by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth, the National Health Laboratory (LNS) and the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST)

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