ARCHIVED - 281 active outbreaks in Spain on Thursday

The average age of positive cases is starting to show a slight rise again

"I appeal to the responsibility of people of all ages, if we do not make an effort we will not control the transmission. The measures are very clear and it is worth making an effort".

María José Sierra

In Spain on Thursday there are 281 active outbreaks of coronavirus with 3,200 linked cases, Catalonia and Aragon being the autonomous regions that "cause the most concern" to the Ministry of Health, as Barcelona, Lleida and Zaragoza are all experiencing “community transmission”, ie there are so many outbreaks they cease to be isolated and become a generalised transmission of the virus.

Click to see Spain figures for Thursday; nearly 1,000 new cases reported on Thursday

The acting head of the area of the Coordination Center for Health Alerts and Emergencies of the Ministry of Health, María José Sierra, explained this Thursday at a press conference that "practically all the autonomous communities" are experiencing outbreaks in recent days and that related cases are increasing, with nightlife the principal protagonist.

Since the end of the de-escalation, 369 outbreaks with 5,000 cases have been detected in Spain, although many of the 281 outbreaks currently recorded are now under control.

In the last two weeks, she said, the accumulated incidence of infections has tripled.
She stressed that there are more and more outbreaks associated with leisure and discos, some affecting more than one hundred people.

There are 15 outbreaks with more than 350 cases related to family gatherings and parties and 27 outbreaks that affect workers in the agricultural sector.

Not all outbreaks are of the same magnitude; 70% have ten cases or less.

She stated that the health service is "concerned" about the epidemiological situation, although the health system is not experiencing stress despite the increase in cases, as 50% of positives are asymptomatic. "There are still very few cases hospitalized and in the ICU compared to those diagnosed. In places where there is a higher incidence, the numbers of hospitalized patients are beginning to increase, but without putting stress on hospital services, because half are asymptomatic and the vast majority are mild cases and young people ", she explained.

The Health Ministry considers that all the measures adopted by the autonomous communities to stop transmission are adequate.

Average age of cases is 45, but starting to increase again

The average age of positive cases diagnosed this Thursday is 45, although the Health Ministry is starting to see a rise in the age of the latest patients, something which she said: "worries us because age is the factor that is most associated with the severity of the disease. "