Update –19/04/2022
April 19, 2022
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As of the latest update by the Greek authorities, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 diagnosed cases in Greece 3,242,037. 63 new deaths were reported raising the total number to 28,652. The number of patients treated in intensive care units is currently 307. 3,868 new cases were announced yesterday in Greece. 1,398 of the new cases were found in the Attica region and 484 new cases in the Thessaloniki region.
Patients who develop more than five symptoms of Covid-19 when they develop the disease are more likely to develop long Covid syndrome, according to scientists.
People at risk of long Covid syndrome are elderly patients, obese people, women, those with a history of asthma and people who had many symptoms during the acute phase of Covid-19.
“Children are not protected either. They can have long Covid and in fact in a not small percentage,” said Anastasia Kotanidou, director of the Intensive Care Clinic of National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (EKPA) at Evangelismos, during a recent scientific event of EKPA.
She said that even when the pandemic stops, “we will hear about long Covid syndrome for a long time.”
Long Covid describes symptoms that persist for more than 12 weeks after the diagnosis of Covid-19 and for which there is no alternative diagnosis.
The incidence of the syndrome has been reported in different studies from 2% to 30% of patients infected with the virus, and it is estimated that three out of four patients who need to be treated for Covid-19 show at least one symptom, mostly fatigue, that persists for six months after the acute phase of the disease.
With regard to children, there are studies that show the syndrome occurring in 15% of the 12-16 age group.
Greek health authorities announced 3,868 new cases of Covid-19 and 63 virus-related deaths on Monday. The National Organization for Public Health (EODY) also stated that the number of intubated patients saw a drop with 307.
The total number of reported cases of Covid-19 in Greece since the start of the pandemic rose to 3,242,037, with a total of 28,652 virus-related deaths over the same period.
The Easter holiday may be more reminiscent of pre-Covid days this year compared to 2021, but experts have been quick to stress that the country is not finished with the pandemic and that people should continue to respect the measures that remain in force.
“We have significant freedoms compared to last year… but freedoms does not mean that we are finished with the pandemic and need not abide by the measures,” warned Dimitrios Paraskevis, an associate professor of epidemiology at Athens University’s Medical School and vice president of National Public Health Organization (EODY).
“Last year, travel between different regional units was prohibited, restaurants were closed and the Resurrection [celebration] took place only in the churchyards,” he told Kathimerini, noting that this year there are no major restrictions on restaurants and other such venues.
“Even the unvaccinated can, with a rapid test, have access to open venues of entertainment, movement is free, we are mostly vaccinated, there is the possibility of a fourth dose for the most vulnerable groups of the population, we have vaccine adequacy and a large proportion of the population is immune,” he said on a more positive note, but went on to warn that public health safety measures must be respected.
According to the remaining restrictions, a certificate of vaccination or recovery or, otherwise, a negative test (molecular or rapid) is required to travel by ship, airplane, train or bus, while the use of a face mask is mandatory in all indoor public settings.
A certificate or test is also needed for the rental of accommodation. The same applies for admission to churches, where masks are mandatory and social distancing of 1.5 meters must be observed. Priests and chanters are exempted from the use of the mask exclusively during the religious ceremony. Masks should be worn outside the church if there is a crowd and during the procession of the Epitaph.
Entry to restaurants, bars, nightclubs and music venues, meanwhile, is only allowed for those who have been fully vaccinated or who have recovered from Covid-19 in the last six months (with a certificate). Those with a negative molecular or rapid test are only allowed in outdoor areas.
Most of these restrictions will be lifted after the Easter break.
In more detail, the 3,868 new cases detected per Regional Unit:
