Finland reports 1,189 new infections, 9 deaths in the last 3 days
The incidence of new infections in the capital region soars to 146.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Of the new deaths recorded, 4 occurred in the Helsinki area, 3 in Oulu, 1 in Kuopio, 1 in Turku.
Finnish health authorities reported Monday 1,189 new coronavirus infections found since the last Friday. The number of patients hospitalized or in intensive care also increased dramatically, while in the capital region the incidence of new cases soared to 146.1 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Specifically, the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) said 469 new infections were found on Saturday 21 November; 423 cases were reported on Sunday and 297 on Monday.
In addition 9 patients died in the past 3 days. Of the 9 deaths reported, 4 occurred in the Helsinki region, 3 in the area of the western coastal city of Oulu, 1 in Kuopio and 1 in Turku.
These fatalities bring Finland's total death toll to 384 since the start of the pandemic. Most of them (298) occurred in the Helsinki-Uusimaa area, which entered the community transmission epidemic stage last Thursday.
Health authorities in the capital region issued Friday new recommendations and restrictions regarding the use of face masks at workplaces and schools.
With this increase, the total number of infected people in Finland since the start of the pandemic rises to 21,936.
Source: THL.
More patients in hospitals
On Monday, the number of people hospitalized due to Covid-19 disease increased to 120, which is 16 more than three days before, when THL published its previous updated report. The number of patients admitted to intensive care units also rose sharply, from 10 to 15, which is 50% more.
The country's incidence of cases increased during the last two days. According to THL, on Monday it was 70.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the past two weeks. But according to the website of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), at the time of writing this article the number was 69.6 cases per 100,000 residents.
However, the situation is very different depending on the region.
In the area of the capital city and its surroundings (Helsinki-Uusimaa), the most populated region of the country, the incidence doubles the national average, 146.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the preceding 14 days, according to THL.
In Länsi-Pohja, the northwestern region bordering Sweden, which is the second most affected area, the incidence number was 100.3 per 100,000.
Most affected hospital districts
The largest number of new cases have been recorded in the hospital districts of Helsinki and Uusimaa, Päijät-Häme (the area around the city of Lahti), Southwest Finland (Turku and its surroundings), Pirkanmaa (the Tampere area) and North Ostrobothnia (Oulu region).
According to THL, an estimated 15,300 people have recovered, which is over 75% of reported cases.