THE UK government’s scientific advisers believe the chances of dying from the coronavirus are between 0.5 and 1 per cent, which is lower than the 5 per cent death rate in the UK.
This is because not all those infected are confirmed by testing. Indeed, Public Health Wales says the “true number of cases” is likely to be higher than their released figures.
In Wales, 62 people have died after testing positive for the coronavirus, with 1241 cases across the country.
And the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board – which covers Gwent – accounts for just under half of those cases, with 565.
This week, we learnt of an 80-year-old grandmother who entered the Royal Gwent Hospital last month for a routine gallbladder operation, who is then believed to have caught the coronavirus during her stay - dying a day after a confirmed test.
We know, thanks to a study in the medical journal The Lancet, that those most at risk of dying are the elderly, vulnerable and those with underlying health conditions.
The analysis also found that, of 44,000 cases in China, deaths were at least five times more common among confirmed cases with diabetes, high blood pressure or heart or breathing problems.
Allaying some fears, however, England’s Chief Medical Officer said, “the great majority of older people will have mild or moderate disease”.
- So, just how many people have recovered from the coronavirus?
Worldometer has a live feed which compiles all relevant and accurate data from trusted sources – including the World Health Organisation - to break down how many cases, deaths and recoveries there are worldwide.
As of 8am on Monday, March 30, there have been 723,732 cases of confirmed coronavirus internationally (537,901 active and 185,831 closed) - with 34,000 deaths.
The number of confirmed recoveries stands at 151,831, though that figure is likely to be higher as not all infections are tested or confirmed.
The number of active cases considered to be "serious or critical" is, 26,719, while "mild" cases numbers 511,182.
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Read more: All confirmed coronavirus case locations in Wales
Unfortunately, the site does not provide specific data for Wales, but it does provide a snapshot for the UK.
The UK has seen 19,522 confirmed cases, with 1,228 deaths and 135 recoveries; again, it is important to state, that the number of recoveries in the UK is likely to be much higher as only those who meet specific criteria are given a test.
Though Prince Charles was given a test despite only showing "mild symptoms".
Th criteria includes:
- Those requiring admission to hospital (a hospital practitioner has decided that admission to hospital is required with an expectation that the patient will need to stay at least one night)
and
- have either clinical or radiological evidence of pneumonia
or
- acute respiratory distress syndrome
or
- influenza like illness (fever ≥37.8°C and at least one of the following respiratory symptoms, which must be of acute onset: persistent cough (with or without sputum), hoarseness, nasal discharge or congestion, shortness of breath, sore throat, wheezing, sneezing
Read more: NHS in Gwent close to being overwhelmed - expert's chilling message
Read more: Unsettling images of Newport in coronavirus lockdown
- How accurate are the figures?
Their website says: “For each set of statistics we perform extensive research and data mining in order to bring the most authoritative, comprehensive, and timely information to be displayed on the live counters.
“Worldometer is cited as a source in over 10,000 published books, in more than 6,000 professional journal articles, and in over 1000 Wikipedia pages.
“Worldometer was voted as one of the best free reference websites by the American Library Association (ALA), the oldest and largest library association in the world.”
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