MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina: COVID-19 spreading faster in Province of BA that in CABA

Flu symptoms in CABA are more likely to correspond to COVID-19 than to influenza

The Argentine province of Buenos Aires has reported the fastest pace in the growing number of COVID-19 cases, surpassing that of the City of Buenos Aires which was leading national statistics up until this week.

The number of infections in the province went up from 1,205 to 5,134 (326 %) in one week, while in the City it soared from 1,639 to 6,032 (268 %).

The Buenos Aires Epidemiological Bulletin has data only from people aged 50 or above because per the current protocols all those under that age group are not tested except in case the patient has other comorbidities.

On the other hand, the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA) continues to test all people with respiratory symptoms. Positivity last week was 54 %, meaning that flu symptoms are more likely to correspond to COVID-19 than to influenza.

But, in the Province, it is not that easy to determine whether someone under 50 years of age has flu or COVID-19. In the absence of such a diagnosis, infected people are less open to isolating themselves, Clarín explained. In this scenario, more COVID-19 patients are likely to be spreading the virus in the province than in CABA, where a growing demand for testing has also been reported.

Last week there were 17,671 swabs taken against 7,880 the week before (a 124 % increase), but even this rate is insufficient when growth in the number of registered cases more than doubles that of tests.

Regarding vaccination, half of the Province's population received the first booster (third dose) and only 13.5 % took the second (4th dose), while in CABA, 83 % received the third dose and 40 % the fourth.

As for the fifth dose, the percentage of people taking the shot is still very low nationwide, Clarín reported.