The week in numbers: 4M recoveries, 34,000 new cases in a day and a potential $1 COVID-19 drug
From June 13 through 19, there was news of potential game-changing, cost-effective developments in COVID-19 treatment. There were also signs that one country and several U.S. states may become new COVID-19 epicenters in the near future.
And with individuals across the globe slowly returning to normal behaviors, there are ongoing concerns over whether the severity of the novel coronavirus pandemic will worsen in the coming weeks and months.
Here are some notable COVID-19 numbers you should pay attention to from this past week:
<1
That’s the cost in dollars per day for single-patient COVID-19 treatment with a steroid called dexamethasone, according to the New York Times.
In Britain, the drug has been used to successfully treat COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms. The death count for patients who were on ventilators that received the drug dropped by one-third, according to a study.
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The drug’s efficacy, though, is still being questioned, with The Times noting that many health experts have demanded to see the data and the study itself.
There have been instances in which studies of drugs have been retracted. The FDA rescinded the emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine on June 15.
4
That is the milestone number in millions of people who have recovered from COVID-19 across the globe that was crossed on June 17. In the United States, there were more than 590,000 recoveries as of June 19.
Current data still suggests that the threat of the novel coronavirus will be present for quite some time. In the United States, COVID-19 deaths are projected to surpass 200,000 by October 1, according to recent projections made by the University of Washington.
Health officials have previously noted that the vast amount of COVID-19 patients do recover from the disease. And as of June 19, there were vaccine candidates in Phase III, the Times reports, with moving projections as to when a largely available vaccine may be available.
13
That’s the age in days of a baby in the U.K. with COVID-19 that passed away on June 15. The baby is believed to be the youngest person with COVID-19 to die, although the BBC notes that it is still unclear if the disease was a contributing factor to the child’s death.
Data indicates that at large, children have not contracted the novel coronavirus as frequently as adults and of those who do, there is a small percentage that develop serious symptoms. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as recent as May 29, 2% of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. were made up of individuals younger than 18.
There have also been multiple reports of children who have had COVID-19 that developed Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a condition that can impact a child’s heart, lungs, kidneys, brain and additional organs, according to the CDC. The New York Department of Health suggests that children should seek immediate care if they have symptoms including prolonged fever, difficulty feeding, severe abdominal pain, changes in skin color, and racing heart or chest pain.
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The CDC also highlights how in the largest study of pediatric COVID-19 patients from China, 0.6% showed critical symptoms, such as respiratory failure or multi-organ dysfunction.
Individuals of an older age are at a higher risk of developing serious symptoms that can lead to death. Still, it has been frequently noted that anyone of any age is able to contract the novel coronavirus.
34,918
That isn’t the number of total confirmed COVID-19 cases for Brazil — that’s the number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases in the South American country for just one day, June 16, according to Reuters.
The total amount of confirmed cases in Brazil was over 978,000 as of June 19. Although Brazil holds a larger population, bordering country Argentina had reported just over 35,000 cases total as of June 19, according to Johns Hopkins data.
Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s president, has downplayed the severity of the virus since the outset of the global pandemic. The country’s Health Ministry removed the cumulative coronavirus death toll from its website earlier in June, according to the Associated Press.
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84,000+
That’s the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in China, according to data from Johns Hopkins on June 19. That number, though, may not be entirely accurate, as there has been concern over the validity of the COVID-19 data the country has shared with the public.
Still, China, once the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, has been attempting to return to normalcy over the past weeks and months. Following Shanghai Disneyland’s reopening in May, Hong Kong Disneyland reopened its doors with new safety and preventative measures in place on June 18.
But even after the slowing of the country’s infection rate, a new outbreak was reported in Beijing. From the Associated Press: “Chinese authorities locked down 11 communities near a wholesale food market in Beijing on 15 June to try to stem a new outbreak of COVID-19.”
89,000+
That number isn’t a typo — it’s the amount of confirmed cases reported in Florida on June 19.
For reference, the population of China is around 1,400,000,000, while Florida’s is above 21,000,000, according to 2019 U.S. Census data.
Florida was one of the earliest states to reopen, despite pleas from public health officials for caution on restarting local and state economies too soon. Since those reopenings, the Sunshine State has experienced a drastic rise in confirmed COVID-19 cases.
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Since June 1, there hasn’t been a day when the new confirmed COVID-19 cases was below 1,000, based on Florida public health data. From June 11 to June 16, there was just one day where the number of new cases was below 2,000. Compare that to the May 19 to 31 date range, in which there had been only two days where cases surpassed 1,000.
On Friday, June 19, nearly 4,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Florida, the largest single-day increase for the state.
8,552,674
That’s the number of confirmed coronavirus cases across the world, according to June 19 data captured from Johns Hopkins on June 19, with the 8 million milestone being crossed on June 16.
With the global population closer to 8 billion, that 8 million number may sound paltry. But less than 80 days ago, the global COVID-19 case count had just passed 1 million.
To help prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, the CDC recommends that individuals:
-Wash their hands frequently
-Practice social distancing,
-Cover coughs and sneezes
-Regularly clean and disinfect frequently touched items and surfaces
-Wear a mask or facial covering while in public