Weekly coronavirus infections jump 33 percent, the first rise in months

Some 9,459 people tested positive for coronavirus in the Netherlands during the seven-day period ending on Tuesday. That was 33 percent more than the previous week. It was the first weekly increase reported by the public health institute since the beginning of March.

The number of positive tests rose in every age demographic except for children up through the age of 12. The RIVM said the largest increase was among people aged 13 to 29.

There was also a 31 percent increase in the number of people tested last week. Some 13,084 people visited the GGD for a test. That returned back to the level where it was in mid-May.

Based on testing figures, the basic reproduction (R) value rose to 0.99, indicating that 100 people contagious with the virus on May 19 infected 99 others. When the R-value is at 1.00, it suggests that roughly the same number of infections will continue to occur. If the figure rises higher, it indicates that infections will rise higher.

At the same time, the number of virus particles found in sewage during the last week of May fell by 8.7 percent compared to the previous week. However, that began to rise again as May was brought to a close. Sewage samples should a rapid increase in particles of the Omicron sub-variants BA.5 and BA.2.12.1. “However, it is currently very unclear which Omicron sub-variant is spreading fastest and will become dominant,” the RIVM said.

Hospitals in the Netherlands were treating 361 patients with Covid-19 on Tuesday, about 3.5 percent more than a week earlier, figures from the LCPS showed. The patient total includes 21 people in intensive care units, a figure which rose by two since last Tuesday.

The other 340 patients were in regular care wards. That reflected an increase of ten in a week.

Preliminary data from the RIVM showed that Covid-19 hospitalizations fell by over 20 percent during the preceding seven days. At least 128 people were hospitalized with the disease, including 14 sent to intensive care units. Last week, the RIVM said 154 people were admitted with Covid-19 in preliminary data, which rose to 167 in finalized data.