The transmissibility index (Rt) of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has dropped slightly to 0.94 and Portugal has an average of 8,981 new daily cases of infection, the National Institute of Health Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA) announced today.
“The average value of the Rt for the days from April 04 to 08 was 0.94”, which represents a very slight reduction compared to the 0.95 recorded in the previous period, advances the INSA’s weekly report on the evolution of the number of infections in the country.
With an Rt of 1.02, the Azores are the only region in the country with this indicator above the threshold of 1, which “indicates an increasing trend” in cases of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
The Rt – which estimates the number of secondary cases of infection resulting from each person carrying the virus – is at 1.00 in the North, at 0.94 in the Center, at 0.92 in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo, at 0, 94 in Alentejo, 0.93 in Algarve and 0.87 in Madeira, indicates INSA.
The report also mentions that the average number of cases within five days is now at 8,981 daily infections nationwide, compared to 9,566 in the previous period.
“With the exception of the North region, all regions have an incidence rate higher than 960 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in 14 days”, the institute also adds, which gave Madeira the highest value in this indicator (2,883.6 cases).
The covid-19 disease is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, detected in late 2019 in Wuhan, a city in central China.
The rapidly spreading and mutating Ómicron variant has become dominant in the world since it was first detected in November in South Africa.