The Deputy Chief Medical Officer in England said that the Corona virus is “infiltrating” the older and more vulnerable age groups, as he unveiled heat maps showing how the virus is spreading in different parts of the country.
Professor Jonathan Van Tam said the rise is in Covid-19 Cases are being seen “nationally” and “all UK regions are now seeing infection rate growth”.
He said at a press conference that other regions follow the pattern of northwest England virus she has It moved through age bands, after it started to rise amongst the youth at first.
Live updates on Coronavirus from the US, UK and around the world
Please use Chrome Browser for easy-to-access video player
Regional heat maps show age groups 0 to 15, 16 to 29, 30 to 44, and 45 to 59 and 60 plus ones on the y-axis, and dates from mid-September to early October on the x-axis.
Colors range from yellow (meaning fewer than 100 cases per 100,000 people), orange (between 100 and 200 cases per 100,000), red / light purple (between 200 and 300 cases per 100,000), purple (between 300 and 400 cases per 100,000). ) And dark purple / black (between 400 and 500 cases per 100,000).
The darker colors on the Northeast heat map show how the virus spread to older age groups
The Northwest has also seen the Coronavirus “ creep ” into older age groups since mid-September
The London heat map shows that older age groups in the capital have seen fewer cases compared to the Northwest and Northeast
Speaking of regional heat maps, Professor Van Tam said: “You will notice that the infection rate was initially at its highest in people between the ages of 16 and 29, and that as you moved to the right, it got hotter and hotter.
“ But while doing that, you can see the infection crawling into the next age group, from 30 to 44 years, followed by two or three weeks later crawling back up to 45 to 59 seconds, and you can now see that the 60 plus is also heating up on this chart.
“The Northwest tested all of this first and I understand that this pattern is likely to follow – you can see it in the Northeast and you can see it in Yorkshire and the Humber just now but at an early stage.”
Professor Van Tam said that the spread of the virus in the over 60-year-old age group is “a matter of great concern.”
“The elderly suffer a much worse course with COVID-19, they are hospitalized for longer periods, and it is difficult to save them,” he added.
Professor Van Tam also addressed the slide shown in the briefing on the high rates of coronavirus cases in southern England.
He said he was concerned that he might have presented a “bipolar picture that COVID-19 is a problem in the north, not a problem in the south.”
“On the contrary, it is clear that the epidemic this time has accelerated in the north of England earlier than in the first wave, and this is almost certainly related to the fact that levels of disease in the north, and certainly in the northwest, decreased in summer as much as they decreased in the south “.
“But almost all areas of the UK are now seeing growth in infection rate and that brown map that I showed you, which was obtained from the Joint Biosecurity Center, definitely confirms that point.
“This is a national phenomenon now as prices are changing upwards across the UK.”
It was Professor Van Tam He speaks at a news briefing Before the announcement of more restrictions from Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
