2,200 tested for coronavirus in Georgia - 110 positive in all
As of March 31 Georgia has 110 confirmed cases of coronavirus. 87 of the 110 are active cases. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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More than 2,200 individuals have been tested for coronavirus in Georgia since February, 2020 and only 110 have been positive.
Deputy Head of Georgia’s National Disease Control Centre Paata Imnadze said earlier today that the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method has been used, adding that it is the method Tbilisi Lugar Lab uses to diagnose the virus, and that it takes several hours to give a result.
This method is a golden standard, making no false results," Imnadze said.
Deputy Health Minister Tamar Gabunia said that Georgia received 2,000 rapid tests on Sunday, based on the polymerase spiral reaction (PSR) method, and it will be decided in the coming days which hospitals will receive them.
We also have 4,000 other, antibody based tests, which need more time [than PSR] to diagnose the virus. However, both of the tests have their role in diagnosing the virus,” Gabunia said.
She stated that Georgia is negotiating with Chinese and South Korean companies to purchase rapid tests and have them in the country as soon as possible.
We are also negotiating with American Cepheid, the only company which is producing cartridge-based tests for detecting SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.These are tests of top quality, which give results more rapidly than any other rapid tests. By the end of April we are likely to know when Georgia will receive the tests,” Gabunia said.
Tougher restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19 go into force today, including a nationwide curfew that will be in effect from 21:00 – 06:00.
There are about forty fever clinics throughout the country which are ready to treat patients, said Deputy Minister of Health Tamar Gabunia earlier today. Gabunia noted that many hospitals in the regions had refused to accept patients with fever. She added that the hospitals which can take in patients with fever have already been identified in the regions.
A 64-year-old Georgian man with underlying chronic disease has died in the United States from coronavirus infection, the deputy head of the National Disease Control Centre (NCDC) Paata Imnadze said earlier today.
Tougher restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19 go into force today, including a nationwide curfew that will be in effect from 21:00 – 06:00. Public transport has also been suspended, and the public cannot gather in groups of more than three people. The measures will be in place until at least April 21. Georgia has had 110 confirmed cases of the virus starting from February 26, 2020.
Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has confirmed earlier today that 100 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed in Georgia since the outbreak.
Specialists from foreign states are consulting Georgian epidemiologists on their success in containing the coronavirus, announced the head of Tbilisi Infectious Disease Hospital Tengiz Tsertsvadze on Imedi TV’s 'Imedis Kvira'.
"These are very difficult times not only for the EU, but for our partner countries as well. We are doing all we can to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on human lives and livelihoods. We are responding both to the immediate needs of the health systems, as well as longer term needs to the most vulnerable groups in society and small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the backbone of the economies in the six countries,” Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi said.
The co-chairs of Geneva International Discussions (GIDs) from the European Union, United Nations and OSCE, Toivo Klaar, Cihan Sultanoglu and Rudolf Michalka remain “fully engaged to help address the challenges” created by the coronavirus pandemic.
Georgia has expanded the category of people who will be tested for COVID-19 as there have been cases of internal transmission over the past several days.
A patient who was in critical condition with underlying chronic diseases has recovered from a brush with COVID-19 and will be discharged from the First University Clinic today, said Levan Ratiani, the director of the clinic.
About 350 individuals and 15 companies have been fined so far for the violation of state of emergency regulations and curfew since they came into effect on March 21 and 31 respectively to contain the spread of COVID-19, Georgian Interior Minister Vakhtang Gomelauri said earlier today.