North Korea confirmed more than 1 million coronavirus cases today… “Already in the pandemic stage”

In North Hamgyong Province, North Korea, supplies are being prepared to be sent to local residents who have been locked down due to a suspected fever for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Pyongyang Rodong Sinmun

The number of people with fever (fever) in North Korea is expected to exceed 1 million on the 16th. Omicron mutation has entered a pandemic stage in North Korea, which has always insisted on a ‘zero corona’.

North Korea does not have a gene amplification (PCR) or rapid antigen testing system like Korea, so it is impossible to accurately determine the number of infected people. Instead, we are collecting statistics on fever cases with suspicious symptoms separately.

The main symptom of COVID-19 is fever. Considering the poor medical system and testing environment, it is expected that the number of corona19 confirmed in North Korea will be much higher than the statistics of the authorities. There are also claims that the actual number of infected people is in the millions.

According to a report by the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the North Korean Workers’ Party, the number of daily fevers increased from 18,000 on the 12th when related statistics were first compiled and published, 174,440 on the 13th, and 290,000 on the 14th. A total of 820,000 people. If you add up the statistics on the 15th, the cumulative number of confirmed cases is expected to exceed 1 million.

Looking back on the situation in Korea that suffered from the Omicron pandemic, the number of daily fevers is highly likely to increase rapidly. This is because the North Korean people have not been vaccinated against COVID-19, and there is a shortage of quarantine rules and supplies such as masks.

Quarantine experts expect that a widespread spread of Omicron has already taken place in North Korea. Baek Soon-young, an emeritus professor at the Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, predicted that “the Omicron epidemic will end in North Korea in a month or two.”

A research team led by Professor Shin Young-jeon from the Department of Preventive Medicine at Hanyang University College of Medicine predicted that 70 to 80 percent of North Koreans would have to be infected with Corona 19 before the epidemic would peak. About 17.5 million people.

This is similar to the 17,78,2061 cumulative confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Korea as of 00:00 on the 15th. The total population of Korea is about 51.31 million, which is a huge number considering that it is twice that of North Korea.

Experts predict that the fatality rate of COVID-19 in North Korea will exceed 1%. If the fatality rate is calculated as 0.6%, the death toll is about 100,000. However, if the fatality rate exceeds 1%, the number of deaths increases to hundreds of thousands.

Corona 19 can be quickly suppressed through 3T (Test, Trace, Treatment) strategies such as testing, tracking, and isolation. However, it is difficult for North Korea to perform either one of them properly. There is no inspection system, and tracking is virtually impossible.

On the other hand, quarantine is possible, but it is highly likely that the health status of the confirmed person will not be considered. If the symptoms of a confirmed person worsen during the home quarantine period, they should be quickly transferred to an isolation bed in a medical institution for treatment. There is no way to find a cure in the situation in North Korea where there is no vaccine.

It is unlikely that the medical staff examining COVID-19 confirmed patients wore proper protective gear. Various medical resources are also insufficient. Given the circumstances, vaccine support to North Korea is being discussed, but the analysis is high that it is unlikely to happen. North Korea may seek help from China first and South Korea last.

Earlier this week, the government is said to be proposing a working-level contact with North Korea to discuss support for the prevention of COVID-19. However, it is unclear whether North Korea will respond to the proposal.

(Seoul = News 1)

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