Do you really need to cancel your Greek holiday after 'Covid spike' and a return of mask mandates - after just 205 extra cases? READ MORE: British holidaymakers heading to Greece are issued Covid warning By John Ely Deputy Health Editor For Mailonline Published: 09:18 EDT, 24 July 2024 | Updated: 09:18 EDT, 24 July 2024 e-mail View comments Holidaymakers heading to Greece in search of sea and sun have been warned to beware a new Covid variant on the rise in the holiday hotspot. But in fact the Mediterranean nation is currently faring better than Britain, official Covid data suggests. Warnings came after Greek health officials recorded a sudden 44 per cent rise in healthcare admissions for the virus as some hospitals in Athens have started reintroducing masks.
However, this 44 per cent rise only represents 205 extra hospital admissions for the nation of over 10million people. An official Greek public health report pins the rise on new so-called FLiRT variants, which have also been behind a rise in cases in the UK and US. In response to spiking cases, countries like Bulgaria have issued warnings to tourists heading to Greece to comply with 'preventive and hygienic measures' to stop the spread of disease.
Warnings came after Greek health officials recorded a sudden 44 per cent rise in cases of the virus as hospitals in Athens have started reintroducing masks This chart. from Greek health officials, shows the number of Covid admissions to hospital recorded over the previous weeks (blue bars) and also compared to last year (dotted line) Between July 8 and 14 Greece's health system recorded 669 new Covid cases admitted to hospital representing a substantial rise compared to the 464 weekly average of the previous four weeks and triple the equivalent figure for last year. In total, 26 deaths from the virus were also recorded in the Mediterranean nation, again a significant rise compared to the 17 recorded over the previous four weeks.
The rise prompted health officials to warn people more vulnerable to infections like Covid, such as the elderly, should take precautions and an eye out for symptoms so they can seek medical aid as quickly as possible. Healthy adults with potential Covid symptoms were also advised to avoid contact with these groups to limit the risk of them becoming ill. It comes as some hospitals in cities like Athens have started reintroducing anti-Covid measures like mask wearing, and both restrictions and mandatory testing for visitors.
Read More Are YOU battling a never-ending cough? It could be hidden lung disease, study shows Metaxa Oncology Hospital in Piraeus, located in the port area of Athens, is one such hospital and brought in restrictions last week due to concerns of rising cases. President of Athens and Piraeus Hospital Doctors' Association Matina Pagoni told the Greek television network MEGA: 'It’s summer, we’re going on vacation, we never said the coronavirus was gone.' She continued 'The truth is that this year, compared to last year, the cases have nothing to do with it.
There are too many, there are many hospitalisations and also deaths. 21-22 deaths are too many.' Greek health officials have also reported a rise in Covid detections in wastewater sampling in 'seven out of 10' areas checked in the country.
Medics in the country have also said they expect the current outbreak of Covid to last until July. ONS data on Covid infections today shows more than 80 per cent of Brits suffer a runny nose when infected. A loss of taste or smell — one of the original tell-tale signs of the virus — accounts for just under a fifth of all symptoms logged In response to the rise in Greek cases, Bulgaria, which shares a border issued a warning to tourists potentially heading to country.
Everything you need to know about FLiRT What is FLiRT? Virologists are using the term FLiRT to describe a family of different variants — KP.2, KP.3, JN.
1.7, JN.1.
1, and KP.1.1.
They are all descendants of the JN.1 variant that has been dominant in the UK for the past few months. That itself was dubbed Juno.
Why is it a concern? Latest UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) data shows there were 1,985 Covid cases logged in the week ending May 7, up 25 per cent on the previous seven days. The new variant is now being monitored. It makes up around 40 per cent of new cases currently.
FLiRT also accounts for roughly a quarter of new cases in the US, surveillance data suggests. Does it have any new symptoms? According to the US university John Hopkins, FLiRT doesn't appear to have any new specific symptoms. The period of infectiousness also remains the same as JN.
1 and previous Omicron variants, the institution added. Is it more deadly than other variants? There is currently no evidence that FLiRT is any more of a threat than the dozens of strains that have come before it. According to the CDC , there is no reason to believe it would also cause more severe illness than other strains.
Advertisement Its foreign ministry said: 'In this regard and considering the large number of Bulgarian citizens visiting the country during the summer period, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs recommends strict compliance with preventive and hygienic measures in the context of the spread of the disease.' Dr Mariyam Malik, an NHS and private GP at Pall Mall Medical, told The Independent that Covid was now more easily able to spread in a post-lockdown world. 'Increased travel and big events such as festivals often result in crowded settings where the virus can spread more easily, and there are no longer any legal restrictions like wearing masks or social distancing,' she said.
She added that the FLiRT variants, named so due to the acronyms given to their mutations, can potentially dodge immunity from prior-infection from older Covid strains and vaccines due to the differences. 'New variants come about because the virus naturally changes over time,' she said. The Greek health report only covers known cases of the virus where people have been admitted to hospital which means community transmission is likely to be higher.
However, Greece is seemingly faring better than the UK when it comes to Covid admissions. The latest weekly data from the UK Health Security Agency recorded 2,797 patients admitted to hospital in the week of June 28th, the most recent data available. While not directly comparable, this is four times the number of Covid admissions in the Greek report.
Britain also recorded 163 deaths where Covid was mentioned on a death certificate as of July 5, again the latest data available. This is, while again not comparable, six times greater than the the number of deaths recorded in Greece. It comes after the World Health Organization earlier this month warned that Covid hasn't gone away and was still killing an average of 1,700 people each week globally.
The global health body also warned that Covid vaccine uptake was declining amongst vulnerable groups like the elderly, as well as the healthcare workers who cared for them. Greece Share or comment on this article: Do you really need to cancel your Greek holiday after 'Covid spike' and a return of mask mandates - after just 205 extra cases? e-mail Add comment.
