‘One COVID patient can infect four’: J&K’s R-factor highest, touches alarming 1.4

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Srinagar: A new study conducted by the Union ministry of health and family welfare (MoHFW) has revealed that Jammu and Kashmir has the highest Reproductive Number for COVID-19.

Reproductive Number (R0) known as R-factor or R-value is the average number of new infections generated by one infected individual during the entire infectious period. Whenever this number is at more than one, this means that the case trajectory is increasing and experts claim it needs to be brought under control.

As per the study, there are eight states where the value of Reproductive Number for the Covid-19 exceeds 1.

At 1.4, Jammu and Kashmir has recorded a high Reproductive Number for COVID-19, which means an infected person can transmit the virus to four individuals.

The other six states where the Reproductive Number value of COVID-19 has been higher are Lakshadweep (1.3), Tamil Nadu (1.2), Mizoram (1.2), Karnataka (1.2), Puducherry (1.1), and Kerala(1.1).

Jammu and Kashmir is currently witnessing a recovered rate of 98.2 percent with an average of more than 100 news infections a day.

In Jammu and Kashmir, as many as 321865 people have tested for COVID-19. Of whom 316188 have recovered. 4384 people have died due to the disease.

A total of 6424876 above the age of 18 years have been immunized with 99.50 percent coverage of above 45 years old.

India’s cumulative covid-19 vaccination coverage has crossed 48 crore on Tuesday. The number of vaccine doses administered in July is double than the preceding month.

Doctors claim that adoption of Covid appropriate behavior could only bring down the R-factor.

“The rising trend of R0 should warn us to stick to distancing, vaccination, desist from overcrowding, good ventilation, good air exchanges, and above all strict usage of masks till pandemic ebbs. Delta variant has a higher R0 than the original Wuhan variant or alpha or beta variants. It is also important to mention here that R0 increases with new mutation and strains,” said Dr. Aijaz Nabi Koul, head of the Infectious Diseases unit SKIMS said.

“In pandemics to keep the pace of pandemic under check, R0 is brought below 1 by various Contingency methods. It enables us to not allow hotspots to develop,” he added.

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