Fewer new cases, but number of patients under treatment on the rise

Vadodara: While the number of new Covid-19 cases may have seen a decline, the number of active cases – both in hospitals or home isolation – has been on the rise consistently. At the other end, the number of patients on oxygen support and BIPAP machines or ventilators went down significantly.
Since September 20, the number of new cases reported daily has shown a southward trend from 135 cases on September 19, the new cases came down to 112 on Friday. At the other end, the number of patients under treatment went up almost consistently.
On September 19, there were 1,422 active cases and on Friday these stood at 1,778.
The trend has perplexed many even as sources in hospitals as well as the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) claim that the number of hospitalised patients has gone down significantly. A source said that there was possibility of some discrepancy in the data of Covid-19 cases that were being treated at home or were in home isolation. Otherwise, there was no explanation for the number of active cases remaining high despite numbers in hospitals going down.
A VMC official said that the data was not alarming as it was evident that whoever was at home was either asymptomatic or with mild symptoms. “We hope that even these numbers will start reducing gradually,” said the official.