TEHRAN (IRAN) – a government health specialist said on Saturday that around half of all coronavirus patients being treated in Iran’s intensive care units are succumbing to death. The death toll among those on ventilators is 90%.
Masoud Mardani, a specialist of infectious diseases and a member of the government coronavirus task force, told, “In all, 10% to 12% of hospitalised patients are losing their lives,”
The health ministry said the country’s coronavirus death toll had risen by 166 to 24,118.
Payam Tabarsi, head of infectious diseases at Tehran’s Masih Daneshvari Hospital, said, “People are queuing to be admitted.”
He said if the trend continues, coronavirus deaths could reach 600 a day within weeks.
Health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said Iran’s total number of confirmed cases in the last 24 hours spiked by 2,845 to 419,043.
President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday that public adherence to health protocols had a 20% decline, which contributed to the spike in infections.
Rouhani said in remarks broadcast live on state television, “Today, the health ministry gave a worrying report. The public’s observance, which was 82% in earlier weeks, has fallen to 62%.”
He said the ministry report showed infections were recurring among former patients.