More than half a billion SARS-CoV-2 infections have been detected worldwide since the start of the pandemic. This is more than the population of the entire European Union. The greatest increase in new infections occurred at the turn of 2021 and 2022, when the extremely infectious variant of Omikron spread. There were as many as 4 million cases a day at that time.
- SARS-CoV-2 was first detected in December 2019 in China. For 1,5 months, it was theoretically detained within the borders of the Middle Kingdom – the first reported foreign cases fall in the second half of January 2020.
- During the first year of the pandemic, more than 80 million cases of coronavirus infection were reported. The balance of the next (2021) is over 207 million subsequent infections
- Omikron caused more cases in just one quarter than previous variants in the 17 months of the pandemic
- The United States has had the highest number of infections so far. The country in the second ranking (India) has half as many
- Three countries and two dependent territories have not yet reported any case of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Among them is the country of 25 million in Asia
- According to data collected in the Wordometers.info database, on April 12, 2022, the barrier of 500 million coronavirus infections was exceeded
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
From several hundred to several million a day
Officially, the first case of coronavirus infection took place on December 1, 2019 in Chinese Wuhan. However, it is more than certain that Human-to-human transmission of the virus started earlier – in November, according to some sources, and more precisely: between mid-October and mid-November 2019.
For over a month and a half, it seemed that SARS-CoV-2 would not cross China’s borders – until January 21, no country in the world had officially reported a case of coronavirus infection. However, when it was confirmed that the virus was also present in other countries (Japan, Thailand and South Korea), nothing could stop its transmission. In just four days, the number of infections increased from 282 cases (278 of which in the Middle Kingdom alone) to 1320. On the last day of January, the coronavirus was already present in 20 countries, detected in 9826 people.
On the eve of the announcement by the World Health Organization (WHO) of the COVID-19 pandemic (March 11, 2020), over 113 were reported worldwide. infections, and the coronavirus has reached 109 countries, including Poland.
Successive spikes in the disease were closely related to the waves of infections caused by particular variants of SARS-CoV-2. This is clearly seen when we compare the number of infections on a monthly basis on a global scale. While in the first period of the pandemic (from spring to early autumn), the monthly increase in new cases was at the level of several million (2,8 million between April and May 2020 and 8,4 million between August and September this year), already from the end of October to the end of November 2020, there were as many as 16,9 million infections. The last day of the year is the balance of 81,4 million infections, and on January 31, 2021, there were already 102 million.
The wave of infections caused by the Omikron variant had the greatest increase in the incidence. At the time it appeared (it was first identified in mid-November 2021), over 252 million cases have been recorded worldwide (data from WHO). Within three months, this number has risen to almost 409 million. This means that Omicron (with little Delta ‘support’) caused 157 million infections in one quarter – more than the previous variants in the first 17 months of the pandemic.
On April 12, 2022, the global number of coronavirus infections exceeded half a billion. At 6.30 am it was 500 million 043 thousand. 851 cases.
It’s worth mentioning that this number, although dizzying, is probably still greatly underestimated. The reason is the differences in reporting new infections between countries, but most of all the number of tests performed, the results of which were entered into national records. This is especially important today, when many countries, including Poland, have moved away from mass and free testing (no COVID-19 diagnosis means “no” new cases). When we take the amendment to the huge (and at the same time impossible to determine) number of rapid antigen tests performed privately and at home and untested cases at all (asymptomatic and symptomatic), it is very likely that the global number of COVID-19 infections is already at least one billion.
The rest of the text below the video.
The country most experienced in terms of contamination is the United States. So far, over 82 million infections have been detected here – No other country has even come close to this number. In second place, India reported almost half as much – 43 million, and Brazil in third – 30 million infections. So far, over 5,9 million infections have been recorded in Poland, which puts our country on the 19th place in the global ranking.
Interestingly, China – the most populous country in the world (1,4 trillion inhabitants) and at the same time the country where the pandemic had its source – is only on … 114th position. According to government data, “only” 161 people were registered there. SARS-CoV-2 virus infections, a large proportion of which has been reported in the last month.
- See also: Another infection record in China. What’s going on there?
Such a good result of the Middle Kingdom is the result of the introduction of the “zero covid” policy, consisting in mass testing and strict isolation of the infected and contact persons. This strategy worked until March this year, when Omikron “made himself at home” in China. From the level of several dozen cases a day nationwide, the chart shot out, exceeding the limit of 25 thousand. infections every day.
It is worth noting that there are dependent countries and territories that have not yet reported a single case of coronavirus infection. This is North Korea (population: 25,6 million), Turkmenistan (6 million), Tuvalu (Oceania, 10,5 thousand inhabitants), as well as Tokelau (Oceania), which is a dependent territory of New Zealand (1,5 thousand people live there. people) and Pitcairn Islands (also Oceania) – an overseas territory of Great Britain, where 47 people live.
Co dalej?
After the Omicron wave had passed through most countries, it seemed as if the coronavirus had finally given up. A large proportion of the population has gained immunity – some by vaccination against COVID-19, others by getting sick, and others by vaccinating and getting sick (in a different order). The Omikron variant, although more infectious than its predecessors, turned out to be milder in most cases (especially in vaccinated people), and the infection did not require hospitalization so often. It also resulted in a decrease in the number of deaths.
There was enthusiasm in many parts of the world. Some governments very quickly announced the beginning of lifting restrictions and within a few weeks, many countries, including European ones, almost came back to life from before the pandemic. The last applicable restrictions were also lifted in Poland – at this point there is no obligation to isolate oneself due to coronavirus infection or to wear protective masks in public places.
- Read also: We don’t have to wear masks anymore. According to doctors, this is a mistake
Unfortunately, this decision turned out to be probably premature. Omikron continues to infect, and in the meantime it has split on the podlane, one of which – BA.2 – is significantly out of the way and is starting to dominate even the original variant. This sub-variant is even more infectious than Omikron itself, which, combined with the abandonment of sanitary and epidemiological rules, has led many countries to record rapid and often record increases in infections in recent times. This is what happens, among others in Germany, where the highest incidence has occurred since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Why did BA.2 dominate the world? Experts point out three phenomena
Have you been infected with COVID-19 and are worried about the side effects? Check your health by completing a comprehensive research package for convalescents.
What else awaits us? Epidemiologists want to answer this question less and less, because new variants of the coronavirus surprise even virologists. Not every new variant is dangerous, not everyone is more infectious than its predecessor, and not everyone will survive in nature and cause another wave of infection.
However, what will happen is so difficult to predict that it is impossible to even suggest that 500 million infections is the last record that COVID-19 has prepared for us. May we not have the opportunity (quickly) to find out just how close to an unimaginable billion cases we are today.
We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time we devote it to the problems of the perineum – a part of the body just like any other. And although it concerns all of us, it is still a taboo subject that we are often ashamed to talk about. What do hormonal changes and natural births change? How not to harm the pelvic floor muscles and how to care for them? How do we talk about perineal problems with our daughters? About this and many other aspects of the problem in a new episode of the podcast.
You may be interested in:
- POTS is becoming more frequent. This complication from COVID-19 surprised doctors
- New complications have been discovered after COVID-19. “We don’t want to hear about it, but it’s important”
- How does COVID-19 affect the brain? Scientists surprised by the discoveries