The myth that the coronavirus does not widely affect the youth has been debunked, though a higher number of cases has been seen among the elderly in Turkey. Professor Recep Öztürk, a member of the Health Ministry’s Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board, says this is a “misunderstood” phenomenon. “Certainly, fatalities and the severity of the disease is less among the youth, but this does not mean the number of younger patients are lower,” Öztürk told Ihlas News Agency (IHA) Wednesday.
He said the increase in the cases among the youth can be attributed to this callous mindset. “We see young people coming together for wedding parties, to watch football together and in close contact. One of their mistakes is neglecting measures, thinking the cases are less among the youth,” Öztürk warned.
Turkey on Tuesday reported 1,761 new cases and more than 1,000 recoveries. The country's overall infection count reached 283,270, according to the Health Ministry data. Around 1,093 patients recovered between Monday and Tuesday, and the total number of recoveries reached 253,245. The country reported 52 fatalities on Tuesday and the total death toll rose to 6,782.
The total number of tests, meanwhile, exceeded 7.9 million with 110,565 more tests. The number of patients in critical conditions is at 1,159. "The number of patients in critical condition continues to rise. What will stop this situation is compliance with the measures together," Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Twitter.
Öztürk says everyone should be cautious in this extraordinary period. “We have controlled lives now and have to follow the rules of social distancing, masks and hygiene,” he said. “Our cases were around the 700s in May, but they increased again after normalization. We have recently seen higher numbers in cases and fatalities. The pandemic is not over, and we witness fluctuations now,” Öztürk warned. He said that cases in Istanbul, which once made up 20% of total cases, have decreased relatively. He tied it to more people leaving the city for the holidays. “Based on caseloads in the past week, Istanbul now accounts for only around 12% of nationwide cases,” he said.
