Pneumonia cases in Nicaragua rise to 7,901 so far this year, 161 cases per day

SAN JOSE, February 19 (EFE) – A total of 7,901 people have been infected with pneumonia in Nicaragua so far this year, with an average of 161.2 cases per day, according to a report released by the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health in Managua on Monday. healthy.

The health department said that over the past seven days, 1,341 cases of pneumonia were registered, meaning that the number of people affected was 7% lower than the previous week.

Health authorities reported 731 cases of pneumonia in the first week of 2024, 1,270 in the second, 1,137 in the third, 1,069 in the fourth, 915 in the fifth, 1,438 in the sixth, and There were 1,341 cases in seven weeks, for a total of 7,901 cases in 49 days (excluding this Monday), according to the Ministry of Health, which did not specify the number of deaths.

In 2022, the most common cause of hospitalization was pneumonia (27,861 cases), followed by diarrhea and transmissible gastroenteritis (15,573 cases), gallbladder, bile duct and pancreatic diseases (14,804 cases) and fever suspected of dengue (12,162 cases). National Health Map, not yet updated with 2023 data.

Nicaraguan authorities have warned that low temperatures at the start of the year could lead to the spread of disease and advised people to adequately protect themselves from the cold and avoid respiratory illnesses such as influenza, laryngitis, and tonsillitis. and SARS-Cov-2 infection.

In addition, they recommend that people wear warm clothes, take vitamin C, not self-medicate, and drink plenty of fluids, among other measures.

Pneumonia is one of the top ten causes of death in Central American countries, followed by acute myocardial infarction, cancer or malignancy, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, stroke, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, traffic accidents, pneumonia and chronic ischemic heart disease. EFE

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