At the Wednesday online press conference of the Operational Group responsible for the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, the Chief Medical Officer drew attention to the rise in the number of coronavirus fatalities and a fall in the average age of the deceased.

The number of fatalities is on the rise. Between the beginning of the epidemic and 4 October, 833 persons died in connection with coronavirus infection. Most fatalities occurred between 13 and 19 April, with the number totalling at 90, Cecília Müller said.

In the past few weeks, the daily number of fatalities of around ten has increased. Last week, the number of the deceased was between 6 and 16. During week 36 ten people died, during week 39 as many as 65, while during week 40 the number of fatalities reached 76, she added.

At the beginning of the pandemic, the average age of the deceased was 76.4 years, while in week 40 it fell to 72.6 years. Up to week 40, the youngest deceased was aged 30, while the eldest 103, Ms. Müller reported. She said the average age of the deceased is clearly falling, even if only minimally. Their percentage is the highest in Budapest where the highest numbers of infections have been registered, she added.

The Chief Medical Officer said 52 of the 833 persons who have died so far had no underlying conditions; in their case, coronavirus infection was the only disease. Over the age of seventy, women account for a higher fatality rate, while below seventy men do. She said on Tuesday a woman aged 21 died. She had a positive coronavirus test; however, experts do not believe that she died of the infection. She lost her life in consequence of a rapidly progressive disease, she added.

In Hungary coronavirus statistics include all fatalities which involve persons diagnosed with coronavirus infection, Ms. Müller pointed out. The raw fatality rate – which indicates the percentage of persons who die out of all positive cases – is 2.6 per cent. Yesterday, the number of confirmed infections increased by 816 and 24 persons died. In Hungary, there are 23,088 active patients with 656 of them requiring hospitalisation, including 41 requiring assisted ventilation. The number of coronavirus tests performed so far stands at 781,023, she said.

The eldest patient among Tuesday’s fatalities was aged 89. Two thirds of them suffered from cardiovascular diseases, while one third from metabolic conditions. These ratios are similar to the percentages of the occurrence of these diseases in Hungary, she observed.

Outlining the data of EuroMOMO (European Mortality Monitoring Project) publishing mortality data for 24 European countries, she said in Hungary there were minimal excess deaths only during week 30, during a heatwave in July which can be observed every summer. In the 24 countries, the number of fatalities increased between weeks 21 and 25; Hungary did not register a rise during the same period.

“For the time being, in Hungary we have not yet measured any excess deaths due to the pandemic,” she stated. In answer to a question, she said the latest epidemic data warrants the involvement of further laboratories in testing. There were some hospital laboratories which previously only tested their own patients; they will now join the ranks of participating laboratories, Ms. Müller said, adding that on Tuesday they designated another two laboratories, and the involvement of a high-capacity laboratory in testing is also under way.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)