The Ministry of Health has recorded 49 new confirmed cases and 22 new probable cases of coronavirus COVID-19 in New Zealand, taking the country's total to 868.
There continues to be a strong link to overseas travel (49 percent of cases) and confirmed cases in New Zealand (33 percent). Community transmission is recorded at 1 percent. A further 17 percent are being investigated. Many of those are expected to be community transmission.
There have been no new deaths while 103 people have recovered. Thirteen people are in hospital, with one person in ICU. All are stable.
The Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield confirmed what the definition of a recovered case is. He said for someone to be called recovered, there must have been at least 10 days since the onset of symptoms and at least 48 hours since the symptoms went away.
Dr Bloomfield said there have been just over 2000 tests per day on average over the last week. More than 29,400 tests have been conducted to date. On Thursday, 3446 were processed.
There are now 10 significant clusters, meaning those with more than 10 people in them. They are located in Napier, Wellington, Hamilton, Auckland, Bluff, Matamata, and Waitakere. The three biggest are linked to Marist College (59), a wedding at Bluff (53) and the Matamata bar (49).
Ambulance staff would not perform CPR on a confirmed COVID-19 case, Dr Bloomfield said.
He confirmed 300 people arrived into New Zealand on Thursday, a dramatic drop from normal levels. They were all New Zealanders returning to the country.
Dr Bloomfield also addressed how transmission occurs and said that people can be contagious for 1-3 days before they develop symptoms. People still can only contract the disease through infectious droplets or contaminated surfaces.
He said there are very few cases of confirmed asymptomatic cases, where someone has COVID-19, but doesn't develop symptoms. There are few documented cases of truly asymptomatic cases and no cases of asymptomatic people transmitting the illness, he said.
While the virus' incubation period is 14 days, the latest World Health Organization advice suggests the average time between being exposed to the virus and developing symptoms is five to six days.
New Zealand is in its ninth day of a four-week nationwide lockdown, an intense measure introduced by the Government as a means of reducing people's contact and therefore potential exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Despite the lockdown, officials have warned that numbers are likely to continue climbing for the next week. This is because people who may have contracted the virus just before the restrictions came into effect may not show symptoms and get tested until midway through the lockdown.
Dr Bloomfield confirmed on Thursday that the country wasn't yet flattening the curve of COVID-19. It's possible that if community transmission of the illness continues during the lockdown period the restrictions may be extended either nationally or in regions where transmission is widespread. The official criteria to trigger reducing the alert level and removing restrictions may be announced on Saturday.
What we know about coronavirus
The World Health Organization (WHO) was first notified of cases of the virus SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) in Wuhan, China on December 31. It was identified as a coronavirus on January 7 and can spread via human-to-human transmission. It causes the coronavirus COVID-19 illness.
The virus is primarily spread through droplets in the air after someone sneezes or coughs, however, it can also be contracted by touching surfaces where the illness is present. The length of time the virus stays alive on surfaces isn't fully understood, but some studies have suggested that on some materials it could be for days.
"Common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death," the WHO says.
"Standard recommendations to prevent infection spread include regular hand washing, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs. Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing."
There is currently no vaccine for the sickness.
Modelling presented to the New Zealand Government showed up to 14,400 people could die of the virus if no significant action was taken.
Several papers from both New Zealand and overseas have suggested that intensive measures may be required until a vaccine is developed, which is between a year and 18 months away.
"The major challenge of suppression is that this type of intensive intervention package - or something equivalently effective at reducing transmission - will need to be maintained until a vaccine becomes available (potentially 18 months or more) - given that we predict that transmission will quickly rebound if interventions are relaxed," a paper from the Imperial College of London says.
Unless the virus is eliminated from the country or vaccinated against, relaxing the lockdown may lead to another spike in cases, which if not properly managed with the ramping up of restrictions, could overwhelm the health system.
New Zealand's first virus-related death was announced on Sunday. Greymouth woman Anne Guenole, aged in her 70s, returned a positive test for COVID-19 after initially being diagnosed with influenza, complicated by an underlying health condition.
How can I protect myself?
- avoid touching the mouth, nose and eyes with unwashed hands
- washing your hands before eating
- carrying a hand sanitiser at all times
- being particularly mindful of touching your face after using public transport or going to the airport
- carry tissues at all times to cover the mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing (then dispose of it)
- not eating shared or communal food
- avoiding shaking hands, kissing cheeks
- regularly cleaning and sanitise commonly used surfaces and items, such as phones and keys
- avoiding close contact with people suffering from or showing symptoms of acute respiratory infection
- seeking medical attention if you feel unwell.
