[UPDATED] M’sia records fewer new Covid-19 cases today at 4,774 

KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s daily caseload saw a slight decrease, with 4,774 new infections today, said Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah in a statement today. 

The health director-general noted that this brings the cumulative number of cases to 2,870,758. 

Today’s caseload shows a decline from yesterday’s recorded cases of 4,915.

He added that of the new cases reported today, 114 are in intensive care units (ICUs), while 62 of them require respiratory assistance. 

“Among the 4,774 cases recorded today, 36 (0.8%) involved patients in Categories 3, 4, and 5, while 4,738 (99.2%) involved patients in Categories 1 and 2,” he said. 

The nation has seen a total of 6,427 clusters since the beginning of the pandemic, including 14 new clusters detected today. 

The number of clusters that have ended is at 6,113 while 314 remain active.

While the nation records a national Covid-19 infectivity rate (Rt) of 1.14, the statement noted that Perlis registered the highest rate at an Rt of 1.25. 

Malaysia also recorded an increasing trend in new Covid-19 cases for the fourth epidemiological week (ME 4/2022) from January 23 to 29. 

The health director-general said the number of new cases rose by 34.6% from 23,752 cases in ME 3/2022 (January 16 to 22) to 31,980 cases in ME 4/2022.

“The average number of active cases also increased by 14.0% from 40,473 cases (ME 2/2022) to 46,158 cases.

“However, the number of deaths showed a consistent drop of 27.5%, with 74 deaths in ME 4/2022 compared with 102 in ME 3/2022. This drop was recorded beginning ME 52/2021,” Dr Noor Hisham said. 

He said cases requiring treatment in ICUs also recorded a decline of 15.5% to 109 cases (ME 4/2022) from 129 cases in the previous epidemiological week.

Besides that, cases requiring respiratory assistance saw a drop by 11.5% to 46 cases from 52 cases (ME 3/2022) and has been on the declining trend for the past 23 weeks, while the average infectivity rate or R-naught increased by 10.9% from 1.01 (ME 3/2022) to 1.12 (ME 4/2022).

He added that 106 new clusters were reported in ME 4/2022, of which 81 were sourced from educational institutions, 19 from workplaces, four from communities, and two from high-risk groups. 

“Regarding the increase of clusters in educational institutions, the Health Ministry and other relevant agencies are constantly updating standard operating procedures to ensure the learning process can be conducted smoothly,” he said.

The health director-general ended his statement with a Chinese New Year greeting, along with a reminder for those celebrating to practice precautionary measures such as wearing face masks, employing physical distance measures, and gathering in small groups. – The Vibes, January 31, 2022