A record in Khuzestan; 70% of deaths from coronavirus occurred within less than 24 hours of visiting the hospital

As concerns mount about a new, more contagious strain of the coronavirus in Iran, officials are reporting that patients are being treated late. In Khuzestan province, 70 percent of deaths were reported to have occurred in patients who had been hospitalized for less than 24 hours.

Farhad Abolnejad, the president of Ahvaz Jundishapour University, said in a television interview: "The number of deaths is high compared to intubated patients. When we investigated the issue, we found that less than a third of critically ill patients were hospitalized for less than 24 hours and died, and of these, 70 percent were intubated or died upon arrival at the emergency room."

The president of Ahvaz Jundishapour University of Medical Sciences said: "These statistics show that people are late in coming to the hospital or are not taking the symptoms seriously. Yesterday, nearly 50 percent of the patients I visited were infected with the coronavirus."

Authorities had previously warned of a critical coronavirus situation in Khuzestan province. Twelve cities in the province are in red.

The spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Health announced on Thursday, March 4, the identification of 8,404 new cases of coronavirus and the death of 78 more people due to coronavirus in the past 24 hours. The official total number of people infected with coronavirus to date is 1,665,103, and a total of 60,431 people have died from the disease. The official statistics of China, Russia, and Iran cannot be verified by independent experts and cannot be considered reliable and final. In addition, with the order of the Leader of the Islamic Republic banning the use of American and British coronavirus vaccines, there is no clear prospect for mass vaccination in Iran.

Source: Voice of America