BAHRAIN has witnessed a sharp increase in the number of travel-related cases of the coronavirus (Covid-19) in the past six months compared with same period before, revealed Health Ministry statistics.
From July 22 to September 1, the country recorded 689 cases among people who travelled, accounting for 15 per cent of the 4,537 total.
However, from June 10 to July 22, only 306 cases were registered, accounting for just 2.3pc of the 13,172 total cases.
The numbers had declined in May which reported high rates in all parameters of the infection including the highest-ever daily cases of 3,274 on May 29.
However, 369 travel-related cases in May accounted for just .52pc of the total 70,237 cases. The highest number of cases in the category was during May 6 to 12, which recorded 119 cases. However, this was pushed behind during June 29 to August 4 when 122 travel-related cases were recorded.
Health Ministry’s family physician Dr Hind Al Sindi said the increase was expected, and insignificant.
“The slight and insignificant rise in cases among travellers, was well anticipated which puts in perspective Team Bahrain’s proactive strategy of revising the PCR tests protocols for arriving passengers.
The National Taskforce for Combating the Coronavirus has re-introduced three mandatory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for passengers arriving at Bahrain International Airport from August 29.
The Civil Aviation Affairs announced that all passengers aged above six have to undergo PCR tests on the first, fifth and 10th day of their arrival in the kingdom.
“This helps in early detection, isolation and curbing further transmission, while other measures like quarantine for non-vaccinated children and mandatory quarantine for people coming from red-list countries are also helpful,” added Dr Al Sindi.
American Mission Hospital senior medic and Covid-19 task force head Dr Rama Krishna told the GDN that the tests would help curb infection and also aid in the early detection of new cases.
“The numbers are alarming; people are travelling more now with the airline industry also relaxing some of the restrictions,” she said.
“But this also means we might see more cases. In this scenario the recent change of re-introducing three PCR tests for arrivals is significant which can help in early detection of new cases.”
Bahrain has never shut its airport despite imposing Covid-19 restrictions and had flights from different countries including the red-listed ones were operating, flying in people under select categories including residents and citizens.
The GDN reported last week that the country witnessed a dominance of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in May and June this year.
As per a local study, ‘Morbidity and mortality from Covid-19 post-vaccination breakthrough infections in association with various Covid-19 vaccines and the emergence of variants in Bahrain’, published in Research Square, 50pc of the cases in the country were due to the Delta variant by May 1 this year.
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