LAS VEGAS (KTNV) – State and local health officials are currently reporting an increase in COVID-19 cases. While a very small number of these cases are among those who have been vaccinated, experts say we must all exercise our vigilance. Here in Clark County, there have been 92 confirmed breakthrough cases, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.
Breakthrough cases are one of several recent trends that local health officials are concerned about. For weeks, 13 Action News have been reporting on the rising number of COVID-19 cases and the rising test-positive rate in southern Nevada. Now local hospitals are seeing another surge in the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19, and the vast majority of them are unvaccinated.
13 Action News spoke to Dr. Domenic Martinello, the Chief Medical Officer of Southern Hills Hospital, where COVID-19 beds have been steadily replenished over the past few weeks. Dr. Martinello says more than 80% of COVID-19 patients at Southern Hills Hospital are not vaccinated and nearly 100% of patients in intensive care are not vaccinated. That means 20% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Southern Hills are vaccinated. Dr. Martinello says breakthrough cases are possible, but still very rare.
“It’s almost certainly, at least in part, because of the variants. But simply put, we always expect breakthrough cases. I mean, none of the vaccines are 100%. They are all from the 90s, 95%, and that’s great But that means that with enough exposure, we’re definitely going to see breakthrough cases. And it’s when we expect more breakthroughs as the level of local communities rises just because it’s just more exposures. if everyone were properly vaccinated now we would see very few breakthrough cases because the levels were just so low, “said Dr. Martinello.
Dr. Martinello went on to say that while people who have been vaccinated can become infected with COVID-19, it is still worth getting the vaccine as it offers much more protection from severe symptoms and hospitalization.
Not only does Southern Hills Hospital see more COVID-19 patients, but Dr. Martinello says they are, on average, much younger than the patients he previously treated during the pandemic. He says the mean age of COVID-19 patients in the hospital has dropped dramatically, from 53 to 41 years. And 41 is just the average age, which means there are many COVID-19 patients at Southern Hills Hospital who are under the age of 41. Dr. Martinello says the reality is that many elderly people have either died from COVID-19 or received the vaccine, while younger people have been more reluctant.
“I think a lot of older patients got infected during the first phase of COVID, your 70-, 80-, 90-year-olds. And unfortunately, many of them died, so we had a very high death rate.” Rate at this time in this age group. So many of these patients have been removed from the vulnerable population. Now we have younger people who are not vaccinated and the cities have reopened, travel has been faster than ever, with people traveling in greater numbers than we have ever seen before. And unfortunately, this only sets off a perfect storm of younger, healthier people who are tragically ill from it, “said Dr. Martinello.
Martinello believes the vaccination rate is much higher in the elderly because misinformation about the vaccine is much easier to spread among younger people, especially online. Therefore, he does not encourage anyone who has questions about the vaccine to consult their doctor or health care professional, not the Internet.
Dr. For example, Martinello says we have known for months that you develop some immunity to the virus when you get COVID-19, but generally it only lasts three to six months and only protects you from the specific strain of the virus you have entered into a contract, and there are now several variants. Even so, Dr. Martinello that many of his patients tell him they weren’t vaccinated because they thought they would be immune to COVID-19 forever after fighting it off. And he warns you don’t want to get COVID-19 a second time.
“There were very few cases that we could really study with it, but the few cases that we saw, especially at the beginning of the illness with the patient in Reno. And we saw that the second fight was a lot.” worse than the first as the first had a fairly mild first course and a much heavier second course. And the few patients we’ve seen who got it a second time have been pretty devastating, “said Dr. Martinello
Dr. Martinello says the local death rate from COVID-19 remains low, but Southern Hills Hospital is nearing critical capacity, a day they have been preparing for since the first wave of patients in 2020. He says the most frustrating part of this current surge is that these cases and hospital stays are preventable if more people were vaccinated.
“Deaths from COVID are essentially preventable at this point, it’s a choice. And the reason is because the vaccine has been shown to be highly effective. Now there are patients who still get sick easily and get the vaccinations that we expect in anyone. ”Vaccine. What prevents it is severe hospital admissions, serious illness, and death. Here in southern Nevada, the health system is taxed on it. We have more patients than we usually saw at this time of year and this is usually our slow season, the hospitals are almost at full capacity, the ambulance comes in all day every day, and with the unvaccinated patients, many of them get quite sick and land up in the hospital and it becomes very difficult for them not only the medical facilities but the nursing staff to keep up with it. You take on extra shifts, take on extra patients, and it’s exhausting and it can only hold out at this pace for so long. And what we have to do is have p people go out and get vaccinated, distance themselves, wash their hands, mask when appropriate, and help us all to help all of you, “said Dr. Martinello.
