First week of 2022, same level of infections as last year in Hidalgo

José Aurelio Granados Alcantar
Ph.D. in Regional Development and Territorial Planning

According to official data, from January 2 to 8, 1,731 cases of coronavirus were reported in Hidalgo, an increase of almost five times more than the previous week, from December 26 to January 1, when 359 cases were reported. This figure is almost similar to the week of January 3-9, 2021, when 1,635 cases were reported, i.e. the level of infections is the same as a year ago. If the trend continues, the peak of the second wave of infection would be surpassed in the week 9 to 15, and in the following week we would be at the levels of the third wave (see Figure 1).

With these figures, it is expected that the peak of this fourth wave of transmission will be during the first week of February. Deaths so far are low, eight deaths were recorded this week, but this number will undoubtedly rise in the coming days.

On the other hand, hospitalization figures are beginning to increase, not with the same speed as the number of infections, but more slowly, but they are increasing. The percentage of occupancy of general hospital beds on December 26 was 7.56%, by January 8 it was already at 23.66%; the occupancy of beds with ventilator went from 2.97% to 7.60% on the same dates; and in the same period, the percentage of occupancy of beds with ventilator in intensive care went from zero to 15.38%.

This second week of January the trend of these indicators will be key because if there is not a considerable increase, it will be verified if the same thing happens in Hidalgo as in the rest of the world, a great increase in cases but not in hospitalizations or deaths.

Finally, almost half of the 1,881 active cases reported last Saturday, January 8, were concentrated in the Metropolitan Zone of the capital, since the municipality of Pachuca reported 572 active cases, 251 in Mineral de la Reforma and 54 in Zempoala. Other municipalities with significant transmission are Tulancingo with 206 cases, Tizayuca with 169, Tepeji with 98 cases and Tula de Allende with 63.