"The fact that no new cases have appeared in seven days is a very good sign, because we are in the middle of an expansive phase." This is how the head of the Epidemiology and Prevention Service of the Government of the Canary Islands, Amós García, has assessed the situation in Lanzarote. However, he has also insisted that this does not mean that new cases may not appear in the coming days, as the incubation period of the disease can last up to three weeks.
In addition, he has insisted that the important thing is not so much the number, but the rate that is recorded in each area according to the number of inhabitants. "Whether it's three, seven, eight, or ten is anecdotal, because today there may be three, but tomorrow there may be ten. What we have to avoid is that three become 50, 60, or 70," he stressed. He also responded in this way when asked about what happened with the data provided by the Ministry, which on Tuesday reported seven positives on the island and then reduced them back to three, upon receiving the results of the second test carried out in Madrid, which ended up ruling out four of the cases.
When asked about the rectification of that figure, the head of Epidemiology began by pointing to a possible "administrative error", a "mistake in the transcription" of the results, although he later stressed that he does not directly handle the issue of the analyses and that he is unaware of what happened in this case. "If the Ministry has reported that they are false positives, I imagine that's what it was," he said. In any case, he pointed out that "it is not frequent" that there are so many "false positives", in percentage terms, because "the tests are quite accurate."
"A microbiologist would have to quantify it, but I suppose that very specific circumstances must have occurred. It may be that those cases had some low viral load," he added to find an explanation for those false positives that the first tests carried out in Lanzarote showed, which are then completed with a second test carried out in Madrid. What he has affirmed is that he is "sure" that those tests were done "well" on the island and that "there is no problem with the materials."
Increase the number of tests that are carried out
Regarding the number of tests that are being done in the Canary Islands, the head of Epidemiology has acknowledged that he "would like there to be more", and hopes that this will increase in the coming days. "To do more tests, you have to have the material to do them," he said, recalling that this has been a problem throughout Spain, which has suffered supply problems in some communities.
As for the Canary Islands, he affirms that he has always had material to do the tests, but it has been destined for the most serious cases, as well as for especially vulnerable people - due to age or previous pathologies - and for healthcare personnel. Now, with the arrival of the new kits that have been announced, it is expected to expand the number of tests, both in the archipelago and in the rest of the communities, also complying with the warning that the World Health Organization made to Spain.
Canary Islands, with the lowest rate in Spain
Regarding the situation in the archipelago as a whole, Amós García has highlighted that the Canary Islands is the community with the fewest cases per inhabitant, despite the number of tourists it received until air traffic was restricted. "That is very important because by having few cases, you can study them perfectly. See how they have been infected, study the contacts, and trace the cases. That is essential to control the expansion," he stressed, especially with regard to islands like Lanzarote.
In addition, he recalled that the first case in Spain was known in La Gomera. "It was on a peripheral island and it was treated there. It was not taken anywhere else. I think that is significant and we must highlight the professionalism of our people, of our healthcare personnel, and the ability to assume this type of situation in the seven islands," he stressed. In fact, that first patient from La Gomera has already been discharged and subsequently only two other cases have emerged on that island, which has not registered new positives in recent days.
However, the head of Epidemiology has insisted that we must be prepared because the cases will continue to rise in the Canary Islands. "Little by little and not as explosively as in the Peninsula, but they will continue to rise," he warned.
Regarding the time that the measures adopted after the declaration of the state of alarm may last, he has taken for granted that the confinement will have to be extended beyond the two weeks initially established. In this regard, he has specified that the impact of these measures can be assessed after three or four weeks. "If there are no new infections then, it means that it has gone well and that the measures have been correct," he said. For this reason, he has once again asked for an "exercise of responsibility on the part of the citizens" to comply with the established measures and "stay at home, because today it is the only vaccine we have against Covid-19".
