On Monday 18 May, the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) reported 33 more coronavirus (koronavirus, in Finnish) infections. With them, the total number of laboratory-diagnosed cases rose to 6,380.
Of the 33 new cases recorded, 28 have been detected in the Helsinki region.
The health agency also reported 2 more deaths associated with the disease, bringing the total number of fatalities in Finland to 300.
The region of Helsinki-Uusimaa remains the epicenter and worst-hit area. According to official figures, to date, 4,592 cases of Covid-19 have been found in the capital metropolitan area. Of them, 2,379 have been diagnosed in the city of Helsinki.
New deaths in Helsinki
To date, the Helsinki university hospital special catchment area (HYKS) reported 246 fatalities (82% of the country's total). This means four out of every five deaths caused by coronavirus have occurred in the Helsinki hospital area.
The 2 deaths reported on Monday occurred in the capital region, according to figures by THL.
Source: THL.
Helsinki-Uusimaa is also the region showing the highest incidence of infections: there are 272.4 diagnosed cases per 100,000 inhabitants. This rate grows slightly everyday.
For the whole country, the average incidence rate is less than half that in Helsinki: 115 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to THL.
In intensive care
On Monday, the official number of patients hospitalized due to coronavirus nationwide was 117, slightly lower compared to the day before (118). And the number of people in intensive care units was 34, which is 5 more than on Sunday.
According to a preliminary estimate by THL, there are at least 5,000 people who may have already recovered from the disease.
To date, Finnish laboratories have taken samples from approximately 149 700 people.
