SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio community on Tuesday recorded more than 700 new COVID-19 infections for the first time in more than three months as the community contends with a small uptick, but Metro Health says the local risk level remains at "low."
December has yielded an average of 381 cases a day so far, more than twice the 160 daily cases reported last month. The trend has upped the seven-day case average to 401 on Tuesday; the figure hasn't been that high since Sept. 17.
Hospitalizations have also slightly risen, though Metro Health says new admissions and case rates are still within manageable parameters. On Tuesday there were 159 coronavirus patients hospitalized in Bexar County with symptoms, which is up 37% since the start of the month.
Of those 159 patients, 28 were in intensive care and nine were using ventilators to help them breathe.
Metro Health's next no-cost, pop-up vaccine clinics are scheduled for Wednesday and Saturday. Find more information here.
More than 662,000 coronavirus infections have been reported in San Antonio since the pandemic began, while Texas recently surpassed 8 million infections. At least 5,538 Bexar County residents have died of coronavirus complications.
How Bexar County is trending
Vaccine progress in Bexar County
The following numbers are provided by San Antonio Metro Health. A full breakdown can be found here.
- 1,492,181 eligible Bexar County residents are fully vaccinated as of Dec. 5, which amounts to more than 75% of the total population over 6 months old.
- 168,054 eligible Bexar County residents have received a COVID-19 bivalent booster shot as of Dec. 5, which amounts to more then 9% percent of the population over 4 years old.
The CDC states that "when a high percentage of the community is immune to a disease (through vaccination and/or prior illness)," that community will have reached herd immunity, "making the spread of this disease from person to person unlikely."
The City of San Antonio breaks down the vaccination rates by zip code on Metro Health's Vaccination Statistics page.
Coronavirus in Texas
The Texas Department of State Health Services has transitioned to weekly COVID-19 reports, with new data arriving every Wednesday.
For the week of Dec. 1 to Dec. 7, the state reported 5,675 cases; that total includes 2,730 new confirmed cases and 2,945 new probable cases. More details can be found on this page.
Those figures bring the total number of Texans diagnosed with COVID-19 to more than 8.02 million.
Meanwhile, 81 additional virus-related deaths were reported for that week in Texas. The statewide death toll stands at 89,915.
Coronavirus symptoms
The symptoms of coronavirus can be similar to the flu or a bad cold. Symptoms include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Most healthy people will have mild symptoms. A study of more than 72,000 patients by the Centers for Disease Control in China showed 80 percent of the cases there were mild.
But infections can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure, and even death, according to the World Health Organization. Older people with underlying health conditions are most at risk.
Experts determined there was consistent evidence these conditions increase a person's risk, regardless of age:
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Obesity (BMI of 30 or higher)
- Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant
- Serious heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes
- The CDC believes symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 14 days after being exposed.
Human coronaviruses are usually spread...
- Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet).
- Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.
- Some recent studies have suggested that COVID-19 may be spread by people who are not showing symptoms.
Help stop the spread of coronavirus
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Eat and sleep separately from your family members
- Use different utensils and dishes
- Cover your cough or sneeze with your arm, not your hand.
- If you use a tissue, throw it in the trash.
Find a testing location
City officials recommend getting a COVID-19 test if you experience fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, or diarrhea.
Here's a Testing Sites Locator to help you find the testing location closest to you in San Antonio.