The Acadiana region is continuing to be a trendsetter, with a seven-day COVID-19 test positivity rate more than twice the state average, according to data released this week.

That comes as the state’s number of new infections appears to have plateaued, staying well below the numbers seen during the pandemic’s peaks — but not disappearing, either.

The latest data from the Louisiana Department of Health showed the state with 544 new cases Friday after 23,044 reported tests. That puts the rough positivity rate at 2.4 percent.

The new cases pushed the state’s total of identified cases to 455,541. Of the overall identified cases, 387,307 are confirmed, with 68,234 listed as possible cases.

According to an LDH spokesman, people initially identified as having a positive antigen test who are later identified as having a positive confirmatory test will be removed from the possible case count and added to the cumulative case count.

Louisiana had 10,336 total COVID-19 deaths as of Friday, with 12 new deaths added. Of the total deaths, 9,433 are confirmed COVID-19 deaths, with 903 considered probable COVID-19 fatalities pending final testing.

The average age of fatal patients remained at 75, while the median age was at 76 as of April 21.

Local numbers

In Iberia Parish, the number of cases rose to 6,896 Friday, an increase of seven. Of those, 6,281 are confirmed, with 615 probable. The number of deaths remained at 152, with 138 confirmed and 14 probable. There have been 93,317 tests performed in the parish. The seven-day average test positivity rose by 61.4 percent, from 5.7 percent on April 7 to 9.2 percent on April 14. The incidence of tests rose by 14.3 percent, from 88.8 per 10,000 population on April 7 to 101.49 on April 14.

St. Martin Parish’s number of identified cases rose by 14, to 5,170, with 65,052 tests performed. The seven-day average test positivity rate rose from 8.3 percent on April 7 to 10.5 percent on April 14, a 26.5 percent increase, while the testing incidence rate per 10,000 population rose 25.6 percent, from 80.2 on April 7 to 100.7 on April 14. The number of deaths rose by one, to 116, with 105 confirmed and 11 probable.

In St. Mary Parish, the seven-day positivity rate dropped to 3.2 percent as of April 14, down from 4.3 percent on April 7, a 25.6 percent decrease. The testing incidence rate per 10,000 population fell, from 102.5 on April 7 to 74.3 on April 7, a 27.5 percent decrease. Total cases Friday rose to 4,628, an increase of two after 58,385 tests. Of those positive tests, 3,618 are confirmed, with 1,010 probable. The number of COVID-19 deaths remained at 134, with 117 confirmed and 17 probable.

Around the state

In Lafayette Parish, the Friday case count rose to 22,975, an increase of 20, with the number of tests rising to 326,271. The seven-day test positivity average rose to 7.2 percent as of April 14, up 75.6 percent from 4.1 percent on April 7. The testing incidence rate per 10,000 population rose during the same period, from 63.8 on April 7 to 96 on April 14, a 50.3 percent increase. The number of deaths rose by one, to 274, with 253 confirmed and 21 probable.

The number of cases in Jefferson Parish rose to 45,695 on Tuesday, compared to an increase to 29,721 in Orleans Parish. The latest data shows Orleans administered more tests, with 916,683, compared to 641,860 tests in Jefferson.

Jefferson Parish continues to surpass the COVID-19 death toll in Orleans Parish. Orleans Parish deaths remained at 789, with 736 confirmed and 53 probable. In Jefferson Parish, the total number of deaths rose to 888, with 846 confirmed and 42 probable.

Hospitalizations

The LDH report showed hospitalizations statewide due to coronavirus infections dropped to 330 on Thursday, down four from 334 on Wednesday. The number of patients on ventilators rose by six, to 47.

The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in Region 4, which covers Acadiana, dropped by one, to 67 Thursday. The number of patients on ventilators rose by one, to eight.

Overall hospital bed occupancy in Region 4 Thursday rose to 71.3 percent, with 1,222 of the region’s beds occupied and 493 available. The total number of reported beds was at 1,715.

Overall intensive care unit occupancy across Acadiana was at 82.4 percent Thursday, with 131 of 159 beds occupied.

The overall occupancy percentages are based on all cases, not just COVID-19 cases, and includes not only the physical bed and space but also the staff required to issue care. The burden of additional patient load affects the ability of hospitals to serve all patients, especially in critical care situations.

By age group

Broken down by age group, the number of cases statewide in the 18 to 29 demographic was at 93,311 Friday. It is the demographic group with the largest number of identified cases by far. The number of deaths reported in the group was 34.

The number of COVID-19 cases identified in the 30 to 39 age group was at 73,377, with 132 deaths, followed closely by the 40 to 49 age group, with 66,331 cases and 304 deaths, and the 50 to 59 age range with 65,369 cases, including 882 fatalities reported.

In the 60 to 69 age group, there were 51,976 cases reported and 1,965 deaths. This age group has the second-highest number of deaths, behind only the 70 and above demographic group.

The 70 and above group case count was at 46,011. The number of deaths in that group rose to 7,012 — still the largest number of fatalities for any age group by far, more than the number of deaths in all other groups combined and more than two-thirds of the total COVID-19 attributed deaths in the state.

The under 18 group had 58,860 cases total — 10,805 age 4 and under — and seven reported deaths.

Seven-day average

The state’s seven-day average of tests given as of April 14 was 148.8 tests per 10,000 residents, down from 170.9 on April 7. The positivity rate among those tests rose a full point as of April 14 to 3.5 percent, up from 2.5 percent on April 7.

In Region 4, the April 14 testing rate was even lower, at 108.9 tests per 10,000 residents. The seven-day average percent positive of those tests was far higher than the state average at 7.2 percent, up from 3.8 percent on April 7.

According to Friday’s update, labs in Louisiana have processed 6,905,520 COVID-19 tests so far.

Gender, underlying conditions

By gender, the state’s bi-weekly report shows women still making up the largest part — 56 percent — of the identified COVID-19 cases in the state, with men comprising 44 percent. On the other hand, the COVID-19 deaths are predominantly among men, 53.2 percent to 46.8 percent for women.

Initially, LDH reported that 70 percent of all COVID-19 deaths in the state were in the Black community. That number dropped to 38.24 percent as of April 21, while White victims now make up 60.29 percent of all fatal cases.

The Native American/Alaskan Native total was at 0.15 percent. Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander data remained at 0.08 percent. Other races identified include Asian at 0.79 percent and Other at 0.39 percent.

The top three underlying conditions among COVID-19 deaths in the April 21 report were hypertension (63.04 percent), diabetes (39.95 percent), and cardiac disease (27.66 percent).

Other factors included neurological disorders (26.42 percent), chronic kidney disease (21.63 percent), obesity (21.3 percent), congestive heart failure (16.48 percent), pulmonary issues (15.01 percent), cancer (9.03 percent), and asthma (4.15 percent). Only 4.24 percent of all patients had no underlying conditions.