Coronavirus: UAE's active cases rise as 1,096 new infections reported

The number of active cases has doubled since last week

A boy wearing a face mask takes his dogs on a stroll on the Corniche in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

A Covid-19 safety sign on Al Qahirah street in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

Checkers line up at the entrance of Global Village with masks and face shields. Reem Mohammed / The National

Abu Dhabi residents on their Friday morning fitness ritual. Victor Besa / The National

Bridal facemask at Contessa Bridal Dubai in City Walk in Dubai. Reem Mohammed / The National

An employee at The Meydan Hotel in Dubai sanitises the reception area to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Chris Whiteoak / The National

A lifeguard at The Meydan Hotel with a mask on to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Hygiene and Covid-19 safety measures take place at a fitness class at Bare. Chris Whiteoak / The National

A lady works on her laptop while wearing a mask at Times Square in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

People wear masks to curb the spread of the coronavirus in Satwa, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Coronavirus safety measures are taken at 815 Dance & Performing Arts Training Centre in Silicone Oasis in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

A lady takes part in an art installation which comes to life via augmented reality with a mask on to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National

The UAE reported 1,096 new cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday, after conducting a further 135,883 tests.

Over the past 24 hours, 742 people have been cleared of the virus while three patients died of related complications.

Officials said this raised the country's tallies to 144,385 cases, 139,701 recoveries and 518 deaths since the outbreak.

Almost 97 per cent of the UAE's cases have ended in recovery, while less than 0.4 per cent have led to death.

The UAE has carried out more than 14.2 million Covid-19 tests since January, making it one of the top countries for testing worldwide.

Although daily case numbers have been rising since August, when new infection figures dipped to 164, the number of active cases has been kept reasonably low due to the high number of recoveries.

The number of active cases is currently 4,166 - more than double the 1,822 patients who were battling the virus last week.

It came as NYU Abu Dhabi announced its researchers developed a test that can detect the Covid-19 virus in asymptomatic patients and those in the early stages of infection.

The new, three-step tests will have a greater accuracy than the commonly used Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR).

PCR tests can give a false negative reading if a test is carried out soon after exposure to the virus. The test can miss lower viral loads, which are harder to detect.