A further 41 people with COVID-19 have died in the Republic, bringing the total number of deaths here to 571.

23 females and 18 males died, and altogether, 35 had underlying health conditions.

Thirty-five of the deaths occurred in the east, four in the west and two in the north west.

Of the 571 people who have died so far in Ireland, 326 (57%) have been male and 245 (43%) have been female. Some 330 of these cases had been admitted to hospital, with 46 admitted to ICU.

Meanwhile, a further 778 cases of the virus have been confirmed - 630 reported by Irish laboratories and 148 reported by a laboratory in Germany.

A total of 14,758 cases have now been confirmed here.

Earlier, the Department of Health's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Tony Holohan, explained that a new graph suggests that the number of COVID-related deaths may have peaked in Ireland on April 7.

As it can take a few days for a COVID-related death to be reported to the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET), the number of deaths announced each day represents the number that the NPHET has been notified about on that day, rather than the actual number of deaths that have occurred on that day.

In other words, a death that is reported on any given day may have occurred a few days before. For example, on April 17, 44 deaths were announced - the highest daily figure yet - however only 20 of those deaths actually occurred on that day.

The latest graph shows the number of deaths that actually occurred over 24-hour periods. According to it, the highest number of deaths - 39 - occurred back on April 7.

However, Dr Holohan said we will have to wait to fully understand these figures as there could simply be a delay in the notification of some deaths.

He also added that community residential settings, including nursing homes, "remain a priority for our focused attention and we will continue to monitor and support them through this outbreak".

COVID-19 is spread through close contact with an infected person's body fluids (e.g. droplets from coughing or sneezing), or by touching surfaces that an infected person has coughed or sneezed on. It can take up to 14 days for symptoms of the virus to show. These may include a fever, a persistent cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

COVID-19 can also cause more severe illnesses, including pneumonia and severe breathing difficulties. Some 80% of cases will be mild to moderate, 14% will be more severe, while 6% will be critical.

Restrictions in relation to COVID-19 are now in place until May 5. As part of these restrictions, everybody is being asked to stay at home, except in specific circumstances. These include:
-Travelling to and from work in circumstances where the work is an essential health, social care or other essential service that cannot be done from home
-To shop for essential food and household goods
-To attend medical appointments
-For vital family reasons, such as caring for children or elderly people
-To take brief individual exercise within your locality, which may include children from your household, however this should be within 2km of your home.

All public and private gatherings of any number of people outside a single household or living unit are prohibited.

Those over the age of 70 and medically vulnerable people are also being cocooned. For more information on this, click here.

ALONE, the organisation that supports older people to age at home, is running a national support line for older people facing difficulties due to COVID-19. The support line is open every day from 8am to 8pm, call 0818 222 024.

For more information on COVID-19, click here.