WHO: Aumechjong may infect half of All Europeans in the coming weeks, and it is too early to consider COVID-19 the "flu"

The World Health Organization warned on the 11th that the new crown variant strain Aumicon, which swept across Europe, has shown a "wave from west to east". At the current rate of transmission, it is expected that more than half of Europe's population could be infected with Omi kerong in the next 6 to 8 weeks. WHO experts reiterated that the treatment of Omicron should not be taken lightly, and that COVID-19 should not be seen as an endemic influenza-like disease at this stage.

More than half of Europe's population is infected

Since 2022, with the widespread spread of the Olmikeron strain, many European countries have ushered in "tsunami-like" confirmed cases. However, WHO experts warn that this wave of Omikeron has not yet peaked.

Kluge, director of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, said at a press conference on the 11th that in the first week of 2022, the number of new confirmed cases of new crown in the European region exceeded 7 million, doubling the data two weeks ago.

Citing the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), he predicted that at the current rate of transmission, more than 50 percent of the population across Europe would be infected with Omicron within the next 6 to 8 weeks.

Kluge added that in addition to the Delta strain, which is already prevalent, a "west-to-east" wave of Aumechjong is sweeping across Europe.

According to WHO, the Omikejon strain has quickly become the main infectious strain in Western Europe and continues to spread to the Balkan Peninsula. At least 50 of the 53 Countries in Europe and Central Asia currently covered by the WHO Regional Office for Europe have been detected.

Kluge warned that Eastern European countries and Balkan countries with lower vaccination rates could be hit harder in the future due to higher rates of severe illness after infection with the Omicron strain among unvaccinated people.

Demotion to "endemic diseases"? premature

Although there has been a surge in confirmed cases, many countries are also optimistic when dealing with the Opmi kerong wave because many studies have shown that the risk of severe illness caused by the Olmi kerong strain is lower than that of other mutant strains.

Some European leaders have even threatened that it is time to change their anti-epidemic strategies and downgrade the way they treat COVID-19 from a "global pandemic" to an influenza-like "endemic disease".

On the 10th, Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez called for a change in the way of dealing with the new crown. "We are moving towards an endemic disease," he said. That means lifting lockdowns and responding to outbreaks through vaccines, masks, scientific institutions and global collaboration.

The idea was also echoed by The British Secretary of State for Education, Nazim Zahawi. He recently told the BBC that the UK is "transitioning from pandemic to endemic disease".

In response, WHO experts countered that it is too early to call COVID-19 an endemic disease.

According to the Financial Times, CA' Catherine Smallwood, who is the official of the WHO European Region, said on the 11th that only when the spread of the virus is stable and the future wave of the new crown can be predicted, the new crown can be regarded as a endemic disease, but "the situation we are currently seeing is far from it."

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also warned last week that Omilon was "moderate" and still caused deaths in many countries.

Experts believe that in view of the fact that the world has not yet completed widespread vaccination, the new crown virus is still mutating, and there is more uncertainty about the Amicoreon strain, it is opposed to dealing with the new crown epidemic by dealing with influenza.

Europe's health system is under pressure

In fact, the record scale and speed of infection have put enormous pressure on health care systems in many European countries.

According to the BBC, in the UK, the pressure caused by COVID-19 is increasing day by day due to the shortage of medical staff, and some hospitals have reported being at a "tipping point". The United Kingdom reported more than 142,000 new confirmed cases in a single day on the 10th, with 77 deaths.

In other European countries, the number of hospitalizations is also on the rise.

French Health Minister Vilang said last week that January will be tough for French hospitals because the Omiljung strain infection cases are occupying ordinary beds in hospitals and the Delta strain infection cases are filling the intensive care beds.

Data on the 10th showed that there were 22,749 new crown hospitalization cases in France, an increase of 767 cases from the previous day, and the increase was the highest since April last year. In the week before the 10th, France reported more than 300,000 new cases in a single day for three days.

In Italy, doctors have warned that the growing number of COVID-19 patients is endangering the treatment of some 11 million cancer patients.

In response, public health experts pointed out that countries that have not yet been affected by the Omicron outbreak need to act as soon as possible, and "the window of opportunity is closing".

Kluge said that whether it is the Delta strain or the Olmi kerong strain, strengthening COVID-19 vaccination, expanding the use of masks, maintaining ventilation in crowded or closed places, and using new diagnostic methods are effective.

He reiterated that the COVID-19 vaccine against Omiljung still provides good protection against serious illness and death. In Denmark, where cases of Omilon have surged in recent weeks, for example, hospitalization rates for unvaccinated COVID-19 patients were six times higher in the week leading up to Christmas than among fully vaccinated patients.

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Column Editor-in-Chief: Yang Liqun Text Editor: Yang Liqun Caption Source: Xinhua News Agency Photo Editor: Zhu Xuan

Source: Author: Qiu Wenhan