Infection can be high at the beginning of the year

The number of new cases is at record levels and does not look brighter after the end of the year.

Virology professor Tove Fall predicts there may be record highs in the future, too.

– If the development in Sweden follows what we see in Denmark and in other countries, we can expect a very large spread of infection at the beginning of 2022, she says in Actuelt.

The spread of infection in Sweden continues to increase dramatically, and on Thursday, the number of new cases reached the second highest level ever measured.

The prevalence of infection, associated with the new omicron variant, is well above the Swedish Public Health Agency’s worst future forecast. Which could lead to more stringent restrictions in the future.

May ebb 2022

Even in the rest of the world, the spread of infection is going fast, which is why the World Health Organization (WHO) has raised a finger of warning.

“I am deeply concerned that the more contagious omicron variant, which simultaneously thrives with the delta variant, will lead to a tsunami of disease cases,” says CEO Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

At the same time, the head of the World Health Organization’s crisis department notes that Omicron does not seem to give a mortality rate as high as its predecessors, which can still be considered a light in the tunnel.

The epidemic associated with deaths and hospitalizations may subside in 2022, but the virus itself will not go away completely, says Mike Ryan.

‘A greater risk of infection already’

according to Top Val, Professor of Molecular Epidemiology at Uppsala University, however, may have a difficult time ahead. If the development is similar to other countries, we will have high records.

– In Denmark, it is now seen that there are many more confirmed cases than during previous waves. A lot of disease cases and many new cases are going to affect us in a lot of different ways, some of which can be hard to predict, she says on Thursday. currently.

For example, you mentioned that there can be significant problems with testing and that socially important activities are affected if too many of them are home from work at the same time.

But it also has a greater impact on already strained healthcare.

For an individual, there is a higher risk of actually getting infected in the coming period because Omicron is more contagious and the vaccine penetrates more easily. However, preliminary results show that there is a slightly lower risk of ending up in the hospital compared to the delta variant. But society as a whole is affected by how easily you can end up in the hospital if you become infected, but as the infection spreads further, more people will end up in the hospital, she says in Actuelt.

“We’ll see what it’s like this fall.”

However, the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency does not currently assess that socially significant activities have “disrupted the conditions for maintaining community functions”. The exception, however, is health care.

“The risk of an increased spread of infection and consequently an increase in care needs in the coming weeks and months means that the responsible authorities need to prepare for the deterioration of the situation, including, for example, a high rate of absenteeism,” the authority wrote in a statement.

Going forward, Tofffall believes that the number of new cases and potential hospital admissions will be challenging. In terms of the future, don’t think the pandemic will be completely over in 2022.

– But I hope the peaks will be milder and we will have longer lulls in between. I feel quite confident that it will look better during the summer season, but then we will see how it will be during the fall.