Those affected by TBE in Sweden have increased sharply in the past year

It is Thursday afternoon in Kumla Square.

Between the food truck and the clothing sales, there is a vaccine bus where Amr Arroub works to vaccinate the constantly arriving visitors.

“A lot of people don't know about it”

– Our headquarters are in Stockholm, but we travel all over Sweden with vaccine buses and it has only been two weeks since we were last in Kumla, says Amr Arroub.

You have three different vaccines for people to take. Tick ​​vaccine (TBE), vaccine against tetanus/pertussis/diphtheria (triaxial) and shingles. Amr pointed out that an unusually large percentage of people are vaccinating against shingles in Kumla.

-If we start with TBE, it provides a vaccine against meningitis, a disease that often causes lifelong problems for those infected. You get sick from the saliva produced by the tick and the illness can come all at once. Last year, 600 people were affected in Sweden, a sharp increase from the previous year, says Amr Arroub.

The vaccine against trifocals can be considered an update.

– In Sweden, people are vaccinated against it at school at the age of 10 and this vaccination must continue for 20 years. Public Health strongly recommends updating your vaccine when you're over 30, as many people don't actually know.

Shingles, a common disease

Shingles is more likely to occur with age, although it can affect anyone.

– After you get chickenpox, the virus remains dormant (dormant). But it can reactivate later in life, especially as you get older and your body's defenses get worse, so there's a greater chance of it reactivating and then you getting shingles.

Shingles is a common disease that affects one in five Swedes at some point in their lives. The disease usually causes pain and a rash in the form of blisters on the body. A person who has never had chickenpox cannot get shingles.

There is a tag on Amr Arroub's shirt that says he is a medical student. So far, he has been running the vaccination bus for two months.

-I enjoy myself very much, and I want to help prevent diseases. Giving a vaccine against a disease is more enjoyable than treating someone who has contracted the disease.

Our conversation is over. There is an elderly couple ready outside the bus. The undersigned asks what they should be vaccinated for, and both answer shingles before admission.