The WHO continues to view Covid-19 as a threat. Pope falls ill again

The World Health Organization (WHO) is concerned about the way Covid-19 is being handled worldwide. “Although we are not in a crisis, Covid-19 remains a threat to global health,” corona expert Maria Van Kerkhove said in Geneva on Friday.

Not enough people are being vaccinated and people are not taking sufficient protective measures. According to her, this includes wearing face masks where many people gather in a small space, keeping people at home if they show symptoms of illness and ensuring good ventilation of the rooms. More must also be done to better investigate and treat the long-term consequences of corona infection.

According to Van Kerkhove, an estimated six percent of people who have a corona infection with complaints experience long-term complications. These include severe fatigue, as well as neurological disorders and heart disease.

There are long-term complications if symptoms last longer than three months. The WHO is concerned about what consequences will be visible in five or more years. These are all good reasons to prevent infections as much as possible. The vaccines protected against serious diseases. In particular, older people over 75 and young people with other diseases or a weak immune system should receive a booster vaccination every six to twelve months.

The WHO criticizes the fact that there is hardly any testing in many countries. The actual number of cases is likely to be much higher than the reported cases. Wastewater research showed that the virus was circulating 2 to 19 times as much as reported figures suggested. By the end of 2023, approximately seven million deaths from Covid-19 had been reported to WHO. The actual number is likely to be at least three times as high as Van Kerkhove said. (sda/dpa)