Autumn and winter are traditionally flu time. In a pandemic this would mean a double burden for the health system, warns the RKI and applies.
With a view to autumn and winter, the President of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has warned of a double burden on the health system from flu and Covid-19.
It is important to prevent too many cases of the two diseases from having to be treated in parallel, said Lothar Wieler on Wednesday in Berlin. “If many Covid-19 and many flu sufferers appear at the same time, the hospitals are massively burdened.” This would also be dangerous for other patients who needed the hospital beds. Such a scenario can best be avoided with vaccinations and the wearing of masks, keeping your distance, hygiene, ventilation and using the corona warning app, stressed Wieler.
The RKI boss explained that it was basically not foreseeable how severe a flu epidemic would be. However, an increase in the number of Covid 19 cases can be expected. Both diseases are a particular risk for the elderly and the chronically ill. In Germany, the flu vaccination is recommended for certain groups such as those over the age of 60 – and people who deal with these groups at work. But everyone else could also get vaccinated after consulting a doctor, said Wieler. The corona vaccination is recommended for everyone from the age of 12 – the head of the health authority again called on them to take advantage of this offer.
Stiko complains that the vaccination protection is too low
The chairman of the Standing Vaccination Commission, Thomas Mertens, warned of insufficient flu protection for risk groups in Germany during the pandemic. So far, the flu vaccination rates have been too low compared to international recommendations, Mertens said on Wednesday. Although there have been improvements in the past flu season, the influenza vaccination rates for people over 60 are unfortunately only 30 to 40 percent. “That is really not enough,” said Mertens. Because after the absence last season there could now be a stronger flu wave.
In addition to the elderly, flu vaccinations are also recommended for the chronically ill, pregnant women, medical staff, caring relatives and people who work with a lot of public traffic. There are egg-based and cell culture-based vaccines as well as a live vaccine, explained Mertens. That is a wide range. In the case of dead vaccines, the flu protection can also be given at the same time as a corona vaccination – then in the left and right upper arm. As with Covid-19, it is about avoiding hospital admissions and deaths.
For older people there are also flu vaccines with immune boosters and a high-dose vaccine that contains 60 instead of 15 micrograms of each strain of influenza. “Older people not only react worse to Covid-19 vaccinations, but also to influenza vaccinations,” said Mertens.
Request for further vaccinations
“Vaccination is not just about Covid 19,” he emphasized. All other vaccinations would also have to be made, in addition to the flu protection, for example, the vaccinations for children. “Vaccinations are an ingenious and very important achievement in medicine,” said Mertens. “In the end, only a good vaccination will help us to solve many infection problems.”
Last year, according to Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU), over 22 million German citizens were immunized against flu. That was a little more than in previous years, when the number was 15 to 18 million. According to Spahn, 27 million vaccine doses against influenza are available this year. The course of an influenza season is difficult to predict.
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