The number of corona infections continues to rise to an average of 502.1 per day. “That is definitely not good news, but not dramatic yet.” The number of admissions is rising slightly, the number of deaths continues to fall.
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‘We have seen an increase in the figures, for five days already, in almost all provinces, and in all age groups,’ says epidemiologist Yves Van Laethem. The Brussels-Capital Region has 132 infections, on average per day. An increase of 13 percent compared to the previous week. In Antwerp, an average of 101 new infections were diagnosed per day, an increase of 21 percent. ‘ In the other provinces, the number of infections is also increasing, with increases between 12 and 33 percent. In absolute figures, Brussels and Antwerp remain in the lead.
‘The number of infections has increased in recent days. That is not good, but not dramatic, ‘says Yves Stevens of the Crisis Center. ‘The number of admissions and the number of deaths remains low. Vigilance is still required. Everyone is an actor in this event, it concerns the health of all of us. By following the six golden rules you take care of the health of yourself and others. ‘
Boudewijn Catry, virologist at Sciensano, gives three reasons for the flare-up: people returning from abroad, more tests and the worse follow-up of the ‘bubble’.
“It remains important to protect us properly,” says Catry. ‘We have four options for fighting the virus: the first is social distance, wearing mouth masks and washing hands. The second option is to treat the disease. No medicine can fight the virus now. A third option is herd immunity, which means 60 to 70 percent of people must be immune. Even in countries where this has been tried, group immunity does not exceed 20 percent, such as in the Swedish capital Stockholm. We risk paying a great price for group immunity. A fourth option is vaccination: the most efficient and safest way to protect people. Consider the polio vaccine. But now there is no vaccine yet, so the first means – distance, mask and hand washing – remains very important. ‘
‘Vaccine next spring’
Van Laethem explains how a vaccine works: ‘The principle is to bring a person into contact with a particle of the virus, and to build up immunity without that person becoming ill. Such a part is called an antigen. In the case of corona, the antigen is a protein from the coronavirus, a ‘spike’. This method is similar to how the flu vaccine is put together. Our immune system will learn to respond to the virus. ‘
Where are we standing right now? Since the start of the epidemic in February, the international investigation has started. There are several candidate vaccines. Several are now in the clinical phase with human testing. In the first phase, safety is tested on a few dozen people. In a second phase it is about, in a third phase it is checked whether people are protected who come into contact with the virus. It concerns thousands of people, some of whom receive a placebo. This way we get thorough proof of whether a vaccine works. Today tests have been interrupted (at AstraZeneca, ed.) because one person experienced serious side effects. This proves that the safety mechanisms work. The first vaccine is expected in the spring of next year. The medicines agency (FAMHP) will keep a close eye on this. ‘
What are the priority target groups? ‘These are determined by the Superior Health Council. First and foremost, these are all health care workers, in the broad sense of the word. This way they can continue to fight the pandemic. Then it is about who is most vulnerable: people older than 65 years, and people between 45 and 65 years with risk factors. Depending on the studies and investigations, other groups may be included. We cannot emphasize enough that there is no vaccine at the moment, and so we must continue to follow the ground rules. ‘
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