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Still virulent: Even if many people don’t want to hear about it anymore, Covid-19 is not gone. And the number of cases has recently increased. © Bernd Weißbrod/dpa
The number of reported Covid-19 cases in the Main-Kinzig district has been rising steadily since March. Despite the summer, new virus variants are spreading.
Hanau/Main-Kinzig district – The series of numbers is remarkable: 51, 33, 51, 109, 212. These are the cases of Covid-19 infections reported to the Main-Kinzig district health department from March to July. They fit in with a nationwide increase. The Offenbach health department recently confirmed such an increase. “Even if nobody wants to talk about Corona anymore, the numbers show the development,” said its director Dr. Bernhard Bornhofen. The numbers also “do not reflect the actual circumstances,” according to the MKK health department. This is because positive rapid tests from private individuals do not have to be reported. The cases recorded by the authorities are essentially reports from doctors or laboratories that must pass on positive pathogen detection according to the Infection Protection Act.
Even though the numbers are nowhere near those from the peak of the pandemic and the increase has tended to slow somewhat, caution is still advised, they say. At the beginning of the month, the head of the WHO’s Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness Department, Maria Van Kerkhove, called for vigilance. Data from 84 countries showed that the number of people testing positive had increased – especially in Europe.
The most common symptoms of Covid-19 are a runny nose, cough and sore throat, but also headache, limb, muscle and joint pain and fever. Symptoms such as shortness of breath, difficulty breathing and gastrointestinal complaints could also occur, and immunocompromised and pre-existing diseased people could be more severely affected. “It is probably the new virus variants that can spread in the middle of summer here too,” says the head of the Offenbach Health Department. Doctors recommend that anyone with symptoms should take a rapid test. According to the Health Department in Gelnhausen, otherwise “no special recommendations apply for people with Covid, but rather the general recommendations for people with respiratory infections.” These are:
- Stay at home for three to five days until symptoms improve significantly.
- Contacts should be reduced, especially with people at increased risk of severe disease.
- In case of unavoidable contact, a mouth and nose mask should be worn to protect others.
Also in the hospital Born the coronavirus is back on the agenda. “At the moment, we are treating an average of around five patients with a confirmed Covid infection,” said chief physician Dr. Christof Weinbrenner in response to a query from our editorial team. The figures are from the end of last week. The course of the disease is usually mild, and in rare cases patients need to be given additional oxygen. Severe courses are more likely to be associated with so-called super-infections, “i.e. when a bacterial infection is added to the Covid infection.” No one is currently in intensive care because of Corona, and if they are, then only with an additional Covid infection.
The situation is similar at Hanau’s St. Vinzenz Hospital. “There are currently three patients with Covid being treated as inpatients – two of them because of it, one with Corona,” says hospital spokeswoman Angela Gitter. The most common reason for inpatient admissions is high fever and suspected pneumonia.
The number of cases has fluctuated in recent months, but at a low level. Before the current three Covid patients, there were six in July and only one in May. No one had to be treated in intensive care at St. Vinzenz.
What further developments do doctors expect in terms of Corona? “In autumn, we expect the usual increase in respiratory infections for this time of year,” says the Main-Kinzig district. However, it is not yet possible to assess how this will develop in concrete terms.
A vaccine adapted to the Omicron variant JN.1 has been available for a few days. The recommendations of the Standing Committee on Vaccination (Stiko) were updated in February. According to this, all people over 18 years of age and people at increased risk should have basic immunity against Covid. According to the health department, this is achieved through at least three antigen contacts (vaccination or infection). Otherwise, everyone over 60 years of age and particularly vulnerable people should receive a Covid vaccination every year in the autumn in addition to basic immunity.
For people with healthy immune systems who have already had a corona infection this year, vaccination in the fall is generally not necessary, says the health department.
By Christian Spindler and Philipp Bräuner
