'other viruses are on the way' - De Daily Standaard

Professor of virology Ab Osterhaus and biochemist Bram Palache have jointly published a booklet, a booklet about the 50 most frequently asked questions about corona. In a interview both gentlemen look to the future – and they see it fairly gloomy. They are also surprised at the attitude of some during this crisis.

In the past, experts have often warned governments that preventive measures must be taken for a future pandemic. That pandemic eventually came, with all its consequences. Osterhaus and Palache fear that we will experience these types of viruses more often in the future.

“We don’t want to demotivate, but other viruses are on the way. Scientists have often warned about a pandemic like the one we have today. We didn’t know when, but we did know that such an outbreak was coming. Since the 1950s, the world has been increasingly confronted with new virus epidemics or even pandemics, almost all of which come from the animal world. ”

What Osterhaus is most surprised about is the fact that people from the risk groups, who also have to be careful during a normal flu season, do not always follow the rules.

Moreover, Osterhaus – like a large part of the Netherlands – is completely done with the corona deniers. People who time and again compare the virus with a ‘normal’ flu. People who are basically downplaying the whole crisis.

Unfortunately, that myth is still alive. In our country, about 2000 people die from influenza every year. There could be fewer. I am still deeply surprised that, despite the annually recurring burden of disease and the availability of a vaccine, relatively few people from the risk groups respond to the call. In any case, the effects of Covid-19 are expected to kill 10,000 people in our country this year. And that with measures. Without the measures, there would be at least between 50,000 and 100,000 deaths. Globally, influenza causes half a million deaths every year; we are heading towards 1.5 million at corona. And those are only the registered cases. ”