Of the Nordic countries, Sweden has been hardest hit by the pandemic, both in the first and second wave.
The Swedish Public Health Agency has estimated that the peak of infection will occur in mid-December, and that both infection and the number of deaths will then decrease.
Swedish experts are now warning of a third wave of the virus.
– Despite all the invitations, I think many travel at Christmas. Then there may be a new wave of unknown spread when everyone returns and will meet again, with new viruses that they have picked up elsewhere. We usually see this during flu epidemics, that it picks up after Christmas, says Annika Linde, virologist and former state epidemiologist in Sweden, to Expressen.
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– Must limit contact
Epidemiologist Joacim Rocklöv at Umeå University is also concerned.
– We have seen an increase in autumn holidays and Easter holidays before. I think there is a risk that the infection will increase properly if we do not limit travel and private gatherings on the weekends. We know that the virus can spread until April, he tells the newspaper.
He believes the virus will slow down sharply in the spring and towards the summer. Both in terms of vaccination, but also that more people will then stay outdoors.
At a press conference on 26 November, adviser Svante Werge of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) stated that the situation in Sweden is serious and unclear.
Statement provokes reactions: – Unfortunate
After keeping the community open throughout the spring, Sweden has now introduced stricter measures, including groups of a maximum of eight people and a liquor stop at 10 pm.
It was the government and Prime Minister Stefan Löfven who introduced the measures, which has led to speculation about a crisis of confidence. The measures were introduced without the Public Health Authority being involved, writes Expressen.
– Restrictive Christmas
In the Public Health Agency’s scenario, the peak of infection comes in mid-December. Director Johan Carlson of the Public Health Authority has stated that he believes the infection will increase before it decreases.
Believes Norway stands out
– We can not let go of the restrictions after the peak is reached. It will be a restrictive Christmas. If we are to have a declining spread of infection, it requires a joint effort. We have a long way to go. Hopefully it can look brighter in the spring, but we must have restrictions in the coming year, Carlson said at the same press conference.
The health authorities in Norway have also warned that the danger of Christmas celebrations is that it could be the beginning of a new wave.
– There is clearly a risk that Christmas celebrations can lead to an increase in infection: Many people move, many meet people who have not been seen for a long time, and people who may have family in other countries will return after Christmas – perhaps with infection, said director Camilla Stoltenberg at the National Institute of Public Health to Dagbladet at the end of November.
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