Why fuss is bigger with coronavirus than with flu

In the European Union alone, 40,000 people die every year from the flu. Worldwide it is about tenfold. Put those figures next to the number of fatalities of the new corona virus, “sars-CoV-2”: no 3,000 deaths so far. Why then all those draconian measures to curb the virus?

Unlike the flu, we do not (yet) have a vaccine against the new corona virus. That makes a big difference, says Steven Van Gucht, head of viral diseases department at the Sciensano scientific institute and chairman of the scientific corona committee. “We don’t have any weapon against the new virus and we have to curb it.”

“The new corona virus is really new. Nobody is immune to it, everyone can get infected and pass it on. With the flu it is different. Those who have had the flu often experience a milder course the following year or are even spared from the disease. “

“With a first wave of infection, such as now with the new corona virus, the sick and dead can rise unrestrained in absolute numbers. The many cases can overload the health care system, even though only a small part of it has a serious course. “

Statistics

A few percent of the patients infected with the new coronavirus die from it. The flu is less deadly, with a death rate of around 0.1 percent of patients. Moreover, the statistics of the flu are like a house, which makes rational assessment of the spread easier than with a virus whose total extent of spread is still unknown. “The measures are therefore inspired by the precautionary principle,” says Van Gucht.