While the coronavirus pandemic has been officially described as “over” in several countries, including the United States, this does not seem to be the case in Belgium.
According to the latest figures published by Sciensano , there is a 40% increase in hospital admissions. Even if the reproduction number is greater than 1 (1.22), which means that the virus is transmitted within the population, there is still nothing to worry regarding, according to Marius Gilbert.
The ULB epidemiologist explained to our colleagues at RTBF that this upsurge in cases was explained by two factors. ” First of all, there are the effects of vaccination, which are relatively far away, and then the autumn and winter seasons, which are more conducive to transmission. These two factors lead us to this rise. We should not fear a big wave like at the start of the pandemic. On the other hand, this shows us that the transmission will become more intense once more in the coming weeks and that we will have to increase our level of vigilance”, he confides in the QR show.
Fortunately, hospitals should not be overwhelmed by this increase in cases. “The projections do not indicate a resumption of the epidemic which would be unmanageable at the hospital level. Therefore, it is very unlikely that strong measures will be taken at the collective level. Now, it is not impossible that certain measures more slight be taken such as wearing a mask in public transport”, says Marius Gilbert, who adds that collective measures should not be taken at this stage.
