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Professor Wendtner, as chief physician of the Munich infectious diseases department Klinik Schwabing, treated the first corona patients in Germany in January. So far, around 800 patients have been admitted to his clinic for Covid-19, 180 of them in the intensive care unit. Autumn hasn’t even started properly, but only in Munich, in view of the increasing number of infections, more contact restrictions and even a mask requirement in the city center are necessary. Is that the correct answer to the second wave?
We are in the middle of the second wave and we have to take this increase in numbers very seriously in Bavaria, but also in the whole of Germany. And the cases will continue to increase. We cannot bring the numbers to zero, but we must not be careless. The virus is a dangerous enemy. And it knows no rest. Therefore, it is extremely important to follow the established measurements: distance and mask.
Despite the increase in numbers, herd immunity is still far from being seen in Munich. How about fall and winter?
I am confident. So far, we have coped well with the pandemic at home and in Germany in general. And we had really drastic scenarios in mind, for example, in Bergamo. We too had full stations in the spring and we had to think about the worst case scenario: How do we rank? So who will be treated and how if capacity is exhausted? In the end we were lucky in Germany, but we were only nine days away from the conditions in Bergamo in terms of development, so we had more time to prepare. And so far we have learned a lot about the virus and also about the treatment of Covid-19. There was a very intense exchange between virologists, infectologists, cardiologists and pulmonologists, who will help us in winter. However, it is still important to be very vigilant.
How will you be able to differentiate between people with the flu, colds, and people infected with Sars-CoV-2 during the cold season?
This will be a challenge for doctors and hospitals. In the emergency room, we will screen everyone with typical cold symptoms for not only Sars-CoV-2, but also influenza. You have the result in a very short time, then you can assign the patients to the respective rooms.
Kindergarten children, in particular, always have colds in winter. So should children stay home?
Anyone with a fever, whether as an adult or as a child, should stay home. Best of all when you have a cold.
There are several corona hot spots in Bavaria. How are they explained?
This is mainly due to the fact that Bavaria is a transit state, with direct neighbors abroad. Many people are in transit and can infect others in the process. Return travelers, many from the countries of Southeastern Europe, have also contributed to this. Therefore, it was of strategic importance to carry out tests as extensive at the border points as Bavaria did. At our clinic there are currently a couple in the intensive care unit who are among the returning travelers.
How did the infection arise?
They are both in their 70s. You visited your oldest son in Croatia. He showed mild symptoms, was tested and got a positive result. When the parents returned to Munich, they developed a cough, headache, and fever. Then within a few days, they had great difficulty breathing. First they were in the normal infection room, now they are in the intensive care unit. This is just one example of the many small chains of infection.
Apart from those returning from their travels, people are becoming increasingly infected in the country. Are the crown rules handled too loosely?
