[ad_1]
Wuhan, China, January 9 of this year.
A 61-year-old man visited the seafood market in the city and is now hospitalized with pneumonia. Despite the treatment, his life must not be saved. He dies this Thursday night.
The 61-year-old man becomes the first to die of coronavirus-related disease. Four months later, more than 274,000 lives have been lost worldwide, 219 of them in Norway.
On January 9, the WHO still had three weeks to declare the crown outbreak due to an international public health crisis.
Seven weeks for the Norwegian Institute of Public Health confirmed Norway’s first case of infection.
Two months until Erna Solberg closed Norway.
What did the experts say in those first weeks and what do they say now?
“I’m probably not talking about this”
– I have seen doctors from abroad who have published videos that say that the Wuhan virus is much more dangerous than they are told. Everyone I have spoken to in Norway thinks it is not that dangerous. In mid-March, we probably won’t talk about this anymore. I’m high, but it’s okay.
This was stated by a doctor, community debate and author Wasim Zahid in an interview with The newspaper on February 4.
Today, the tone is different.
– It’s been a long time since I realized it wasn’t a good statement, Zahid says to Dagbladet.
The reason for the statement was that during previous coronary outbreaks (SARS and MERS) it was largely possible to limit outbreaks geographically. Zahid believed that the same could happen again, with the measures China introduced.
– It turned out to be wrong, because this virus turned out to be significantly more contagious than the SARS and MERS viruses.
How long does the doctor think? now what are we going to talk about crown? Zahid laughs at the question.
– Injury watch I will not make any predictions, other than that we will talk for many years to come.
He compared the virus to the plague
Dr. and researcher Gunhild Alvik Nyborg was labeled a doomsday judge when she activated a crown alarm in the NRK “Debate” on Tuesday, March 17.
Nyborg compared the virus to plague, used war metaphors, claimed that the situation in Norway was out of control, and called for more drastic measures.
If not, he feared that more than 20,000 Norwegians would die.
Soon, two months later, Nyborg insists that what he said in “The Debate” was correct to say.
– Based on the unfortunate situation we were in, there was no time to gradually prepare the population for what lay ahead. He hurried, says the doctor to Dagbladet.
– The fact that many were scared was an unfortunate side effect. But a necessary side effect when things went as far as they did without our infection control.
Nyborg emphasizes that the reason for the 20,000 death scenario was that authorities at the time planned a scenario where the virus would slowly pass through the population, causing 70 percent of the population to become infected.
Warns against lowering shoulders
At the time of writing, we have 219 coronary deaths in Norway.
Nyborg believes low numbers are an effect of authorities doing so he began to advocate, that is, to introduce drastic measures in the form of closing society.
A scenario of 20,000 deaths is currently remote. But it is not yet inconceivable, the doctor believes.
– It is very possible that this virus, if not controlled, can provide such scenarios. Therefore, it is extremely important for the population to continue the search now that the measures facilitate, so that we all have the greatest opportunity to enjoy as much freedom as possible in the coming months.
One measure Nyborg is now calling for is the use of mouthwash on airplanes, public transportation, and crowded places.
– I think for a while we shouldn’t risk things going well without us, because we have a lot to lose.
This is what FHI writes about using mouthwash
- Based on the current epidemiological situation, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health considers that there is no scientific basis to recommend the general use of mouthwashes or non-medical face masks in the population.
- The number of new covid-19 patients in the population is decreasing today, and the proportion of pre and asymptomatic carriers in the community is probably relatively low. However, the recommendations may change if you see a significant increase in infection in all or part of the population.
- If FHI identifies widely dispersed geographic areas or groupings in the community, additional measures may be necessary, such as the use of medical mouthwashes or non-medical face masks in some areas and / or situations.
- The advice is in line with the recommendations of the European Institute for Infectious Disease Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organization (see the knowledge base for more information).
source: FHI.no
Follow up of mouthwash measures
Dr. Gunnar Hasle of the Travel Clinic in Oslo has been ordering a bite since March.
Hasle has been an avid contributor to the coronation debate. So eager that he has compiled all the media visits in chronological order into a document that he has sent to the journalist from Dagbladet.
A selection:
- On January 28, Hasle on TV 2 recommended waiting to book trips and watch the development of the coronavirus.
- On February 7, in Dagbladet, he addressed the quarantine of people who arrived in Norway from infected areas.
- On March 14, he posted a video on YouTube showing how to make your own mouthpiece.
While the government since March 14 has discouraged overseas travel that is not strictly necessary, and the same week introduced quarantine after overseas travel, authorities have not yet recommended the use of bandages.
Gunnar Hasle still thinks he did well too.
– I think it will be provocative for the Institute of Public Health if I say so. But I’m pretty sure, says the doctor laughing.
– It’s not the big panic
On January 21, Dagbladet spoke to Ørjan Olsvik, professor of medical microbiology at the University of Tromsø.
At this time, almost 300 people in China were confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus. Six people had died.
Olsvik urged not to overreact.
– With six deaths and three hundred infected verified, we currently have a mortality of one to two percent. It is noisy, but there is nothing against SARS and MERS. So don’t panic the professor said to Dagbladet.
Soon, four months later, Olsvik still believes that there is no need to panic.
– It is very clear that this virus kills relatively few. SARS killed 10 percent of those who fell ill, MERS killed 35 percent. We measured danger there, not by volume, says Olsvik.
He notes that in 2019, 1,400 people died of the flu in Norway.
– As I keep saying: as long as I die less than last year’s flu epidemic, this is not terribly bad. It is bad, but not terribly bad.
Olsvik commends the Norwegian authorities for daring to take drastic and costly measures, especially with a view to protecting the country’s elderly and sick.
– It is very humanistic to take care of those who built our oil wealth. Sweden did not, and it has a mortality five times higher per million.
