Without masks and with a near-zero death toll: why Sweden’s strategy against COVID-19 is controversial

In the past two weeks, Sweden registered an average of 0.6 COVID-19 deaths per day, this compares to 74 deaths in the United Kingdom and 329 deaths in the United States por day during the same period.

Although he has the highest number of deaths per capita of its Scandinavian neighbors, Sweden has kept its economy afloat during the pandemic with its reluctance to enforce strict social distancing rules or closures.

Beginning of July, relinquished his last remaining mask term, for public transport, while health chiefs in the US and UK argue that chin straps should always be used to stop the spread of Delta variant, one of the worrying variants according to World Health Organization (WHO) due to its high contagiousness.

The Centers for Disaster Control and Prevention The United States (CDC) warned last Friday that the Delta variant was as contagious as chickenpox, but Anders Tegnell, the architect of the Swedish COVID-19 strategy, has warned of such broad analogies.

The Swedish official and infectious disease doctor said there are still “a lot of things we don’t know” on the variant and that it was wrong to draw “powerful conclusions”. In newspaper statements Aftonbladet, Tegnell said the delta was the dominant variant in Sweden and it had been around for “some time.”

Sweden’s current epidemiologist told the newspaper: “It’s hard to say how contagious it is, Since it comes to chickenpox, we have been following the disease for several years. The contagiousness of the Delta appears to be very uneven; in some cases one person infects a hundred people, then we have other times when an infected person does not infect anyone at all. In addition, he warned that the spread of the variant was Higher among youth who violate social distancing guidelines as much as seniors.

Corn Despite zero infections in many municipalities, Tegnell does not believe in any way that the pandemic is over. “There is a need for preparation and attention everywhere. No conclusion should be drawn from the fact that no patient was found in a commune this week. It can have serious consequences if you let your guard down, ”he said.

On Monday, Tegnell a d vaccine booster plans for the most vulnerable citizens from early September. “The assessment is that it is not possible to eradicate the virus and therefore the vaccination work must be long term and focused on reducing serious illness and death, ”the health chief said.

The Swedish Ministry of Health claimed that he hopes that the entire adult population will have received two injections in the fall and that there will be a good supply of vaccines in the years to come. The health authority did not give an exact figure of the number of people who would receive a third cut next year, but said a large part of the population will be offered another.

Europe has passed 60 million cases of coronavirus, the World Health Organization (WHO), who urged promote vaccination and respect social and health control measures against the pandemic.

The European region, which includes 53 countries, is the second most infected after the American (with 77 million) and has so far recorded more than 1.2 million deaths from COVID-19. “The end of the pandemic is still on the horizon. It is important that countries continue their combined efforts to protect the most vulnerable populations and those who are at risk, ”said the director of Emergencies in a statement. of WHO-Europe, Dorit Nitzan.

The WHO remembered that vaccination rates vary widely from country to country and that in some cases the coverage of priority groups such as people over 60, health workers and the population at risk is “low”. “To end the pandemic we need to scale up immunization quickly and fairly in all countries, including supporting the production of doses in an appropriate manner and distributing them to protect the vulnerable population, ”he said. Nitzan. In addition to the imposition of vaccination, it is necessary perform tests, test sequencing, monitoring and isolations and quarantines, as well as washing hands, wearing masks and keeping a distance in crowded and closed areas.

The WHO also insisted that When traveling or making appointments, it is important to respect health and social measures and to constantly assess the possible risks.

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