For a long time, Sweden was considered the absolute winner of the Corona crisis, as the country made it through time without a lockdown.
But now it is clear: The corona virus has done more in Sweden than previously thought.
While large parts of Europe went into lockdown in the spring,
Sweden
maneuvered
the country through the crisis without major restrictions.
But the country's numbers are shockingly high.
A victim now describes extreme
long-term consequences
.
Stockholm - While everyday life almost came to
a standstill
in many parts of the world
,
Sweden
apparently
made it
through the Corona crisis *.
Without
temporarily closing
shops, restaurants or even
schools
and
kindergartens
.
But the goal of
herd immunity
could also have caused damage - even if scientists are now making a provocative thesis on Sweden's corona policy.
While
the
economy
slumped
in large parts of
Europe
, the Swedish government, together with its state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell, relied on personal responsibility.
Keep your distance, reduce contact with others and adhere to the hygiene rules.
The country did not even enforce a mask requirement in public.
But the number of infections * also rose rapidly in Sweden.
Corona in Sweden: the number of infections is increasing extremely - but how many people are actually infected?
The country had around 85,000 official infections * and almost 6,000
deaths
by the end of August.
A number that at first glance should not sound high compared to countries like India, where the number of corona cases is rising rapidly.
But since the country only has around 10 million
inhabitants
, the result is a frightening balance: around 8,500 infected people and around 575 deaths per million inhabitants.
This is how the Tagesschau calculates it at the end of August.
According to this calculation, the dimension of the
fiasco
in
Sweden is
clearly noticeable in direct comparison with Germany.
According to the Tagesschau, around 2,750 people are said to have been infected and 110 people died for
around one
million
Germans.
But how many people in
Sweden have
actually been infected with the corona virus * is currently unclear.
Because while the test strategy was quickly increased in Germany, a
corona test
in
Sweden
was only reserved for seriously ill people and medical staff until the summer.
At least that's how the media from Sweden report it.
A pair of parents from Sweden therefore chose their own way of protecting against the virus.
The two locked their three children in the home for four months.
Corona in Sweden: those affected report extreme long-term consequences
But that's not all, the country now seems
to be struggling
with some of the
long-term consequences of
the Corona crisis *.
For example
, a
nurse
from Sweden
told
Welt
about her long struggle into normal life after the young woman became infected with the corona virus.
Julia Sundström had cured her infection herself at home, the course was not difficult enough for a hospital stay.
But even months after healing from the corona virus, Sundström still struggled with the consequences.
The nurse initially only worked part-time.
“I had to rest every now and then,” the 26-year-old told
Welt
. Although the young woman is currently working full-time in a hospital, she still has
to struggle
with
exhaustion, concentration problems and sometimes even a fever
. According to this, Sundström has Had no previous illnesses and yet a doctor could not guarantee that she
would live
without
long-term consequences of
the
infection
in the future
.
Corona in Sweden: Could tougher measures have prevented something?
But the case of the 26-year-old Swede is far from being an isolated case.
As the newspaper further reports, the cases of long-term complaints in the country are now said to be increasing.
“In my opinion, you weren't careful enough at the beginning.
The threshold for being considered a suspected
Covid-19 case
was quite high, "explains the young nurse in the interview. She herself thinks that tougher measures could have kept the damage in her country lower." It's bad to see, how many people are actually suffering from the consequences of the
virus
. I think there should have been more
measures
to prevent it from spreading, "said Sundström.
It is not uncommon for an infection with the coronavirus to lead to a severe course of the disease.
German researchers are now reporting a new worrying observation.
When the corona virus spread in Germany, one district in particular had to struggle with the spread.
Now the cause seems to have been found.
* merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen digital editorial network.
In Canada, a woman with cancer was not allowed into an arcade because she could not cover a hole in her throat that was needed to breathe.
List of rubric lists: © dpa / Andrew Milligan