Virologist Stöhr sees new spread phenomenon: "Corona measures are almost useless"
Created: 2022-02-13Updated: 2022-02-13, 10:32 p.m
By: Franziska Schwarz
Klaus Stöhr believes that Germany is lagging behind the “epidemiological time” in the fight against corona.
He makes three points as justification.
Berlin – As far as easing is concerned, Germany should – at least currently – take an example from abroad, says Klaus Stöhr.
"They obviously understood that ultimately controlling the spread of infection is almost impossible or only possible to a very limited extent," said the virologist and epidemiologist at the weekend in a video interview with the editors of the
world
.
The reason is that the corona pathogen is now "circulating freely" in the population and many people who are diagnosed with an infection when admitted to the hospital have no symptoms, he believes.
“And whether you then quarantine or not, whether you implement contact tracing or not, changes almost nothing in the infection process.
Even with 2G or 2G-Plus
(Editor's note: in retail)
you can hardly achieve anything.
That seems to have been well understood in other countries," said Stöhr.
Virologist Stöhr: The burden of disease will remain the same until the end of the corona pandemic
Then Stöhr came to the burden of illness, for him another reason why the measures are currently no longer of any use.
"It doesn't matter whether everyone gets infected in the next four weeks or in the next four months, ultimately everyone will have to deal with their fate of infection - hopefully people are vaccinated, then it will go almost unnoticed." But until the end of the pandemic there will be the disease burden no longer changes.
The number curves for intensively treated corona patients in other EU countries are currently falling or horizontal.
"And that's why they opened... I think other countries understood that better than we did."
New PCR test rule in Germany:
Stöhr also considers the question of the new nationwide PCR test regulation to be “survived”.
Because these tests were positive for those affected – under certain circumstances – “for weeks” even if they are no longer infectious.
This is also one reason why corona patients in intensive care units are sometimes not discharged.
"Here you really have to go one step further with the test strategy and ask yourself what still makes sense at the moment."
Stöhr also no longer believes that “unreasoned” testing in schools makes sense.
“We are very much behind the epidemiological time”.
With a view to the next Corona summit with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on February 16, he said: “I hope that in the Prime Ministers’ Conference someone will take those who are spreading so much panic aside and try to take their fear away .”
It is right to be concerned about the pandemic, especially because there are still two to three million people over the age of 60 in Germany who are not vaccinated.
Stöhr now called for a phased plan for easing, because that would take away people's fears, according to the 63-year-old.
(frs)
