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Two sick children on a sofa (icon image)
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Josep Rovirosa / imago images/Westend61
This number should not surprise many parents in Germany: According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), from October to the end of December there were 24 million respiratory infections among 12 million children.
In addition to Sars-CoV-2, RS viruses and flu viruses had primarily spread, the RKI announced on the numbers.
"The waves of infection caused by the two pathogens were simultaneous, unusually early and unusually strong."
A possible reason is that these pathogens did not occur to the usual extent in the first two and a half years of the pandemic.
For the 72 million adults, the RKI speaks of around 67 million respiratory diseases in the period.
The numbers were calculated from information provided by citizens on an RKI portal, which the RKI uses to monitor the occurrence of acute respiratory diseases.
Influenza wave over, but respiratory diseases widespread
According to the definition of the RKI’s influenza working group, the flu epidemic has been over since the first week of 2023.
In its weekly report, the RKI nevertheless wrote of a significant increase in acute respiratory diseases in Germany in the past week.
This seems to be caused by a "combination of the circulation of various respiratory pathogens, including the typical cold viruses," it said.
The value was therefore in the upper range of the pre-pandemic years at the same time.
atb/dpa
