DAccording to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the nationwide corona incidence has increased significantly less in the past week than recently. The number of new infections reported within seven days per 100,000 inhabitants increased by eight percent in the past week compared to the previous week, as the RKI wrote in its Corona weekly report on Thursday evening. A week earlier the increase had been 28 percent, two weeks earlier even 54 percent.
However, the incidences only provide an incomplete picture of the infection situation. Experts have been assuming for some time that there will be a large number of cases not recorded by the RKI.
In the past week, people have gone to the doctor about 425,000 times with a corona infection and symptoms of an acute respiratory disease. A week earlier, there were around 400,000 such visits to the doctor. The RKI wrote that the significant increase in these values recently recorded has also leveled off – with the exception of the 60 to 79 year olds. In children aged 5 to 14 years, the number of these doctor visits has even decreased. “This may also be related to the autumn holidays in many federal states.”
The EU Commission has approved the first corona vaccines for babies and a preparation adapted to omicron variants. The preparations from the manufacturers Pfizer/Biontech and Moderna may in future be administered to babies from the age of six months, as the commission decided on Thursday. In doing so, she followed a recommendation from the EU medicines agency EMA. Both vaccines are already approved for adults and children from the age of five and six respectively. The doses for babies and young children are significantly lower.
Whether babies and toddlers will actually be offered a corona vaccination in the future is now a decision of the respective EU countries. According to the EMA experts, studies had shown that even babies and young children would be protected from infection at a very low dose.
At the same time, the EU Commission approved a Moderna vaccine adapted to two omicron variants on Thursday. According to the EMA, the preparation is effective against the original coronavirus and the two subvariants BA.4 and BA.5. The EMA experts recommend the adapted vaccine as a protection booster for people aged 12 and over. It is the second adapted Spikevax vaccine to be approved. EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides wrote on Twitter: “As the number of cases rises again in Europe, it is important that everyone increases their protection with vaccination and boosters this winter.”
