In China, cases of pneumonia are currently increasing among children. Beijing attributes this to the lifting of the Corona measures. The WHO calls for clarification.
According to a statement, the World Health Organization (WHO) has requested information from Chinese hospitals and laboratory results: So far it is unclear whether the pneumonia in children is related to the general increase in respiratory diseases such as Covid-19 or flu.
The Chinese authorities attribute the increase in such illnesses to the lifting of corona measures, as Tong Zhaohui, head of the Beijing Center for Respiratory Diseases, said last week. With the normalization of prevention and control, the diseases behaved as before the pandemic and the incidence leveled off again. “This is also a normal development,” said Tong.
WHO appeals to the population
Almost a year ago, Beijing suddenly lifted all measures after almost three years of a strict zero-Covid policy. After there were hardly any corona cases in China for a long time, the virus then spread rapidly. According to studies, 90 percent of the 1.4 billion people became infected in just a few weeks. An estimated 1.5 million people died.
The WHO has now called on the Chinese population to take measures to reduce the risk of respiratory diseases: for example, get vaccinated, keep your distance, stay at home if you are sick and wear masks.
Benjamin Eyssel, ARD Beijing, tagesschau, November 23rd, 2023 12:55 p.m