NUcheckt: We already have an answer to these # ikdoenietmeermee questions | NOW

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Message from singer Tim Douwsma. (Image: Instagram / timdouwsma)

Berge said on a radio station Tuesday morning Radio 538 that the message was not malicious. Contrary to what the hashtag #ikdoenietmeermee suggests, the Dutch celebrities involved still adhere to the corona measures. They would, however, like to receive answers to a number of “critical questions”, according to the singer. Fortunately, many of the questions in the Instagram post can already be answered. An overview:

“What’s the point of being five feet away?”

It RIVM, the American Centers for Disease Control and health organization WHO all emphasize that keeping a distance is useful. The virus mainly spreads through droplets that people release when they talk, cough or sneeze. These relatively large drops don’t get that far due to gravity. According to the RIVM, they rarely go further than 1.5 meters.

Also out research Measures against SARS, MERS and the corona virus show that keeping your distance reduces the risk of infection. Scientists are not yet in agreement on which distance is the best. That is why in some countries, for example, the rule applies that you must stay 2 meters away from others, while we must keep 1.5 meters from each other.

Keeping your distance reduces the risk of infection, but it cannot prevent all infections. This is because the drops can still bridge a greater distance under certain circumstances – for example during sports. In addition, smaller droplets that remain in the air for a longer period of time also seem to play a role in the spread of the corona virus.

“What’s the use of non-medical face masks?”

There is no conclusive answer to that yet. There has been discussion for some time about the usefulness of mouth masks, and in particular about the usefulness of mouth masks outside the medical world. Partly for this reason, we only need to wear mouth masks in public transport in the Netherlands.

from research it has already been found that you spread fewer droplets with virus particles if you wear a paper surgical mask when you have a cold or the flu. Dentists, among others, wear such masks. It is not yet clear whether this works so well in practice that you can prevent infections with the corona virus. We also do not yet know how many people should wear a mouth cap to prevent one infection.

“How reliable is the PCR test?”

The test used by the GGD (the PCR test) can very reliably demonstrate genetic material of the coronavirus, professor of medical microbiology Bert Niesters at the University of Groningen and clinical virologist Jeroen van Kampen of Erasmus MC previously told NU. nl out. If the test result is positive, then genetic material from the coronavirus has been found in your throat or nose.

This does not automatically mean that you can spread the corona virus even further. German research previously showed that infected people can no longer infect others about eight days after their infection, but that some test positive for the coronavirus for longer. That is why it is important to test when you have complaints. Then there is a good chance that a recent infection is detected and that you are still contagious.

“Where did the flu go?”

There was indeed a flu epidemic last winter, but it was mild. And in the summer, the flu stays quiet anyway. Last winter, there was a flu epidemic for five weeks, according to healthcare institute Nivel. In the first three weeks (from the end of January to mid-February) not a single COVID-19 case had been diagnosed in the Netherlands. In these three weeks, the excess mortality was 404 people: 404 more people died in the Netherlands than the average in that period.

In mid-March, there were two more weeks in which there was a flu epidemic. These were simultaneously the first two weeks of the COVID-19 epidemic in the Netherlands. In these two weeks, 203 people died more than usual.

These are relatively few extra deaths compared to the past two years, but this number is not unique. In the winter of 2013/2014, there was no flu epidemic at all and in 2010/2011 the epidemic was comparable to that of 2019/2020. Why a flu season is mild is even difficult to determine afterwards. A mild winter seems to increase the chances of a mild flu season, as does a well-functioning flu shot. Well before the arrival of the corona virus last winter, it was clear that this season would be a mild flu season.

“How deadly is this virus?”

The death rate among COVID-19 patients depends, among other things, on the average age and the quality of healthcare. That is why mortality rates vary widely by country.

British research shows that a COVID-19 patient between the ages of 15 and 44 has a low risk of dying from this disease. This is a 0.03 percent chance. This means that if 10,000 people in this age group get COVID-19, three will die. But for people aged 45 to 64, the chance of death if you have COVID-19 is already 0.5 percent. For the age group 65 to 74, the probability is 3.1 percent and for the oldest group (over-75s) 11.6 percent. According to this study, this means that if 10,000 people over 75 get COVID-19, 1,160 will die.

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