The lockdown has saved more than 3 million lives in Europe from the deadly corona virus, a British study has calculated. But there are also victims, who are caused by the same lockdown measures. For a long time, GPs and hospitals hardly saw any more ordinary patients.
Without lockdown rules, the number of coronavirus deaths in Europe would have risen to 3.2 million by early May. The researchers at Imperial College London estimate that in the scientific Nature magazine. In reality there were on that currently more than 140,000 dead, much less so.
The researchers made their estimate based on figures from eleven European countries, including Great Britain, Italy, France and Spain. The Netherlands was not included in the study. An second investigation in Nature, which looked at the lockdown measures in six countries (China, South Korea, Italy, Iran, France and America) came to the same conclusion: the lockdown measures are effective. They have slowed down the outbreak and saved lives, the researchers write.
Virus still going around
But the danger has not yet passed, the researchers immediately warn. In fact – we are at the beginning. The virus is still going around. Few people are immune to the virus, a survey of blood donors showed last week. There are about ten vaccines under investigation in humans, but those studies are still at an early stage. It will take months before the first vaccine will hit the market. There is no good medicine yet. The drugs where there was still some hope, such as the malaria drug chloroquine, do little or nothing in research. Now that the lockdown rules are being relaxed again, it is therefore important to watch out for a new outbreak.
Ronald Koeman
On the other hand, the lockdown itself is not a harmless means. An important downside is that many concerns have been canceled since the coronavirus outbreak. National coach Ronald Koeman told Beau that his appointment with the cardiologist was canceled by the corona, after which he had to be treated urgently for serious heart problems.
The Alexander Monroe hospital made a rough calculation that there may be 500 extra breast cancer deaths will be, due to the pause in breast cancer screening. Medical Ethicist Erwin Kompanje warned that not the virus, but the one and a half meter society may have become fatal in the stricter lockdown period. ‘that they did not die from the virus but from loneliness and wasting.’
These are just some of the ‘side effects’ of the lockdown measures. The consequences of this have not yet been mapped out by researchers.
Sources: Nature, RTL news, Volkskrant, Algemeen Dagblad
The care starts again. Read more about the new normal at the doctor here.
