CORONA UPDATE

Update for the post: Coronavirus – Headline Killer

Updated 25.3.2020

The Coronavirus post sparked a heated debate on Facebook. I was accused of underestimating the Coronavirus and in the same breathe was claimed, that the place for a flu child is not “at home and isolated”. In Finland, things are strange: we can endlessly speculate about the crepuscular threats, but issues just front of our noses (literally, in the form of a booger) are ignored.

It is also true, that the symptoms of a cold, flu and coronavirus are confusingly same. Without laboratory tests, it is basically impossible to determine whether an infection has occurred, what virus it is, and what virus strain it represents.

For full list of inflectional disease symptoms, please refer to: for cold, for flu (influenza), for COVID-19

I wasn’t a parent in Finland for a very long time, most of that time we spent abroad: in Estonia and now in Portugal. In both countries, a child’s sickness is taken very seriously. Each sneeze is examined: CRP values ​​are taken, blood tests are maintained if needed. And by no means the child is allowed to the nursery or school, but sent to home care. I don’t remember we had “10 flus a year”. From 4-5 cases a year (in the first year in the nursery), we moved to 0-1 a year. Between the ages of 0-3.5 our child was almost never sick (we had a babysitter at home), (we went to the clinic and doctor mainly for vaccinations). We took all available vaccination for our child (free and paid).

In Portuguese schools, every cough is examined same carefully. If any symptoms appear, the  child has to stay home until the doctor determines he/she doesn’t have any contagious diseases any more. I’ve just got my child home. I can not say that I am glad that he will be absent from school, and we will have to see a doctor and apply for a healthy certificate. But I respect the school politics and guidance issued during the influenza season. It is comforting to notice the illness is the first in nearly half a year of school.

In Finland, the risk of contracting a coronavirus infection is insignificant (it certainly does not stick from AliExpress packages :)), but for example, the flu infection, especially during the high season (which has just begun according to THL), is really high.

I do not know if there is a person who can visually differ H1N1pdm09, H3N2, 2019-nCoV, A, B, C, D and Ö – influenza and flu viruses, especially in the very early stage of the disease. I don’t want to take the risk that my child is a virus wholesaler  at school or in a nursery. The practice in our family is the parents with lesser workload stay home with the child. Oh, and now many can do their jobs remotely, so there is much less excuse to send a sick child to school or daycare.

I would like to hope that the clamour around the coronavirus brought also some immediate benefits to our daily lives. Namely, this year the flu is spreading slowlier than in previous years and has not reached epidemic numbers (hopefully nor fatalities will occur, at least in Finland). Increased awareness and conscious daily hygiene may also protect us from infectious diseases.

Some more statistics (as 12.2.2020): 

There is a 3 minute difference between these two screen captures

To compare with more recent data:

Also the credibility of the information source is extremely important. No idea to point your finger at blog posts and columns of attention-needy news channels. Here is my list of got-to web pages to get first-hand  information, when I need it (also for these sources were used to write the posts):

Here I also add links to Wash Your Hands Properly video from Turku – (although I know you are fed up of it) and Don’t Pick Your Nose – video.

Watch them with your kids!

And now go wash your hands!

Suomeksi täällä

More information on the topic:

• Seasonal flu death estimate increases worldwide | CDC Online Newsroom
• Up to 650 000 people die of respiratory diseases linked to seasonal flu each year