Casualties of War
COVID-19 Resurgence, Other Infections and the Loss of Healthcare for 3 Million People BY MARIE ROSENTHAL, MS
ust as the world was taking baby steps toward a return to normal after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia invaded Ukraine, forcing a tidal wave of more than 3 million refugees into neighboring countries. Along with this humanitarian crisis comes another casualty of war: a possible resurgence of COVID-19 and other infections. “Even if the pandemic hadn’t happened, it is well known that whenever you get mass migration, this favors infectious disease transmission,” said Mark Wilcox, MD, FRCPath, a professor of medical microbiology and the Sir Edward Brotherton Chair of Bacteriology at the University of Leeds, in England, who is also a member of the editorial advisory board of Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE). “So, if you look at the history of influenza or the history of meningococcal disease, you get peaks whenever you have mass migration. Unfortunately, it’s very predictable, and this is a mass
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migration where we will almost certainly see a resurgence of COVID-19,” he said.
The Threats After weeks of decline, COVID-19 has started inching back up in Europe. In fact, cases around the world increased 8% by March 14, a reminder that COVID-19 is not over, according to Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, MS, PhD, the director-general of the World Health Organization. “Although reported [COVID-19] cases and deaths are declining globally, and several countries have lifted restrictions, the pandemic is far from over, and it will not be over ‘anywhere’ until it’s over ‘everywhere,’” Dr. Tedros said at a media update. The big unknown is the effect the war in Ukraine will have on the pandemic. Will there be another surge, a new variant of concern, or will this mass migration just allow for efficient
Photos: WHO / Marta Soszynska
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