Whooping cough and covid are on the rise in Sweden – now comes mpox

The number of cases of whooping cough has skyrocketed, at the same time as covid is increasing in the country.

And in the background lurks a new threat, the mpox virus.

– We will start the autumn vaccination effort in mid-October, which includes both the vaccine against covid-19 and the flu, says state epidemiologist Magnus Gisslén.

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In May, the Public Health Authority went out and warned that whooping cough had skyrocketed, after being at relatively low levels.

The peak from the full year of 2017, at 805 reported cases, is the highest in the last ten years.

But up to and including July this year, 739 cases have already been confirmed, according to data from the Public Health Agency.

– The number of cases of whooping cough has increased sharply during the summer. The fact that the increase is so large now is largely due to the fact that we had very few cases during the pandemic years. When few are sick, immunity in the population decreases and now we see the consequences of that, says Magnus Gisslén, who is a state epidemiologist at the Public Health Agency as well as an infectious disease doctor and professor at the Sahlgrenska Academy.

The largest national group is infants, who in some cases can become seriously ill.

– Children receive their first vaccine dose when they are three months old and the vaccine provides good protection against serious symptoms. But pregnant women are also recommended to take the vaccine to give their babies protection during the first months of life, says Magnus Gisslén.

The infection is expected to gain new momentum this autumn

The number of covid cases has also increased in the past month. Week 32 remained at the same level as week 31, when 630 new cases were registered in Sweden. That was an increase of eleven percent compared to week 30.

In addition, autumn is approaching, and then the spread of infection is expected to gain new momentum, which the Public Health Agency is now preparing for.

– We will start the autumn’s vaccination efforts in mid-October, where both vaccines against covid-19 and influenza are included, says Magnus Gisslén.

Therefore covid is increasing

According to The Public Health Authority the increasing spread of covid is likely due to circulating variants with mutations that give the virus an improved ability to bypass the immunity people have built up.

Everyone over 65 is recommended to take the vaccine, while those over 80 and people with care needs at home are recommended to take it twice a year.

– But the vast majority do not need to be vaccinated. The risk of serious illness is very low for others, says Gisslén.

“Not impossible that we will have more import cases”

At the same time, a new threat lurks in the background.

Last Thursday, the Public Health Authority announced that Sweden has a confirmed case of the new mpox variant class 1, which caused concern in the country. The virus had been discovered in a patient who had recently visited one of the affected areas in Africa.

But the risk that it would cause an extensive spread in Sweden is low, according to Magnus Gisslén.

– It is not at all impossible that we get more import cases and then it is important that we can quickly discover and deal with those people according to all the rules of the art. At the same time, the situation on the African continent is worrying. We are following the situation closely and are also preparing for an outbreak in Sweden, even if it is not particularly likely. We have close cooperation with other countries, including ECDC and WHO and also with Swedish authorities, he says.