There are many dangerous diseases on the rise. Think of whooping cough, measles or scabies. But those are not the only diseases reaching record numbers. 2023 was a record year for dangerous and infectious diseases. And 2024 has started even faster. That’s what ‘Het Nieuwsblad’ writes.
One of the diseases that is seriously on the rise in terms of infections is whooping cough. The disease is very dangerous for babies, who also get the disease most often. This year, 23 babies under one year old have already been admitted to hospital. The Department of Healthcare therefore calls on pregnant women to have themselves and their newborn(s) vaccinated against the disease. In 2024, 672 reports of whooping cough have already been registered, in other years there are on average fewer than 1,000 cases annually
The second major ‘player’ goes by the name measles. Europe warned about this this week as many more were registered this year than in other years. Normally you can count the infections on an annual basis on one hand, last year there were 35 and this year 11 cases have already been identified. Since the virus was also found in Brussels sewage water, infections are likely to increase. Vaccination is the message, because virologists state that a vaccination rate of 95% is necessary to prevent outbreaks.
The skin disease scabies is also experiencing a huge increase in infections. The disease caused by a mite was already discovered this year in Steenokkerzeel and causes enormous itching, flakes and blisters. In 2023, a total of 139 cases were diagnosed, this year there are already 148. Scabies is not at all life-threatening, but given that transmission occurs through contact, hundreds of people quickly have to be treated preventively with ointment in the event of infections.
In addition, some venereal diseases are also reaching new heights. Gonorrhea, also called ‘drip’, has already been diagnosed 4,356 times, while this happened approximately 3,585 times in 2023. The STD is often without symptoms, but must be treated with antibiotics. Syphilis has also often been seen. Sores around the mouth and genitals are transmitted through sexual contact and have already been diagnosed 1,268 times, compared to 1,189 last year.
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Tags: Whooping cough measles STDs scabies dangerous diseases record year Domestic
