machinetranslated
Wednesday 1st December
Denmark hit by pneumonia epidemic
Thousands of Danes are hit by cold pneumonia the next few months.
Doctors confirm now that the Cold pneumonia that has plagued many Danes in the autumn, now is a country covering epidemic.
Over two weeks, the number of positive samples increased more than tenfold across the country, said State Serum Institute.
- There is now talk of a nationwide epidemic that will last some months. It affects mainly older children and younger adults, said Dr. Kari Mølbak, department at Statens Serum Institut. He estimates that thousands will be infected.
Prolonged cough
The last nationwide epidemic of the disease, Mycoplasma pneumoae was in 2004-05. The disease is popularly called cold pneumonia, but this is misleading as it is in fact very few people actually get pneumonia.
Characteristic of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection is a prolonged cough that can be very tiring, especially at night.
According to Kari Mølbak dolls nationwide epidemics up every four to six years, and doctors expect that it will last approx. three to four months.
Avoiding infection
The disease is not very contagious and is transmitted only through close contact. Risk of infection can be reduced if avoiding close contact with sick and if they are sick provides to cough into a tissue.
Ritzau
Wednesday 1st December
Denmark hit by pneumonia epidemic
Thousands of Danes are hit by cold pneumonia the next few months.
Doctors confirm now that the Cold pneumonia that has plagued many Danes in the autumn, now is a country covering epidemic.
Over two weeks, the number of positive samples increased more than tenfold across the country, said State Serum Institute.
- There is now talk of a nationwide epidemic that will last some months. It affects mainly older children and younger adults, said Dr. Kari Mølbak, department at Statens Serum Institut. He estimates that thousands will be infected.
Prolonged cough
The last nationwide epidemic of the disease, Mycoplasma pneumoae was in 2004-05. The disease is popularly called cold pneumonia, but this is misleading as it is in fact very few people actually get pneumonia.
Characteristic of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection is a prolonged cough that can be very tiring, especially at night.
According to Kari Mølbak dolls nationwide epidemics up every four to six years, and doctors expect that it will last approx. three to four months.
Avoiding infection
The disease is not very contagious and is transmitted only through close contact. Risk of infection can be reduced if avoiding close contact with sick and if they are sick provides to cough into a tissue.
Ritzau
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