Category: Feature Stories

The current Covid 19 summer wave is driving primarily the Omicron variant BA.5. The problem: its symptoms are similar to those of the common cold and flu. The shortest known interval between two Sars-CoV-2 infections is 23 days.The omicron variant BA.5 is causing a Covid-19 summer wave in Austria and other countries. For example, 138,213 new cases were registered in the United Kingdom as of July 21. The seven-day average was 39,673 cases, according to British government data. However, the official figures only include cases still detected and reported despite…

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Already every fourth person has a migration background. This is shown in the statistical yearbook on integration, which was presented on Monday, and the integration report. The number of Syrians and Afghans has risen particularly sharply since 2015, as also Romanians, Bulgarians, and Hungarians. Challenges exist in the labor market and health sector, where people with a migration background use preventive care and vaccinations less. Because there are already more than 30,000 asylum applications and 80,000 registrations of displaced persons from Ukraine, Integration Minister Susanne Raab (ÖVP) spoke of a…

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The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global health emergency Saturday because of monkeypox. An overview of critical issues surrounding the disease. Everyone should know this early symptomNearly 16,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported in 72 countries worldwide since early May, according to the latest data. According to the Health Ministry, 99 cases have been reported in Austria. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international health emergency on Saturday. What is monkeypox?Monkeypox is an infectious disease transmitted initially primarily by viruses from animals to humans. In Africa, monkeypox…

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A study from Denmark provides new insights into the effectiveness of vaccination against the omicron mutant BA.5.Vaccination alone was long thought to protect against the corona mutant effectively. A study from Denmark provides new insight. Worldwide, it is currently being observed that distinctions are becoming increasingly crucial regarding which variants a population was infected with. This is because not all corona variants protect equally well against waves of new variants: for example, BA.5 has already been the predominant variant in Austria for weeks – 75 percent of all corona infections…

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The Corona mutant BA.2.75, also known as “Centaurus,” feared by experts, has arrived in the country. So far, Corona summers have been a time when case numbers have been stable at (very) low levels and concern in the country has been relatively quiet – but in 2022, everything is different. Corona cases are usually in the five-digit range; on Friday, there were 11,115 (for comparison, precisely one year ago, there were 392 cases). Now comes the next Corona-Watsch’n: The scary “Centaurus” mutant has officially arrived in Austria; in Salzburg, two…

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WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced at a press conference Saturday. Geneva. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the monkeypox outbreak in more than 60 countries an “emergency of international concern.” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus thus announced Saturday in Geneva the highest alert level it can impose in the event of a health threat. There are no practical consequences. The classification is intended to encourage member governments to take action to contain the outbreak. They should raise awareness among doctors and clinics, take protective measures in suspected cases…

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What used to be a record is now average. Without global climate protection, a further doubling to tripling of heat days is expected in Austria by 2100, as an evaluation by ZAMG shows. The number of heat days in Austria multiplies.According to ZAMG, the number of heat days (at least 30 degrees) has multiplied in Austria in recent decades. From 1961 to 1990, there were between three and twelve heat days per year in the provincial capitals, and the records were mostly 20 heat days per year. From 1991 to…

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Corona vaccines have saved millions of lives – but have not significantly reduced the spread of the virus, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Because of that, an appeal from the organization came Friday to researchers. The organization called on them to develop new vaccines that reduce contagions. Otherwise, the risk remains that virus variants will develop against which the vaccines are less effective. Vaccines that are easier to administer than before, such as nasal sprays, are also needed. The WHO also updated its vaccination targets. It now aims…

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On July 29, 2022, at 3 p.m., church bells throughout Austria will ring for five minutes. The ringing is intended to draw attention – at the hour of Jesus’ death – to the fact that people die of hunger every day. As in previous years, the Austrian Bishops’ Conference is supporting this cause for the fifth time: “In as many parishes as possible,” the church bells should ring for five minutes on the last Friday in July, according to the bishops’ resolution at their recent summer plenary session. Under the…

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