General Coronavirus chit chat thread - non-travel specific

[OZDUCK]

As was, unfortunately, foreseeable the rapid rise in infections in Europe is now translating into a rapid rise in deaths. This follows on from signs that medical systems in some countries are becoming overstressed and radical choices are having to be made.

Coronavirus: Europe's daily deaths rise by nearly 40% compared with last week - WHO

Intensive care units are now beginning to fill, the World Health Organization tells the BBC.

www.bbc.com

Belgian hospitals forced into 'bad decision' of using doctors infected with COVID-19

COVID-positive doctors and nurses are continuing to work in Belgian hospitals as a fresh wave of the pandemic creates an "impossible" situation for the country's medical system.

www.abc.net.au

 

[VPS]

This sounds eminently sensible (not)

 

[Flying mermaid]

Just checked worldometers and the daily figure for the US is 98,500 cases . I suppose the only good thing is so much more knowledge and treatments now than during the first wave.

 

[drron]

Europe is certainly in a bad place.
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However quite possibly this is due to another viral mutation which again increases infectivity.

Welcome to Precision Vaccinations News

Precision Vaccinations News publishes vaccine news patients can trust to make informed immunization decisions in partnership with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists.

www.coronavirustoday.com

However it will put strain on some countries hospital systems.Just look at the UK-one of the lowest hospital bed numbers per population in Europe.
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The UK is also a little low on critical bed numbers.
.

 

[jeza]

Live: Australia records first day without locally acquired COVID case since June

 

[drron]

We are still learning about this virus.
It is possible that young children are less likely to become positive because the MMR vaccine may be protective.

Welcome to Precision Vaccinations News

Precision Vaccinations News publishes vaccine news patients can trust to make informed immunization decisions in partnership with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists.

www.coronavirustoday.com

And working out the different effects on the nervous system.
First it may initially alleviate pain.

https://journals.lww.com/pain/Abstract/9000/SARS_CoV_2_Spike_protein_co_opts.98244.aspx

But then it may get into the peripheral nerves and cause pain and other neurogenic symptoms.

https://journals.lww.com/pain/Abstract/2020/11000/ACE2_and_SCARF_expression_in_human_dorsal_root.7.aspx

 

[drron]

The article that showed convalescent plasma was not effective in treating severe Covid.

Study shows no clinical benefit of using convalescent plasma in patients with COVID-19 severe pneumonia

The use of convalescent plasma therapy in addition to standard treatment in patients with severe pneumonia due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) did not reduce mortality or improve other clinical outcomes at day 30, compared with placebo, suggests a study published in The New England...

dgalerts.docguide.com

Type 2 diabetics treated with insulin alone do badly.

Insulin treatment is associated with increased mortality in patients with COVID-19 and type 2 diabetes: Study

Insulin treatment in patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and type 2 diabetes was associated with a significant increase in mortality, according to a study published in Cell Metabolism. Bo Yu, MD, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China and colleagues retrospectively...

dgalerts.docguide.com

 

[drron]

Houston offering pre flight Covid testing.Though that didn't work for Tahiti.

Welcome to Precision Vaccinations News

Precision Vaccinations News publishes vaccine news patients can trust to make informed immunization decisions in partnership with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists.

www.coronavirustoday.com

Some more good news.During the pandemic HIV and STDs are less.

Welcome to Precision Vaccinations News

Precision Vaccinations News publishes vaccine news patients can trust to make informed immunization decisions in partnership with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists.

www.coronavirustoday.com

And a Portugese Appeals court has ruled PCR tests not enough to enforce Quarantine for tourists.But saying a case must be diagnosed by a doctor.

Acórdão do Tribunal da Relação de Lisboa

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Some more good news.During the pandemic HIV and STDs are less.

Welcome to Precision Vaccinations News

Precision Vaccinations News publishes vaccine news patients can trust to make informed immunization decisions in partnership with doctors, nurses, and pharmacists.

www.coronavirustoday.com

The full headline says HIV and STD testing has halved... leading to concerns that HIV and STDs are not being managed.

 

[drron]

Vitamin D lack associated with more severe disease.Possibly one reason why Tasmania had a higher mortality rate than the rest of Australia.

Vitamin D deficiency on admission associated with COVID-19 disease stage and mortality: Study

Vitamin D deficiency on admission was associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease stage and mortality, according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Pathology.Dieter De Smet, MD, AZ Delta Medical Laboratories, Roeselare, Belgium, and colleagues conducted a...

dgalerts.docguide.com

 

[Flashback]

Vitamin D lack associated with more severe disease.Possibly one reason why Tasmania had a higher mortality rate than the rest of Australia.

Vitamin D deficiency on admission associated with COVID-19 disease stage and mortality: Study

Vitamin D deficiency on admission was associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease stage and mortality, according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Pathology.Dieter De Smet, MD, AZ Delta Medical Laboratories, Roeselare, Belgium, and colleagues conducted a...

dgalerts.docguide.com

The NHS is doing their bit to tackle this for those shielding.

Vitamin D

Find out about vitamin D, including what it does, how much you need, and how to ensure you get enough.

www.nhs.uk

 

[drron]

Immunocompromised may shed live virus for 2 months after infection.

Shedding of viable SARS-CoV-2 after immunosuppressive therapy for cancer

Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and with profound immunosuppression after undergoing hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation or receiving cellular therapies may shed viable severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) for at least 2 months, according to a small...

dgalerts.docguide.com

And despite clotting being a factor in severe Covid disease those taking anticoagulants when getting Covid are not protected from severe disease.

Ongoing direct oral anticoagulant use not associated with reduced risk of severe COVID-19

Ongoing direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) use was not associated with reduced risk of severe coronavirus disease (COVID-19), indicating that prognosis would not be modified by early outpatient DOAC initiation, according to a study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine. “Identified as a...

dgalerts.docguide.com

Mohttps://academic.oup.com/cid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/cid/ciaa1785/6012472re evidence that Covid arrived in the USA before mid january 2020.Earliest positive antibodies in tested specimens were December 13-16.

 

[dajop]

The full headline says HIV and STD testing has halved... leading to concerns that HIV and STDs are not being managed.

What’s the cause and effect here?

A doctor friend here in Singapore had noted similar - a significant drop off on people presenting for such testing - but had noticed it increased again after opening up.

If you close pubs and nightclubs, close brothels, restrict people’s movements outside their homes it’s also entirely possible (tinder etc notwithstanding) that at risk behaviour for contracting STDs - casual sexual activity - may have declned as well.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

What’s the cause and effect here?

A doctor friend here in Singapore had noted similar - a significant drop off on people presenting for such testing - but had noticed it increased again after opening up.

If you close pubs and nightclubs, close brothels, restrict people’s movements outside their homes it’s also entirely possible (tinder etc notwithstanding) that at risk behaviour for contracting STDs - casual sexual activity - may have declned as well.

That's what I assumed too when I read the original post... that reduced activity resulted in reduced instances of STDs.

But I suppose the correlation isn't necessarily 1-for-1. There were still reports of illegal brothels in Vic during the lockdown. People still had 'initmate partner' bubbles. Others ignored restrictions. I suppose someone will do a study on it at some stage!

 

[drron]

Previous link suggested those Type 2 diabetics that are on insulin risk more severe covid.Now a report that women who have type 2 diabetes do better if on metformin.

Metformin and risk of mortality in patients hospitalised with COVID-19: a retrospective cohort analysis

Metformin was significantly associated with reduced mortality in women with obesity or type 2 diabetes who were admitted to hospital for COVID-19. Prospective studies are needed to understand mechanism and causality. If findings are reproducible, metformin could be widely distributed for...

www.thelancet.com

And more on vaccines.
The Moderna vaccine antibody effect is still effective after 3 months.

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2032195

Full immunity with the Pfizer vaccine takes 28 days after the first dose.
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The Russians are already vaccinating people with their Sputnik 5 vaccine despite not being properly certified.That means Putin is not able to be vaccinated as the Russian President is forbidden to use experimental drugs.

ZeroHedge

ZeroHedge - On a long enough timeline, the survival rate for everyone drops to zero

www.zerohedge.com

 

[OZDUCK]

An interesting article about the' claimed, missteps in trialing the "Oxford" vaccine. If what is reported is what actually occurred it does cast a lot of questions over the claimed efficacy of this vaccine. The step of asking the FDA for a 'rush' approval but not advising them that the trials had been suspended because of possible problems seems like a sure way to erode confidence.

Blunders Eroded U.S. Confidence in Early Vaccine Front-Runner (Published 2020)

The Oxford-AstraZeneca effort held great promise to help arrest the pandemic. But a series of miscues caused it to fall behind in the U.S.

www.nytimes.com

 

[CityRail]

Australian COVID vaccine terminated due to HIV ‘false positives’

The University of Queensland-CSL coronavirus vaccine will be abandoned after participants returned false positive HIV tests.

www.smh.com.au

UQ Vaccine failed. So now how dare can this government mandate people to get vaccinated before flights and enter Australia or Qantas flights?

To redeem the failure of UQ vaccine, I demand the Australian government to immediately purchase Moderna and Jenseen vaccine so that we can open the borders as soon as possible and allow us to go back to where we come from!

 

[Gold60]

As an early '60's aged person with compromised health, I am hoping we only have another year or two of travel bans to wait out before I can do some limited overseas travel. I plan to obviously wait out the travel bans period, and then wait and see what happens.

i will certainly be getting the vaccine when it is safe to do so - and then when i can get satisfactory Travel Insurance, hopefully i can choof off overseas.

or then again, who knows, IF we can establish a satisfactory a new normal, i maybe forever Oz bound if things don't go my way.

I hope i MAY be able to go to Northern Ireland, Canada and Thailand in 2024 - at the very earliest ?

Who Knows???

 

[Flashback]

Australian COVID vaccine terminated due to HIV ‘false positives’

The University of Queensland-CSL coronavirus vaccine will be abandoned after participants returned false positive HIV tests.

www.smh.com.au

UQ Vaccine failed. So now how dare can this government mandate people to get vaccinated before flights and enter Australia or Qantas flights?

To redeem the failure of UQ vaccine, I demand the Australian government to immediately purchase Moderna and Jenseen vaccine so that we can open the borders as soon as possible and allow us to go back to where we come from!

You can still leave any time. Nothing is stopping you. But you seem to keep ignoring that fact.

 

[tgh]

Brilliant and incisive applied intelligence, City Rail… Bravo

I am quite sure that our Prime Minister will be dazzled by the clarity and logic and immediately implement your suggestions

I understand that you have more important stuff to do , but gee we are going to miss you when you leave.

The Chinese Junta has a very active group currently engaged in showing Au the light and the way, perhaps when you leave you may find a suitable situation with them to fruitfully exercise your towering intellect.