Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #106

[CrimeAway]

So just tested positive on rapid saliva test. Feel pretty miserable. Tested negative on nasal swab only saliva one showed immediately two strong lines . I did two tests both positive. I was sure it’s covid because of rather odd symptoms.

I have heard (via MSM), that some people had found that they were testing negative for Omicron on the nasal swab, but positive if they swabbed the throat. Obviously, it's best to test according to the manufacturer's instructions, but I wonder if swabbing the throat first, and then the nose would decrease the chance of a false negative antigen test for Omicron?
All JMO since speculative and no links to hand.

 

[ilovewings]

76% of reported COVID-19 vaccine side effects could be imagined, phenomena called the nocebo effect | Daily Mail Online

A research team from Harvard University performed a meta analysis on 12 previous studies that compared reported side effects to the Covid vaccines to those reported by people who instead received a placebo.

They found that 35 percent of placebo recipients reported an adverse event - something like a headache, fatigue or other symptoms - after receiving the first dose, and 32 percent did after the second.

I look at that research this way--:if you feel like crap after getting the vaccine, it matters not if it is nocebo or side effects from the vaccine itself-- apparently there
is no way to know if it is your mind or if those side effects are from the vaccine itself. We are talking about relatively mild side effects not something serious like anaphylactic shock

 

[ilovewings]

delete

 

[jjenny]

I look at that research this way--:if you feel like crap after getting the vaccine, it matters not if it is nocebo or side effects from the vaccine itself-- apparently there
is no way to know if it is your mind or if those side effects are from the vaccine itself. We are talking about relatively mild side effects not something serious like anaphylactic shock

These people didn't even get the vaccine. They got the placebo, yet claimed to have side effects.

 

[CSIDreamer]

I look at that research this way--:if you feel like crap after getting the vaccine, it matters not if it is nocebo or side effects from the vaccine itself-- apparently there
is no way to know if it is your mind or if those side effects are from the vaccine itself. We are talking about relatively mild side effects not something serious like anaphylactic shock

Or heart issues.

 

[anneg]

How do you order the masks, is it the same site? Thanks

My apologies--I meant tests!

 

[anneg]

I'm not seeing where to order free masks, just the free tests. Do you have the link?

Trying to order before these sites are swamped!

Sorry, slip of the brain! Tests not masks

 

[303gmf]

I got an email notification immediately after I placed the order.
You’re in line to get tested?

Long wait in a drive up site, was a saliva based one

 

[303gmf]

If you put your email in you get order confirmation if it goes through. Maybe this was a rollout test for tomorrow?

My daughter did from her home computer & sent me the confirmation!
Took a couple minutes

 

[ilovewings]

Or heart issues.

Or heart issues.

Of course--- if someone has symptoms of a heart problem I would
think that is likely to be a side effect from the vaccine. The article described
symptoms like fatigue

 

[ilovewings]

Long wait in a drive up site, was a saliva based one

Does that mean they dont have to insert a swab down your nose???
that swab nose thing would freak me out.

 

[anneg]

I have heard (via MSM), that some people had found that they were testing negative for Omicron on the nasal swab, but positive if they swabbed the throat. Obviously, it's best to test according to the manufacturer's instructions, but I wonder if swabbing the throat first, and then the nose would decrease the chance of a false negative antigen test for Omicron?
All JMO since speculative and no links to hand.

Coronavirus FAQ: Why are some folks hacking home COVID tests by swabbing their throat?

Excerpt:
The idea of a throat swab is not in and of itself a radical step. Even though antigen test kits in the U.S. are designed for a nasal swab, home tests are designed for a throat swab in other countries — in Canada and the U.K., for example.

The idea of improvising with a throat swab is connected to the omicron variant, which was identified in late November and has swept the world. Researchers increasingly believe omicron may replicate in the throat before the nose....

...the South African study has led some epidemiologists and immunologists in the U.S. to experiment with antigen tests by swabbing their throats or cheeks in addition to the nose when administering a self-test.

That's not an authorized use of the kits, reminds the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates the kits: "FACT: When it comes to at-home rapid antigen #COVID19 tests, those swabs are for your nose and not your throat," it said in a tweet issued on Jan. 7.

For Coronavirus Testing, the Nose May Not Always Be Best

 

[pocketaccent]

Sorry, slip of the brain! Tests not masks

That's what I thought. But deep down inside, you wanted both I think..

 

[303gmf]

Does that mean they dont have to insert a swab down your nose???
that swab nose thing would freak me out.

Yes, a big tube handed into car with a yellow solution to swish for one minute, then back into tube, he added something red from a tiny tube and sealed, so easy !
I’d been afraid of swab pain too
Some reading about the type sound like probability of omicron in mouth detected earlier than nasal or throat swabs

 

[LaborDayRN]

Sorry, slip of the brain! Tests not masks

No worries! We all have masks on the brain now.

 

[pocketaccent]

U.S. to announce plan to distribute for free high-quality masks -Politico

Jan 18 (Reuters) - The Biden administration will announce a plan on Wednesday to distribute hundreds of millions of free, high-quality masks through pharmacies and community sites, Politico reported late on Tuesday.

 

[ilovewings]

Yes, a big tube handed into car with a yellow solution to swish for one minute, then back into tube, he added something red from a tiny tube and sealed, so easy !
I’d been afraid of swab pain too
Some reading about the type sound like probability of omicron in mouth detected earlier than nasal or throat swabs

Thanks for the good description of that test!!!

 

[anneg]

That's what I thought. But deep down inside, you wanted both I think..

You nailed it. I would like to order some high quality, legit KN95s or maybe KN94s. I have some KN95s that I doubt are the real thing... the ear loops are too tight and tend to pop off the mask when DH tries to use them. I have some N95s (3M Aura masks) but they are hard for me to breathe in. I guess that means they work.

 

[Sundog]

Our Human Resources Department where I work just sent out an email with information on our medical coverage and reimbursement for self-tests that we purchase on our own. They noted that if you buy a self-test kit that comes with two tests in it, that will count as two tests for your purchase allotment.

 

[anneg]

U.S. to announce plan to distribute for free high-quality masks -Politico

Jan 18 (Reuters) - The Biden administration will announce a plan on Wednesday to distribute hundreds of millions of free, high-quality masks through pharmacies and community sites, Politico reported late on Tuesday.

Woo-hoo!