Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Emergency #5

[Amonet]

That story in the DailyMail about the bat in the infectious disease centre in Wuhan having a tick.

I think it's important to remind ourselves that different viruses do prefer different ways of getting into the body. Yes, ticks can carry things like Lyme Disease, but they don't spread flu or coronavirus. So it's really not helpful for the DM to publish something like that.

Respiratory viruses like flu/coronavirus come in via the mouth/nose/eyes as the biggest risk areas (though that might be transferred from dirty hands).

Then you have things like malaria that transmit through mosquitoes and it's a blood-borne disease so the mode of infection is through the insect coming into contact with the body's blood, through the skin.

Then there's things like HIV, another blood-borne disease and the risk factors are things like injecting with a dirty needle, or unsafe sex, especially unprotected anal sex where you have thin tissues that are easily broken to enable virus material in through those breaks in the tissue that lead into the bloodstream.

Another example is something like dysentery that is a virus that causes gut problems, and it tends to spread via contaminated water that is then drunk and the virus is sent down to the gut, where the process can then complete the cycle of transmission.

 

[Medstudies]

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/02/18/national/diamond-princess-coronavirus/#.XkwgGyVOmaM
(Déjà vu all over again...)

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/02/18/national/diamond-princess-coronavirus/#.XkwgGyVOmaM


“Authorities have said the virus is now being transmitted locally and have asked citizens to avoid crowds and nonessential gatherings.

“We are seeing an increase of cases in which the route of transmission is not immediately known,” Kato said. “We must take measures by considering the possibility of it spreading to a certain degree.”

Japan tells public to avoid crowds as Covid-19 cases rise to 59


TOKYO: Japan’s health minister has urged the public to avoid crowds and “non-essential gatherings“, including notoriously packed commuter trains, to prevent the Covid-19 coronavirus from spreading in the country.

Katsunobu Kato warned the nation was “entering a new phase” in the outbreak of the virus, which has infected nearly 60 people in Japan so far.

“We want to ask the public to avoid non-urgent, non-essential gatherings. We want the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions to avoid crowded places,” Kato said after a meeting of a panel of experts.”


(Yea, because asking people to avoid non -urgent gatherings helped in Wuhan...)

...“It is expected that domestic infections will continue,” Wakita said, adding that Japan was at an early stage of the spread. - AFP

(Déjà vu all over again.)

 

[JerseyGirl]

Officials in Hubei province will now check the records of all fever patients who have visited a doctor since 20 January, as well as the records of those who have bought over-the-counter cough and fever medications in shops and online, Xinhua reported.

People will get health check ups and, if necessary, be placed in quarantine or hospitalized, citing a notice from the province’s epidemic control headquarters.

Coronavirus: Japan to trial HIV antiretroviral drugs on patients – latest news

 

[margarita25]

I really like it when Dr. Tedros says “We must stand together in solidarity”. He likes that phrase-seems he used it in his Ebola conferences as well. I’m going to steal that phrase from him. Next time there’s a big issue around my parts I’m going to say “We must stand together in solidarity...”.

(I am being 100% serious btw. Positive leaders are meant to inspire and teach. )

 

[JerseyGirl]

Singapore confirms 4 new cases of coronavirus ... bringing the citywide total to 81 confirmed cases.

Here are the four new cases:

• A 57 year-old woman with no recent travel to China and links to the cluster of cases with the Grace Assembly of God church
• A 35 year-old woman Malaysian national with no recent travel to China and is a relative to a previously diagnosed patient
• A 38 year-old woman with no recent travel to China (She works in an administrative role at Singapore’s National University Hospital but has not interacted with patients since onset of symptoms)
• A 50 year-old man with no recent travel to China and links to the Grace Assembly of God cluster.

additional info on these 4 new cases: Covid-19 outbreak: Grace Assembly of God cluster grows to 21 cases

Coronavirus news and live updates: Cases jump around the world - CNN

 

[Wicked Strong]

(Déjà vu all over again...)
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/02/18/national/diamond-princess-coronavirus/#.XkwgGyVOmaM
New COVID-19 cases reported across Japan as 88 more aboard Diamond Princess test positive | The Japan Times


“Authorities have said the virus is now being transmitted locally and have asked citizens to avoid crowds and nonessential gatherings.

“We are seeing an increase of cases in which the route of transmission is not immediately known,” Kato said. “We must take measures by considering the possibility of it spreading to a certain degree.”

Japan tells public to avoid crowds as Covid-19 cases rise to 59


TOKYO: Japan’s health minister has urged the public to avoid crowds and “non-essential gatherings“, including notoriously packed commuter trains, to prevent the Covid-19 coronavirus from spreading in the country.

Katsunobu Kato warned the nation was “entering a new phase” in the outbreak of the virus, which has infected nearly 60 people in Japan so far.

“We want to ask the public to avoid non-urgent, non-essential gatherings. We want the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions to avoid crowded places,” Kato said after a meeting of a panel of experts.”


(Yea, because asking people to avoid non -urgent gatherings helped in Wuhan...)

...“It is expected that domestic infections will continue,” Wakita said, adding that Japan was at an early stage of the spread. - AFP

(Déjà vu all over again.)

And yet, just 3 days ago they were holding a Olympic torch relay rehearsal in Japan. The relay will start in less than a month from now. Organizers have said that the summer Olympics will go on as planned.

Tokyo holds Olympic torch relay rehearsal - Japan Today

 

[Midgie2]

I really like it when Dr. Tedros says “We must stand together in solidarity”. He likes that phrase-seems he used it in his Ebola conferences as well. I’m going to steal that phrase from him. Next time there’s a big issue around my parts I’m going to say “We must stand together in solidarity...”.

(I am being 100% serious btw. Positive leaders are meant to inspire and teach. )

I’m going to use that line on my husband when he grumbles about the yard work.

 

[margarita25]

(Déjà vu all over again...)
Tokyo, Wakayama and Aichi report new COVID-19 cases as 88 more aboard Diamond Princess test positive | The Japan Times


“Authorities have said the virus is now being transmitted locally and have asked citizens to avoid crowds and nonessential gatherings.

“We are seeing an increase of cases in which the route of transmission is not immediately known,” Kato said. “We must take measures by considering the possibility of it spreading to a certain degree.”

Japan tells public to avoid crowds as Covid-19 cases rise to 59


TOKYO: Japan’s health minister has urged the public to avoid crowds and “non-essential gatherings“, including notoriously packed commuter trains, to prevent the Covid-19 coronavirus from spreading in the country.

Katsunobu Kato warned the nation was “entering a new phase” in the outbreak of the virus, which has infected nearly 60 people in Japan so far.

“We want to ask the public to avoid non-urgent, non-essential gatherings. We want the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions to avoid crowded places,” Kato said after a meeting of a panel of experts.”


(Yea, because asking people to avoid non -urgent gatherings helped in Wuhan...)

...“It is expected that domestic infections will continue,” Wakita said, adding that Japan was at an early stage of the spread. - AFP

(Déjà vu all over again.)

Not to sound like “I told you so”, but I had a feeling this was coming, JMO, even before this cruise ship business, hence my early attempts to keep a “Japan file”.

—-

ETA:

I’m going to use that line on my husband when he grumbles about the yard work.

OMG I just spit up “droplets” all over my phone. That was a good one!

—

ETA2:

Next time a thread starts going downhill, I’m going to say “We must stand together in solidarity”.

 

[KALI]

I just watched a House Hunters International show regarding Singapore. Most of their population live in high rises. Requiring the use of elevators. I see that as a big problem!

Coronavirus: Which countries have confirmed cases?

Australia - 15
Most of the patients arrived in the country from Wuhan or Hubei province.

Belgium - 1
Belgium said on February 4 that one of nine Belgian citizens repatriated from Wuhan had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Cambodia - 1
Cambodia confirmed its first case of coronavirus on January 27, the patient was a 60-year-old Chinese national in the coastal city of Sihanoukville.

Canada - 8
Canada has confirmed eight cases of the coronavirus as of February 17 - three in the province of Ontario and five in British Columbia.

China - 72,618
As of February 18, a total of 70,548 people in mainland China were confirmed as having been infected with the virus, most of them in and around Wuhan. At least 1,770 people have died.

Egypt - 1
Egypt's first confirmed case of the coronavirus was on February 14. It is the first known case in Africa. Officials said the infected person was a foreign national who was being kept in isolation.

Finland - 1
A Chinese tourist who was admitted to hospital for tests was confirmed on January 29 as infected with the coronavirus. The patient is said to be a 32-year-old woman from Wuhan.

France - 12
On February 15, France reported the first death in Europe - an 80-year-old Chinese tourist. There are 12 confirmed cases in France, five of which are British citizens who had shared a chalet at a French ski resort with someone who had recently travelled to Singapore.

Germany - 16
Germany registered 16 confirmed cases of the coronavirus as of February 17, a majority of those infected in the southern state of Bavaria. Almost all the patients in Germany are employees of auto parts supplier Webasto, who were infected by a colleague from China who was attending a course in Germany.

India - 3
On February 3, a third positive case of the coronavirus was reported in India's southern state of Kerala. All three are students who returned from Wuhan.

Italy - 3
One of 56 Italians evacuated from Wuhan has tested positive for the new coronavirus on February 7, bringing the country's total number of cases to three. On January 30, two Chinese tourists were reported as having tested positive for the virus.

Japan - 65 + 454
A total of 454 people on the quarantined Diamond Princess cruise ship docked at Yokohama had tested positive for the virus as of February 17. Japan does not include the people on board as part of its national tally.. Japan's national tally is 65. On February 13, an 80-year-old became the country's first death from the virus.

Malaysia - 22
Malaysia on February 15 confirmed that a US passenger on a cruise ship that had been turned away by several countries had tested positive for the virus, bringing the country's total to 22. The woman flew from Cambodia, where the Westerdam was eventually allowed to dock, to Malaysia along with 144 others from the ship.

Nepal - 1
Nepal said on January 24 that a 32-year-old man arriving from Wuhan had tested positive for coronavirus.

The Philippines - 3
Philippine health officials confirmed a third case of coronavirus on February 5. The country also had the first death from coronavirus outside China, which was announced on February 2.

Russia - 2
Russia reported two cases of coronavirus on January 31. Both patients - Chinese nationals - have recovered and were discharged from hospital.

Singapore - 77
Singapore's health ministry said the city-state had 77 confirmed cases as of February 17. The country has the highest tallies outside China, including mounting evidence of local transmission.

South Korea - 31
On February 16, South Korea reported one new case of the virus.

Spain - 2
Spanish authorities confirmed the country's second case of coronavirus on February 9 - a British man in Mallorca. The patient is one of four members of a British family taken in for observation on the island after coming into contact with someone in France who was subsequently diagnosed with the virus. The other three tested negative. The first case, reported on January 31, was a German man on the island of La Gomera in the Canary Islands.

Sri Lanka - 1
Sri Lanka confirmed its first case of coronavirus on January 27. The patient was identified as a 43-year-old Chinese woman from Hubei province who had arrived in Sri Lanka as a tourist.

Sweden - 1
On January 31, a woman had tested positive for coronavirus and was being kept in isolation at a hospital in southern Sweden. The woman had visited the Wuhan area in China and began coughing after she arrived in Sweden.

Taiwan - 22
On February 17, Taiwan reported two new cases. A day earlier, Taiwan reported its first death from coronavirus, in a 61-year-old man with underlying health issues.

Thailand - 35
Thailand has a total number of 35 confirmed cases.

United Arab Emirates - 9
The UAE confirmed one new case on February 16, a 37-year-old Chinese national and that his condition was stable. On February 1, the UAE became the first country in the Middle East to confirm cases of the coronavirus.

United Kingdom - 9
The UK confirmed one new case of coronavirus on February 12. All cases are in England, while the latest case is the first to be recorded in the capital, London.

United States - 15
The US had confirmed 15 cases of the virus as of February 17. The most recent case was a passenger on an evacuation flight from China who had been under quarantine in Texas.

Vietnam - 16
On February 13, confirmed the nation's sixteenth case of coronavirus. At least 11 of the cases were in the northern province of Vinh Phuc. The Son Loi commune in Vinh Phuc was placed under a 14-day quarantine by Vietnamese authorities on February 13.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Japanese couple who visited Hawaii were diagnosed with coronavirus, and Delta is warning passengers on their flight - CNN

A couple from Japan tested positive for novel coronavirus shortly after visiting Hawaii this month, and Delta Airlines says it is notifying passengers who were on their flight home about the couple's diagnosis.

Hawaiian officials, meanwhile, say they've been looking into the couple's activities in Hawaii, and are trying to find people who may have been in close contact with the couple.

The man and woman were on Maui from January 28 to February 3, and then on Oahu from February 3 until their Delta flight home on February 6 to Nagoya, Japan. That roughly 10-hour flight, Delta Flight 611, departed Honolulu on the afternoon of February 6 and, after crossing over the International Date Line, landed in Nagoya on the evening of February 7.

The man had no symptoms on Maui, which they visited January 28 to February 3.

• The man did have cold-like symptoms, but no fever, on Oahu, where they were staying February 3-6.
• While traveling in Oahu, the couple stayed at a timeshare at the Grand Waikikian by Hilton Grand Vacations in Honolulu.
• The man wore a mask during his flight back to Japan, and may have worn a mask during other parts of his travel.
• The man did not seek medical care until arriving back in Japan, where he'd developed severe symptoms.
• "It's very likely the (man) was exposed in Japan (before he traveled to Hawaii) or in transit coming to Hawaii, and became sick when he was here," Hawaii Director of Health Brian Anderson said.

 

[JerseyGirl]

American evacuees from Wuhan ready to leave San Diego base after completing quarantine

Nearly 160 Americans evacuated from Wuhan on a government-chartered flight completed their 14-day federal quarantine order at a San Diego base on Tuesday.

The evacuees will be screened once more for the virus before their final release and the Department of Health and Human Services will make travel arrangements.

About 60 more evacuees at the base are due to be released from quarantine on Thursday.

Two passengers who had been quarantined at the base tested positive for the virus and are receiving treatment from UC San Diego Health.

Coronavirus live updates: Sanofi working on vaccine with US health agency, Jaguar faces parts shortage

 

[margarita25]

I just watched a House Hunters International show regarding Singapore. Most of their population live in high rises. Requiring the use of elevators. I see that as a big problem!

Yes, I’m a House Hunters International ADDICT. Exactly.

@KALI I saw a very informative video about “cubicles” that many poor people live in in Hong Kong. There are many videos out there but I’m trying to find the specific video I saw. You may find it of interest. I’ll keep looking.

 

[Medstudies]

Not to sound like “I told you so”, but I had a feeling this was coming, JMO, even before this cruise ship business, hence my early attempts to ....

Snipped for brevity.

yep! And hand up, me too... who really didn’t see this coming?

and another story out of Japan: COVID-19: Thieves steal 6,000 masks from hospital in Japan

TOKYO: Thieves in Japan have made off with some 6,000 surgical masks from a hospital, with the country facing a mass shortage and a huge price hike online due to the coronavirus...

...Masks have sold out at many drug and discount stores across the nation as the number of infections have increased in Japan - one of the most affected countries after China where the death toll from the virus has hit 1,800.

 

[dixiegirl1035]

2/18 WHO Daily Presser notes Part 1 of 2


Dr. Tetras – Today I want to talk first about Syria vs. COVID. Out of 550 facilities, only ½ are operational. Attacks on the hospitals are against international law.…(more) …. Back to COVID

72,528 cases, 1,850 deaths. In past 24 1,800 new cases. Outside China, now 804 cases in 24 countries with 3 deaths. 110 new cases outside China, 99 on Princess. 92 cases outside China of human to human transmission. We don’t have enough cases outside China to discuss severity or fatality rates. To date, we have not seen localized sustained transmission (e.d. to be able to call it a pandemic) except like Princess. I spoke with Singapore yesterday, and please with their efforts to find every transmission, and they have not found any evidence of community transmission. I also talked to Malesia health director about Westerdam and reparations. This signals for all countries to be ready for the arrival of the virus. Many countries are preparing, we have shipped PPE to 21 countries, and 106 in coming weeks. By the end of the week, 40 countries in Africa and 21 in the Americas will have the ability to detect the virus, vs. sending to other countries to prevent global crisis.

Q&A

Re Princess transmission, how possible the spread we have seen? The situation has evolved, and authorities in Japan revisiting the original decision to group and isolate… situation has changed, there is more transmission on the ship than we expected. Japan is adjusting to that reality now, and Japan officials are now working with other countries to evacuate and deal with follow-up in a different way. Its easy to look back and say it should have been done in a different way. It’s clear that there are some environments where the virus can spread, and cruise ships and other particular environments that disease can spread. Unfortunate event and we trust that the countries and the Japanese will follow up in the appropriate way to get care or reintegrated into the community. It will be very important to study this particular event to see what the issues are that led to transmission on the ship.

Re recent measures of Beijing under quarantine? Currently evaluations are based on modeling. We look at the scenario if nothing was done (e.d. those pessimistic numbers we have seen on those threads, that’s what these are..a baseline). Models have shown that movement restriction has delayed by 2 or 3 days in China and 2-3 weeks outside of China. So based on this, if those measures are implemented.. delays the peak and give more time to treat the problem. We are finding in some studies that it’s 19 days from symptoms to when people are completely cleared of the virus.

You mentioned that some countries outside of China are not providing you data, what’s the reason behind that? Also, the modelling that you are doing, is that modelling from China or outside China? We fully recognize that all countries are under duress and their primary responsibility is to their own citizens and to do the public health challenge that they face. We ask that they do share with us the core data that we need. And I would say that it hasn’t been smooth sailing with any country so far because we’ve had to request a number of countries to speed up their data sharing. This is not due to a lack of transparency but this has been through the urgency and the difficulties of gathering data, collating data and then sharing it outside a country. And in some cases they are data protection issues, privacy issues with long lists that are individualized data, and logistic issues. We are very pleased in general. We do want to see more and more data on community studies, hospital and transmission info like on the Princess and we want to see those investigations early so that we can learn and manage in other circumstances in the coming days and weeks to help us as a global agency to give the best possible advice and evidence to countries.

Answer cont’d/he changed subject.. And to touch back on Beijing, I think if you look at what’s happening in Wuhan the government has spent a number of weeks suppressing the virus and you saw the numbers dropped away and now they have engaged in door to door surveillance – this is a very good public health practice. We like to see progressive implementation of public health measures. So the first objective in Wuhan was to contain the virus at the epicenter and do much more active surveillance. While doing that surveillance they don’t want the virus returning to other places. Beijing is the central point in the country for a place where many many workers return to. While they are putting out the fire in one place, they don’t want the fire to start somewhere else. So they are taking very directed measures to ensure the people returning to Beijing are observed and monitored. You can argue whether those measures are excessive or restrictive, but there’s a lot at stake here in terms of public health not only in China, but of all people of the world. So what we like to see is well thought out, evidence base public health measures that pays respect to individuals liberty and human rights And finding that balance is sometimes difficult. Right now, the strategic and tactical approach in China is the right one, as is the approach in Singapore. Right now we are seeing more and more countries are having well planned and directed operations to detect this virus, contain it, and slow it down. We want all countries to take that approach in the coming days and weeks.

A – the modelling, that is not from the WHO, is that is coming from expert network we have and we meet on a weekly basis with a number of modelling groups across the world and those groups are publishing their data and we have some preprint articles (e.d. like has been posted here at WS) Just note of caution that modelling is based on assumptions, and modelling is better when you have more data into the model. So soon we will have more robust modelling….

DANG IT! I hit wrong button and it has ended, so I don’t have closed captions to help me transcribe anymore.. waiting for it to be reuploaded to continue.

 

[Hatfield]

ETA2:

Next time a thread starts going downhill, I’m going to say “We must stand together in solidarity”.

I agree, but if you have the Virus, I am running for the hills.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Russia suspends entry of Chinese citizens

Russia will suspend entry of Chinese citizens to its territory starting from 20 February.

The suspension will be for Chinese citizens entering Russia for employment, private, educational and tourist purposes.

The suspension will be temporary, the statement said.

Coronavirus: Japan to trial HIV antiretroviral drugs on patients – latest news

 

[dixiegirl1035]

Part 2 of 2 Daily WHO presser

Re international mission, are they going into Wuhan and Shinyunn (sp?) and are you confident in the numbers that are coming out of Shinyun and same for DPRK (e.d. had to google North Korea = Democratic People's Republic of Korea ) A. They are travelling to the two provinces, and they may travel to Wuhan, all options are open. They can go there, but we have already had our WHO experts there, the presence of experts could help, but we were there before. We have picked the two provinces of ?? and Jinseng??? As well as Beijing and then we could move out. But that is risk based. Any place where there are high numbers of people at risk will be prioritized. As to DPRK, we have prioritized and the equipment should have left last night. We will be providing them with the lab reagents to make the diagnosis.

Re data that came out yesterday, the death rate is going down. What is general trend A. It’s very difficult to make that judgement from the paper presented yesterday. (e.d. has anyone found the ACTUAL hyperlink to this paper all the MSM is talking about? TIA) Clearly a drop, but in beginning they were only finding severe cases, so a huge bias in the beginning of the outbreak. Originally, only the very sick were coming forward, and now we are seeking out those that are infected. So you can have a false sense of mortality at the beginning. We saw that with H1N1 with fatality rates of 10-20 percent in the beginning as only the most sick were coming in. A few weeks later the pattern was entirely different. There is also a difference in Wuhan and Hebei, and that may be that the presser on the system is so severe. The lessons that have been learned there are being applied elsewhere. The people are getting into earlier critical care. One of the issues has been predicting people with underlying conditions and comorbidities and ensuring that they are being funneled into the severe and critical pathway early and not blocking up the system with mild cases. China has become much better at prioritizing this to get those that are critically ill and need hospitalization into the system. It’s also very difficult in critical care to ventilate so many patients and ECHMO takes quite a lot of technical skill. It’s just not the machinery, it’s the technicians that use them. Bringing them up to speed and bringing in emergency technicians. Realize that 127 emergency teams and 10,000 medical personnel were brought in. So, we are having better interventions and finding more mild cases that will affect the morbidity. 80% with younger people and others are mild, but 20% are severe or critical so we need to focus on them with life saving interventions. We are graced that China has such an advanced health care system. Our fear is this virus will get into a weaker health system which cannot mount such a response. Many have been released, but there are many many who have been in the hospital for a very long time. It’s a huge burden on any health system to have on average patients that are there for more than 20 days at that level of intensive care. >40 years old, people that have underlying medical conditions more at risk and more severe course of disease. If this goes into 3rd world countries, we need to focus on these individuals and their clinical care.

Update on vaccine development and trials on humans A. No new data since last meeting. Last we discussed is candidate in 16 weeks. And then we will discuss. We are discussing with major donors (e.d. Bill Gates foundation?) and with World Bank on strategic investments that will be needed, and that’s going to be a lot of money. We are very conscious funds should not be pulled away from weaker health systems, a trade off of one or another. We all need to invest in a vaccine, but there are sick people now, health systems that are vulnerable now. So we need to balance. In the rest of the world, we see 800 cases and 3 deaths, but that doesn’t mean it won’t increase and this is an opportunity that we shouldn’t squander. We need to focus on preparedness to steer away from crisis. Balance of public health now and vaccine which may take 12-18 months. We should do everything to contain it in this window of opportunity to minimize impact, and why we are working with weaker countries.

THE END

Note: Tomorrow’s meeting will be coming from Cairo… 11 their time, 10 am Geneva time. (ha, I have no idea what that time is…)

 

[JerseyGirl]

I've been away for a few days. I know a WHO representative or two was able to go to China.

Did China ever authorize a CDC representative to accompany that team?

 

[JerseyGirl]

Brazil Prepares For Carnival Amid Coronavirus Concerns

 

[margarita25]

My prediction is that the Olympics will get cancelled, postponed or relocated, moo.

(I thought I posted this thought already but I can’t find it. Maybe it got deleted because I didn’t post moo.)


ETA:

And yet, just 3 days ago they were holding a Olympic torch relay rehearsal in Japan. The relay will start in less than a month from now. Organizers have said that the summer Olympics will go on as planned.

Tokyo holds Olympic torch relay rehearsal - Japan Today

I’ve got $10 that says it doesn’t go on, moo.

*This is not to be Negative Nancy here. I’m just saying if stuff keeps going down in Japan, realistically speaking...

Mooooooooooo (@cody22 )

ETA:
Have any prior Olympic Games ever been cancelled, postponed or relocated, I wonder, and under what circumstances.