Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Emergency #5

[RobinCAL]

IMO
I'm not overly impressed with the bashing of the UK government. It is a very diplomatic situation in respect to the Japanese government. They have to be shown to trust that the situation on the cruise is in good hands and then they need reliable evidence that the situation isn't good. Just because other countries are acting faster doesn't mean a slight on other countries. I'm pretty sure Canada is only just starting to get their people out. If I'm wrong about that, sorry.
And it's like people have said, they were told to not visit certain places and they go and do that. And how about you allow a country toke to prepare at home. The confirmed cases in the uk needed looking at before you brought in many confirmed cases.
And I'm not going to comment on the idea of America being perfect at this.

 

[margarita25]

Any news on Chen Q. I wonder...
Catching up in the thread, so there may be an update in these pages. If not, marking to google.

 

[FrostOwl]

.... I'm so glad they got those folks off the ship and brought them back to the United States so they don't have to be treated in China like David and Sally are

As far as I know the couple is in Japan, not in China.

 

[margarita25]

They Escaped an Infected Ship, but the Flight Home Was No Haven

Good article, thanks.

““The quarantine on the ship ended up being an unprecedented failure,” said Eiji Kusumi, a doctor specializing in infectious diseases at Navitas Clinic in Tokyo. “We should learn from this lesson that a quarantine on a ship is impossible, and we should not repeat this in the future.””

—-

U.K. health officials turn hotel at Heathrow Airport into quarantine center

Health authorities in the U.K. have taken over a hotel right next to London's Heathrow Airport to use as a quarantine center for anyone returning to the country deemed at risk of the new coronavirus disease.

The Holiday Inn has been block-booked by the Department of Health and all guests transferred to other hotels owned by the chain in the area. There was no indication as of Tuesday that anyone had been moved into the facility for monitoring or testing, but Britain's government was mulling evacuation flights for dozens of nationals stuck on the coronavirus-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined in Japan, and possibly another evacuation flight for passengers who disembarked this week in Cambodia from another cruise.

As of Monday, of the 4,501 people tested in the U.K., only nine had been confirmed as cases of the COVID-19 disease.

The booking website for the Holiday Inn London - Heathrow Ariel showed no rooms available for public booking until mid-March.

China says coronavirus infections declining but experts say many cases may be undetected

Interesting about the Holiday Inn. Obviously it has logistical advantages, and officials who know a hell of a lot more than I do have deemed this to be an appropriate location.

I’m just not sure about...What are they going to do, “disinfect it” and reopen it at some point? Idk about that one, moo.

—

Random thought at 2:30 am / Insert rant MOO

I’m really not happy about the majority of drugs coming from China. Just sayin. I make it a point in my life to not purchase products from China if I can help it. Have been for years. It never dawned on me that my prescription and over the counter meds could be coming from there. I’m disturbed by this for many reasons. End Rant.

—-

Coronavirus Live Updates: Over 150 Million Chinese Are Under Coronavirus Lockdown

The Times’s analysis found that at least 150 million people in China — over 10 percent of the country’s population — are facing government restrictions about how often they can leave their homes.

Coronavirus Live Updates: Over 150 Million Chinese Are Under Coronavirus Lockdown

From the above link:

“Passengers who shared cabins with infected patients have been ordered to remain on the ship.”

—-

"We will not stop the spread": Experts say many infections going undetected

Singapore's prime minister Lee Hsien Loong has said the new coronavirus is probably already circulating in the population of his country, and warned that if proven, it may require a new strategy by health authorities currently trying to stop it spreading.

His is one of several Asian nations where the COVID-19 disease has already spread between people with no direct links to the outbreak in China.

China says coronavirus infections declining but experts say many cases may be undetected

From the above link / update:

9:30 PM

“California reports another confirmed coronavirus case

Officials in Napa County, California, confirmed a case of coronavirus Tuesday night. The patient is one of the recent evacuees from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that arrived in the U.S. this week.”

—-

Rsbm / BBM:

65 of the 88 folks that tested positive had no symptoms

88 More People Tested Positive for New Coronavirus on Cruise Ship in Japan

Wow, if that doesn’t scream how “asymptomatic” this virus can be, then I don’t know what does.

ETA: That’s 73.86%
So almost 3/4 of infected patients were asymptomatic.

ETA2: I wonder if they’ve been infected more recently and perhaps early in the incubation period? I also wonder if transmission could be occurring via their utensils, trays, etc. being delivered. I’m also still wondering who has been allowed to get on that ship (medical workers?), then disembark.

 

[margarita25]

First coronavirus patient had NO connection to Wuhan seafood market - so did the disease start elsewhere?

The first patient diagnosed with the novel coronavirushas been reported to be a bed-bound pensioner who had no connection to a food market in Wuhan where Beijing's officials say the outbreak began.

First coronavirus patient had NO connection to Wuhan seafood market | Daily Mail Online

The original source for this information (BBC) appears to be linked in the above article, but requires translation:
模糊不清的“零号病人”与新冠病毒来源争议

—-

ETA
Dang, since i posted this cannot get that "Hotel California" Eagles song out of my head, except the words now sound to me like " Welcome to the Hotel Coronavirus"

"Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before
'Relax' said the night man,
'We are programmed to receive.
You can check out any time you like,
But you can never leave!'''

China says coronavirus infections declining but experts say many cases may be undetected
U.K. health officials turn hotel at Heathrow Airport into quarantine center
''Health authorities in the U.K. have taken over a hotel right next to London's Heathrow Airport to use as a quarantine center for anyone returning to the country deemed at risk of the new coronavirus disease.

The Holiday Inn London - Heathrow Ariel, seen here in a handout photo, was block-booked by British authorities on February 17 to use as a quarantine site for people considered at risk of the new coronavirus illness. Holiday Inn
The Holiday Inn has been block-booked by the Department of Health and all guests transferred to other hotels owned by the chain in the area. There was no indication as of Tuesday that anyone had been moved into the facility for monitoring or testing, but Britain's government was mulling evacuation flights for dozens of nationals stuck on the coronavirus-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship quarantined in Japan, and possibly another evacuation flight for passengers who disembarked this week in Cambodia from another cruise.

As of Monday, of the 4,501 people tested in the U.K., only nine had been confirmed as cases of the COVID-19 disease.

The booking website for the Holiday Inn London - Heathrow Ariel showed no rooms available for public booking until mid-March.''

I had the same thought about Hotel California and the Holiday Inn.

Rsbm / BBM:

14 Americans who got the coronavirus from the quarantined cruise ship in Japan were flown home in an 'isolation box' at the back of the plane

Talk about never seeing that one coming...can you imagine, booking a cruise...your last thought would be “being flown home in an isolation box” (and everything else)...surreal...talk about a TRIP...Sounds like something out of a Twilight Zone episode.

 

[Amonet]

Great. They are positive for the Coronavirus and they are going to stay in a "hostel"? For 4 or 5 days? How about the people who are also staying there?

Is this for real?!

New coronavirus case identified in Bay Area

And this? I thought that those folks were all going to stay quarantined on an air base?!

Is this a plan on how to spread the virus?!

I think it means that the hostel will be acting as an onshore quarantine facility, not that they'll be mixing in there with people who weren't aboard the ship.

For the Bay Area story, weren't they moved direct from the quarantine on the airbase to the hospitals? I didn't see anything there to say they were released from quarantine into the general public?

 

[margarita25]

(Déjà vu all over again...)
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.)

Also from the above link / BBM / so medical members have been coming and going:

“Earlier Tuesday, Wakayama Prefecture reported three new infections, including an inpatient in his 60s at Saiseikai Arida Hospital in Yuasa, a teenage son of an infected doctor at the hospital, and a man in his 30s who worked as a member of a medical team sent to the Diamond Princess for quarantine efforts.”

—-

Also noting from the above article that one new confirmed case in Japan is a taxi driver. Not good. I wonder how many rides he gave before realizing he was ill.

—-

“German researchers called symptom-based screening to detect the novel coronavirus “ineffective” in a new analysis published Tuesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The researchers assessed the screening process for 126 people evacuated to Germany from Wuhan, China.

All 126 travelers, mostly German nationals, left Wuhan on February 1 and were screened for symptoms and clinical signs of infection before they were evacuated. Despite requiring travelers to undergo a multiple screenings once in Germany, two travelers were ultimately positive for the novel coronavirus. According to the researchers, “a symptom-based screening process was ineffective in detecting” the virus.

During the evacuation flight from Germany, 10 passengers were isolated: two because of contact with a confirmed coronavirus patient; six exhibited symptoms; and two passengers who had accompanied one of the six symptomatic travelers. Upon arrival, all 10 of these passengers were transferred to University Hospital Frankfurt and all tested negative for coronavirus.

The remaining 116 passengers underwent another medical assessment and one passenger had an elevated temperature and cough. This patient ultimately tested negative for coronavirus.

Of the remaining 115 patients, 114 consented to a throat swab to test for coronavirus. Of those 114 travelers, two tested positive for coronavirus. These two patients were isolated at a hospital. One patient had a faint rash and sore throat. According to the researchers, the two isolated patients were “well” and had no fever in the seven days after hospitalization. Aside from the ineffectiveness of the screening process, the authors found that the virus could potentially be spread by those who exhibited mild symptoms: “Shedding of potentially infectious virus may occur in persons who have no fever and no signs or only minor signs of infection.””

February 18 coronavirus news - CNN

 

[Amonet]

I read an article that states in the US there is minimal risk. Then, I read another article that says there's not a way to contain the virus. Next up someone is not showing symptoms. Then, you guessed it, re-test shows the virus is present. So, which is it?

All of the above, really. They're not mutually exclusive, they just require different contexts.

At this point in time, today, this week, there is minimal risk of a member of the public getting infected. The risk is increased for those who have traveled abroad to/through certain countries, or those who are close contacts of confirmed cases. For everyone else, the risk is minimal.

If people in high risk contact groups self-isolate for 14 days, and they are tested if they show any symptoms that will help containment in a particular area/country. So it's a non-zero chance of cases occurring, but with good contact-tracing, there's a good chance of 'containment' in the sense of seriously reducing the chance of that case leading to a wider outbreak in the general populace.

I think a lot of people are of the opinion that as far as a potential global pandemic is concerned, there's not a great probability of containment.

 

[margarita25]

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.

Oh oh...

 

[asyousay]

Confusion over British cruise couple's virus test


so do they even have it ?


Also this really stands out to me for all the wrong reasons.

The conditions on the ship had made it difficult for his father to manage his type-2 diabetes, he said, adding that he would prefer his parents to be quarantined in the UK "where the food is more suitable for my dad

Let’s not try and dress this up as the U.K. and the U.S.A have a huge obesity crisis and Japan is one one of the healthiest nations on the planet so a diet in Japan would actually be a hell of a lot better for a diabetic than the lard we serve up here.


IMO

 

[What if...]

Dissent becomes the next victim of coronavirus as China cracks down

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170504-there-are-diseases-hidden-in-ice-and-they-are-waking-up
Analysts say epidemic poses gravest threat to authorities since Tiananmen Square – and Beijing’s tight control could backfire

The rough implementation of epidemic control has resulted in extensive human rights abuses across China, analysts say. Disturbing images have emerged on social media showing people chained up and paraded on streets, or beaten by police for not wearing masks. Footage has also shown officers installing metal bars or chains outside people’s homes to prevent them leaving.

Propaganda banners with threatening messages have been put up around the country. “A surgical mask or a breathing tube? Your choice,” said one. “Those who don’t report their fever are class enemies hiding among the people,” another said.

Dissent becomes the next victim of coronavirus as China cracks down

This is terrible the Chinese government putting bars up on people’s homes to prevent them leaving. What would happen if there was a fire or another emergency?

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170504-there-are-diseases-hidden-in-ice-and-they-are-waking-up
And yet, one more reason to distrust the information being provided by the Chinese government.
IMO, anyone that believes that China is taking such extreme measures to deal with a “really bad flu” have failed to see the reality of the situation.

 

[IceIce9]

They Escaped an Infected Ship, but the Flight Home Was No Haven

The cruise ship was a floating Petri dish. The plane was a flying Petri dish with passengers who tested positive seated at the back of the plane behind a sheet of plastic.

 

[Amonet]

Good article, thanks.

““The quarantine on the ship ended up being an unprecedented failure,” said Eiji Kusumi, a doctor specializing in infectious diseases at Navitas Clinic in Tokyo. “We should learn from this lesson that a quarantine on a ship is impossible, and we should not repeat this in the future.””

—-



Interesting about the Holiday Inn. Obviously it has logistical advantages, and officials who know a hell of a lot more than I do have deemed this to be an appropriate location.

I’m just not sure about...What are they going to do, “disinfect it” and reopen it at some point? Idk about that one, moo.

—

Random thought at 2:30 am / Insert rant MOO

I’m really not happy about the majority of drugs coming from China. Just sayin. I make it a point in my life to not purchase products from China if I can help it. Have been for years. It never dawned on me that my prescription and over the counter meds could be coming from there. I’m disturbed by this for many reasons. End Rant.

—-


From the above link:

“Passengers who shared cabins with infected patients have been ordered to remain on the ship.”

—-


From the above link / update:

9:30 PM

“California reports another confirmed coronavirus case

Officials in Napa County, California, confirmed a case of coronavirus Tuesday night. The patient is one of the recent evacuees from the Diamond Princess cruise ship that arrived in the U.S. this week.”

—-

Rsbm / BBM:


Wow, if that doesn’t scream how “asymptomatic” this virus can be, then I don’t know what does.

ETA: That’s 73.86%
So almost 3/4 of infected patients were asymptomatic.

ETA2: I wonder if they’ve been infected more recently and perhaps early in the incubation period? I also wonder if transmission could be occurring via their utensils, trays, etc. being delivered. I’m also still wondering who has been allowed to get on that ship (medical workers?), then disembark.

I found a notice on my GP surgery's site that goes to a government webpage about the virus, and on this page it describes the steps that a GP surgery should take if a suspected case enters the building, and it includes the cleaning protocols for any rooms that the suspected case was inside.

COVID-19: interim guidance for primary care

So I believe that the hotel would be cleaned according to those guidelines before being used as a regular hotel again. After that level of cleaning, it would probably be one of the cleanest hotel rooms in the country....until people have been in it again lol

 

[margarita25]

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.

This is terrible, stealing masks from a hospital. The WHO has specifically indicated in their conferences the shortage and importance of medical workers having the equipment they need. They are on the front lines. This is really bad karma for the thieves, moo.

 

[Amonet]

Someone asked a few pages ago for a link to the actual study of 44,000 patients in China.

I think it's this link:
The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) — China, 2020

which I found in this article on the BBC:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-as...s-outbreak&link_location=live-reporting-story

 

[margarita25]

You beat me to google, I did read though that the 2016 Olympics in Brazil might have been the first to be cancelled because of health concerns. (it wasn't). Apparently the Zika virus was the reason that some athletes didn't compete.

The Olympics Have Been Canceled In The Past

(O/T, I recall flesh eating bacteria in those Brazilian waters from all the toxic waste. The Olympic swimmers wore special protective suits, iirc.)

 

[Amonet]

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Thanks for posting this! I wanted to learn more about blood types and the Rhesus system a few months ago and found Dr John Campbell's videos on the subject very informative and easy to follow.

 

[What if...]

Part 1: Assume a benevolent motive.

Strike 2: It is worth discussing in terms of calming the public down. Providing links to credible sources and examining and critiquing how the media and the pharmaceutical industry is manipulating and creating a industry based on fear should be considered helpful and useful. There isn't anything insulting about that from my end. I can't control ones emotions. If one is insulted, then take control and own one's emotions.

Scene 3: I am not trying to argue. Anyone knows you can't win an argument. 9 out of 10 times it ends with each of the participants more firmly convinced than ever that they are absolutely right.

Medical Martial Law may not be something Americans are concerned with now, but there is always that panic and possibility. More frightening to see something like that take place someday in a country as large as ours

Johnny, there are a lot of scenarios in which I could jump on this band wagon with you, but unfortunately, this isn’t one of them. Personally, I never bought into any of the hype that was related to Ebola, SARS, etc,.. Were they bad viruses? Yes! But each was manageable. This one is different - at least for now.
However, I will agree that the potential for medical martial law is concerning! Government attempts to control panic and chaos through strict controls, more often than not, will have just the opposite effect.

Johnny,
Thank you for your research.
I agree with you, that there is always some jerk trying to make a buck.
However, those jerks are not in charge here.
This situation is way bigger then someone wanting to score money.
The United States Government is all over this.
I have faith in the United States government.
This is just my opinion. But I'm very sure that the USA will lock down even more then they have to protect her citizens. If needed.
We have strong leadership, right now.
I would rest assured that this virus will not decimate the United States.
High rises in Asia.
I worry and pray for you.
Innocent families in a nightmare.

Kali, I agree with your rebuttal, however, I can’t say I am as convinced as you that this virus couldn’t decimate the U.S. - there are still too many unknowns...
But I do know I’d rather deal with it here rather than anywhere else. If it decimates the U.S., then it will be nothing short of a global catastrophe.
As bad as the official numbers currently are (based on the data from China), I’m actually hoping they are accurate. I only say this because China’s actions speak volumes to the fact that those numbers may be MUCH WORSE than reported.

All MOO

 

[margarita25]

More than 100 Americans still trapped on the Diamond Princess cruise CANNOT come home, US officials say: Passengers left behind must spend another two weeks quarantined in Japan after disembarking

US bars more than 100 Americans on Diamond Princess from returning over coronavirus fears | Daily Mail Online

Sounds like a good plan to me, considering the circumstances. We need to be certain everyone is negative before returning back to the States (and any country). We’ve seen that quarantine measures upon the ship have not definitively been effective, jmo.

 

[jjenny]

Sounds like a good plan to me, considering the circumstances. We need to be certain everyone is negative before returning back to the States (and any country). We’ve seen that quarantine measures upon the ship have not definitively been effective, jmo.

Too late now, US let 14 positive patients from Diamond Princess into the country.