Coronavirus COVID-19 - Global Health Pandemic #80

[HongKongPhooey]

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I hereby declare I am not a hypochondriac nor do my parents have M by P!

I was relatively healthy before this, other than keeping things in check. I never had a serious illness before.

I do sometimes think that the exhaustion (mine) could in part be due to a v stressful job, exacerbated by the situation. But it's hard to explain, it isnt just a normal tired or stressed feeling. I havent actually missed a day of work since March through illness, working from home lets me have tired days. Laptop, hot tea and dog.

 

[10ofRods]

The U.S. has more excess deaths for the period of CoVid than Europe.

These are deaths in excess of any statistical expectation for each week of the pandemic. They may not all be CoVid, but it is likely that most are. US life expectancy was already on the decline (mostly due to the opioid crisis, but research on that topic has slowed to a crawl in favor of CoVid research projects - however, opioid deaths are accounted for in regular death certificates, and are not part of the excess death tally).

Those excess deaths are not car accidents nor opioid overdoses or suicides or any other thing other than...unknown deaths, many of them at home.

 

[10ofRods]

As you may know, Israel got pretty good control over CoVid and now is entering major new lockdowns during what they're calling a Second Wave.

Medical reports from Israel show that the symptoms and course of the disease are more serious in the second phase.

40% of younger patients are seriously ill. This is being reported in other places as well.

"COVID-19 Patients Are Far More Ill During Current Wave," Mayanei HaYeshua Director Says - The Yeshiva World

The article states that Israeli doctors believe the virus is much worse in this phase (and there are a number of pre-prints on why this could be so, including the fact that some people may have already had an asymptomatic or mild case - but that instead of gaining immunity, CoVid may do something permanently damaging to the immune system).

 

[MimosaMornings]

Had a skin check today. Did I feel comfortable. No. Not at all. At one point had to remove mask for face check.

Oh gosh. I’m past due for my skin check and have several places that need to be examined and probably removed.
Did your doctor have on a mask and/or face shield?

 

[MrX]

Since the major studies on this topic involve thousands of patients of all ages, from many different nations, and since the studies document actual physical pathologies in the lungs and heart, particularly in the epithelial layers, and since the psychiatric diagnoses you mention are among the most rare in all DSM, I'd say that's a hard no.

Sure, some people who already felt ill will continue to feel ill after CoVId. But we're talking about thousands of young people without known psychiatric diagnosis that have abnormal EKG's or EEG's or lung function tests or kidney problems (on dialysis!! for life or until they get a transplant). I've got a whole collection of statements from such people, from my own research. But there's also published medical literature on it.

I'll post a link a bit later.

DSM-5 redefines hypochondriasis - Mayo Clinic

Interesting - what we used to call Hypochondria is now "Somatic Symptom Disorder" and "Illness Anxiety Disorder."

 

[10ofRods]

The speed at which CoVid is being transmitted has increased in 31 out of 50 US states. This is likely due to the fact that the more transmissible version (more stable version) of Covid is now the predominant version of CoVid, but also due to the large number of young, asymptomatic/low symptom carriers who infect others readily.

Coronavirus is spreading quickly in 31 of 50 U.S. states, data shows

Rt COVID-19

Wyoming has the most rapid rise right now (based on rates of transmission from one person to others).

The mutation is described here:

D614G mutation now the dominant variant in the global COVID-19 pandemic

 

[10ofRods]

DSM-5 redefines hypochondriasis - Mayo Clinic

Interesting - what we used to call Hypochondria is now "Somatic Symptom Disorder" and "Illness Anxiety Disorder."

It was redefined more than a decade ago (actually longer - probably 2 decades ago).

Illness Anxiety Disorder is a situation in which a normally non-anxious person is now anxious due to contracting a serious illness or due to fear of same. I think a lot of people do have that. I have days when I feel anxious for no reason (I don't, usually) and then I remember why.

CoVid.

However, I am not a patient of any sort. It's not at a level where I'd seek care.

 

[Trino]

Oh gosh. I’m past due for my skin check and have several places that need to be examined and probably removed.
Did your doctor have on a mask and/or face shield?

Oh, yes. The entire time - mask - as did her assistant. It's just that I didn't feel comfortable.

 

[10ofRods]

Super-healthy 19-year-old college athlete dies of CoVid.

And his family wants to get the word out. He had no known pre-existing conditions.

 

[mickey2942]

DSM-5 redefines hypochondriasis - Mayo Clinic

Interesting - what we used to call Hypochondria is now "Somatic Symptom Disorder" and "Illness Anxiety Disorder."

Malingering. I don't like this, there have been numerous studies where physicians of another race or gender are more likely to identify a range of symptoms as psychosomatic.

This is widely known in the field of rehabilitation and medicine. Which is why, I always recommend that people see a provider, preferably from their own culture and gender. This goes a long way to actually helping patients get a correct diagnosis.

 

[10ofRods]

Malingering. I don't like this, there have been numerous studies where physicians of another race or gender are more likely to identify a range of symptoms as psychosomatic.

This is widely known in the field of rehabilitation and medicine. Which is why, I always recommend that people see a provider, preferably from their own culture and gender. This goes a long way to actually helping patients get a correct diagnosis.

Yep. That's why women who are having heart attacks are more likely to be sent home from the ER. We don't complain as much, our symptoms involve pain that's not directly over the heart, etc. Good physicians know this. But not all physicians are able to incorporate that knowledge into patient care.

Thank the lord for nurses.

 

[10ofRods]

And here comes some of the science on post-CoVid symptoms, to show that it's not psychological in any way.

Oxford study shows longterm damage to various organs post-CoVid.

 

[10ofRods]

I am not at all fluent in Russian, but I have family there and they're all bilingual in English. The following article is, according to people I know on the ground, accurate.

I'm posting in order to combat the sometimes-repeated skepticism about Russia's data collection. They are great at data (and at medical tech, having perhaps the most PCR machines per capita in the world).

And their healthcare professionals are alerting the nation that it is indeed a crisis and they are about to run out of hospital beds.

‘We’re Out of Beds’: Russia’s Resurgent Coronavirus Outbreak Is Approaching First Peak - The Moscow Times

 

[10ofRods]

This journalistic article mislabels post-CoVid symptoms as "side effects" of CoVid (they are direct effects of course), but it is accurate.

9 out of 10 people labeled "recovered" under current guidelines in fact still have symptoms, ranging from mild to serious. Fatigue can be mild to severe, as an example and it is a common post-viral symptom for many viruses (and the reasons are fairly well understood).

Nine in ten recovered COVID-19 patients experience side-effects, study shows

Nine out of ten. 90%. Which is why if you are one of those who is striving to avoid this illness, you're very well justified in doing so.

That includes younger people, of course.

 

[10ofRods]

48-year-old Army reservist, thought to be healthy, becomes 5th Army Reservist to die of CoVId:

Fifth Army reservist dies of COVID-19, the eighth service member overall

 

[10ofRods]

Misleading headline in WSJ article (which is behind a paywall - but don't worry, it's not worth paying to read).

New York City Subway Is Low Risk for Coronavirus Transmission, Study Says

The studies concluded that as long as ventilation was adequate on public transit and people wear masks that public transit is safe.

This is not a peer reviewed study of the NYC subway system at all.

And it's only safe if people are wearing masks...and air turnover is 4-6 changes of air per hour.

 

[10ofRods]

UK records highest new case numbers of CoVid since July (yesterday).

The upward curve is in England and Wales. New quarantine measures are being proposed. The hot spots appear to be immediately adjacent to major universities and then radiating outward into areas nearby.

 

[dixiegirl1035]

The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine now has a trade name. "Covishield"

They have made already 2 million doses and ramping to 10 million per month up to 100 million doses as required. Stage III clinical trials - Brazil/South Africa/UK/. ( and US... 2 folks had issues.. one got MS/other unknown for sure- trials back on in UK). Projected $13 / dose.. perhaps cheapest vaccine.

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[JerseyGirl]

16 pharmaceutical companies and the Gates Foundation to scale up manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines

The 16 pharmaceutical companies to sign this agreement are AstraZeneca; Bayer; bioMérieux; Boehringer Ingelheim; Bristol Myers Squibb; Eisai; Eli Lilly; Gilead; GSK; Johnson & Johnson; Merck & Co. (known as MSD outside the U.S. and Canada); Merck KGaA; Novartis; Pfizer; Roche; and Sanofi.

United Nations welcomes nearly $1 billion in recent pledges - to bolster access to lifesaving tests, treatments and vaccines to end COVID-19

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has signed a new joint agreement, along with 16 pharmaceutical companies, to commit to scaling up manufacturing of Covid-19 vaccines at "an unprecedented speed" and making sure that approved vaccines reach broad global distribution as early as possible.

 

[Rose in SC]

The speed at which CoVid is being transmitted has increased in 31 out of 50 US states. This is likely due to the fact that the more transmissible version (more stable version) of Covid is now the predominant version of CoVid, but also due to the large number of young, asymptomatic/low symptom carriers who infect others readily.

Coronavirus is spreading quickly in 31 of 50 U.S. states, data shows

Rt COVID-19

Wyoming has the most rapid rise right now (based on rates of transmission from one person to others).

I was really surprised to see South Carolina with the best stat on that Rt list at .84. Our percent positive in the seven days has ranged from 8.2% to 14.3% with at least 123 confirmed deaths and over 5,000 new cases.

One of my co-workers (31 year old guy) tells me the virus is OVER and me and the other secretary in the office are crazy for wearing masks all day. Seeing that statistic does make me wonder (not that Covid is over, but that we as a state are doing much better than I thought). On the other hand, our town has already cancelled the annual Christmas parade scheduled for mid-December and a lot of people are in an uproar over that. Town is still pondering what to do about Halloween.

ETA: Today's numbers: only 197 new confirmed cases, 21 new confirmed deaths, but a positivity rate of 15.7%