***NON-POLITICAL COVID-19 Discussion Thread***

[JakeF]

A couple of reminders...

Originally Posted by Bwana

Once again, don't come in this thread with some kind of political agenda, or you will be shown the door. If you want to go that route, there is a thread about this in DC.

Originally Posted by Dartgod

People, there is a lot of good information in this thread, let's try to keep the petty bickering to a minimum.

We all have varying opinions about the impact of this, the numbers, etc. We will all never agree with each other. But we can all keep it civil.

Thanks!

Click here for the original OP:

Spoiler!

Apparently the CoronaVirus can survive on a inanimate objects, such as door knobs, for 9 days.

California coronavirus case could be first spread within U.S. community, CDC says
By SOUMYA KARLAMANGLA, JACLYN COSGROVE
FEB. 26, 2020 8:04 PM

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating what could be the first case of novel coronavirus in the United States involving a patient in California who neither recently traveled out of the country nor was in contact with someone who did.

“At this time, the patient’s exposure is unknown. It’s possible this could be an instance of community spread of COVID-19, which would be the first time this has happened in the United States,” the CDC said in a statement. “Community spread means spread of an illness for which the source of infection is unknown. It’s also possible, however, that the patient may have been exposed to a returned traveler who was infected.”

The individual is a resident of Solano County and is receiving medical care in Sacramento County, according to the state Department of Public Health.

The CDC said the “case was detected through the U.S. public health system — picked up by astute clinicians.”

Officials at UC Davis Medical Center expanded on what the federal agency might have meant by that in an email sent Wednesday, as reported by the Davis Enterprise newspaper.

The patient arrived at UC Davis Medical Center from another hospital Feb. 19 and “had already been intubated, was on a ventilator, and given droplet protection orders because of an undiagnosed and suspected viral condition,” according to an email sent by UC Davis officials that was obtained by the Davis Enterprise.

The staff at UC Davis requested COVID-19 testing by the CDC, but because the patient didn’t fit the CDC’s existing criteria for the virus, a test wasn’t immediately administered, according to the email. The CDC then ordered the test Sunday, and results were announced Wednesday. Hospital administrators reportedly said in the email that despite these issues, there has been minimal exposure at the hospital because of safety protocols they have in place.

A UC Davis Health spokesperson declined Wednesday evening to share the email with The Times.

Since Feb. 2, more than 8,400 returning travelers from China have entered California, according to the state health department. They have been advised to self-quarantine for 14 days and limit interactions with others as much as possible, officials said.

“This is a new virus, and while we are still learning about it, there is a lot we already know,” Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health, said in a statement. “We have been anticipating the potential for such a case in the U.S., and given our close familial, social and business relationships with China, it is not unexpected that the first case in the U.S. would be in California.”

It is not clear how the person became infected, but public health workers could not identify any contacts with people who had traveled to China or other areas where the virus is widespread. That raises concern that the virus is spreading in the United States, creating a challenge for public health officials, experts say.

“It’s the first signal that we could be having silent transmission in the community,” said Lawrence Gostin, director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center on National and Global Health Law. “It probably means there are many more cases out there, and it probably means this individual has infected others, and now it’s a race to try to find out who that person has infected.”

On Tuesday, the CDC offered its most serious warning to date that the United States should expect and prepare for the coronavirus to become a more widespread health issue.

“Ultimately, we expect we will see coronavirus spread in this country,” said Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. “It’s not so much a question of if, but a question of when.”

According to the CDC’s latest count Wednesday morning, 59 U.S. residents have tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus — 42 of whom are repatriated citizens from a Diamond Princess cruise. That number has grown by two since Messonnier’s last count Tuesday, although the CDC was not immediately available to offer details on the additional cases.

More than 82,000 cases of coronavirus have been reported globally, and more than 2,700 people have died, with the majority in mainland China, the epicenter of the outbreak.

But public health leaders have repeatedly reminded residents that the health risk from the novel coronavirus to the general public remains low.

“While COVID-19 has a high transmission rate, it has a low mortality rate,” the state Department of Public Health said in a statement Wednesday. “From the international data we have, of those who have tested positive for COVID-19, approximately 80% do not exhibit symptoms that would require hospitalization. There have been no confirmed deaths related to COVID-19 in the United States to date.”

CDC officials have also warned that although the virus is likely to spread in U.S. communities, the flu still poses a greater risk.

Gostin said the news of potential silent transmission does not eliminate the possibility of containing the virus in the U.S. and preventing an outbreak.

“There are few enough cases that we should at least try,” he said. “Most of us are not optimistic that that will be successful, but we’re still in the position to try.”

[carlos3652]

I think too many numbers are being thrown around as fact and depending how one interprets the numbers and what numbers you use, one can make the stats say whatever the hell you want.

The only number I semi trust are deaths (and even those can be skewed). And you can see an upward trend that isn’t slowing down and probably won’t slow down until the stay at home measures show up in 2 weeks (most started this week) ... Italy and Spain have now reached the 700 death per day rate and France is close behind at 350... other countries will start hitting 3 figures soon.

All we can do is guess at this point which sucks.

[dirk digler]

There is a growing concern about false negative tests. Case in point the nurse here in Clinton that handled our first Covid patient got all the classic symptoms a week later and had to be hospitalized up in KC and almost put on a vent. She has had 3 tests now and they were all negative and she even still has the glass opacities in one of her lungs.


Something is not right with the tests or the administration of the tests. Hopefully very quickly they will get a blood test ready to start using.

[Mecca]

You know who is to awesome to catch this....Joe Exotic.

[Demonpenz]

When Mahomes does something old school and painful to the opponent I am going to call it Patonian

[SupDock]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

There is a growing concern about false negative tests. Case in point the nurse here in Clinton that handled our first Covid patient got all the classic symptoms a week later and had to be hospitalized up in KC and almost put on a vent. She has had 3 tests now and they were all negative and she even still has the glass opacities in one of her lungs.


Something is not right with the tests or the administration of the tests. Hopefully very quickly they will get a blood test ready to start using.

I saw quotes of a 17 percent false negative rate.

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by SupDock

I saw quotes of a 17 percent false negative rate.

My god...

[Monticore]

We got our first positive in our region and are testing 2-3 potential daily as of Wednesday , we had positive cases of SARs or MERS up here . With our lack of ICU and large elderly population and both our referral centre most likely getting swamped it could get ugly. Sudbury has like 25 ICU beds and a population of 157k plus our regions 25k, North bay has another maybe 15 and population of 75k.

[Donger]

https://news.trust.org/item/20200326232240-2yx1f

March 26 (Reuters) - The coronavirus pandemic could kill more than 81,000 people in the United States in the next four months and may not subside until June, according to a data analysis done by University of Washington School of Medicine.

The number of hospitalized patients is expected to peak nationally by the second week of April, though the peak may come later in some states. Some people could continue to die of the virus as late as July, although deaths should be below epidemic levels of 10 per day by June at the latest, according to the analysis.

The analysis, using data from governments, hospitals and other sources, predicts that the number of U.S. deaths could vary widely, ranging from as low as around 38,000 to as high as around 162,000.

The variance is due in part to disparate rates of the spread of the virus in different regions, which experts are still struggling to explain, said Dr. Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington, who led the study.

The duration of the virus means there may be a need for social distancing measures for longer than initially expected, although the country may eventually be able relax restrictions if it can more effectively test and quarantine the sick, Murray said.

The analysis also highlights the strain that will be placed on hospitals. At the epidemic's peak, sick patients could exceed the number of available hospital beds by 64,000 and could require the use of around 20,000 ventilators. Ventilators are already running short in hard-hit places like New York City.

The virus is spreading more slowly in California, which could mean that peak cases there will come later in April and social distancing measures will need to be extended in the state for longer, Murray said.

Louisiana and Georgia are predicted to see high rates of contagion and could see a particularly high burden on their local healthcare systems, he added.

The analysis assumes close adherence to infection prevention measures imposed by federal, state and local governments.

"The trajectory of the pandemic will change – and dramatically for the worse – if people ease up on social distancing or relax with other precautions," Murray said in a statement.

The analysis comes as confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States continue to mount, with the World Health Organization saying the country has the potential to become the world's new epicenter of the virus.

The coronavirus causes a respiratory illness that in a minority of severe cases ravages the lungs and can lead to death.

The United States has reported around 70,000 cases of the virus and more than 900 deaths since January. Globally, it has infected more than half a million people, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The University of Washington has been at the center of the outbreak in United States, which first was detected in the state of Washington and has so far killed 100 people in that state, according to date from Johns Hopkins University. (Reporting by Carl O'Donnell; Editing by Aurora Ellis)

[BigRedChief]

New York approves ventilator splitting, allowing hospitals to treat two patients with one machine

New York hospitals can now attempt to treat two coronavirus patients with a single ventilator, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Thursday, a move that could help the state make better use of its scarce supply of lifesaving breathing machines as the outbreak continues to surge.

New York-Presbyterian Hospital has developed a split-ventilation protocol that has been shared with the New York State Department of Health, which quickly approved the practice.

Calling the technique “not ideal, but workable,” Cuomo said ventilator splitting may be necessary given some projections that suggest the state may need as many as 30,000 ventilators in the coming weeks.

The practice is controversial, and the move drew immediate criticism in a joint statement issued by several medical associations advising clinicians “that sharing mechanical ventilators should not be attempted because it cannot be done safely with current equipment.”

https://abcnews.go.com/US/york-appro...ry?id=69816167

[Hammock Parties]

the analysis, using data from governments, hospitals and other sources, predicts that the number of U.S. deaths could vary widely, ranging from as low as around 38,000 to as high as around 162,000.

nobody knows shit

[loochy]

Originally Posted by oaklandhater

It looks even worse when you extend the timeline out to see the normal ebb and flow of the typical flu season. This is for 65+. pic.twitter.com/x605B1o2DP

— Afferent Input (@afferent_input) March 27, 2020

should end any one trying to compare to the flu ever again.

But those tweets compare it to the flu....it shows hospital visits for flu-like symptoms. That's a comparison.

[loochy]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

nobody knows shit

no crap. "Everyone could die or nobody could die." At the end will be "I told you so!"

These MFers are basically weathermen at this point. They can say what's happening right now, but that's about it.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

nobody knows shit

It's a novel virus by definition, yes.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

nobody knows shit

March 26 (Reuters) - The coronavirus pandemic could kill more than 81,000 people in the United States in the next four months and may not subside until June, according to a data analysis done by University of Washington School of Medicine.

The number of hospitalized patients is expected to peak nationally by the second week of April, though the peak may come later in some states. Some people could continue to die of the virus as late as July, although deaths should be below epidemic levels of 10 per day by June at the latest, according to the analysis.

The math does not add up, yet again. This is basically saying 78,000 more people need to die in the next 2 months but we will be below 10 per day by June.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

The math does not add up, yet again. This is basically saying 78,000 more people need to die in the next 2 months but we will be below 10 per day by June.

What math in what you quoted doesn't add up?