***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.”

[Chief Pagan]

Originally Posted by suzzer99

Apparently.

I'm just saying for the people who say we screwed up and should have just isolated the elderly and at risk - apparently that was not an option that was ever going to fly in the US. It doesn't seem like any other country has tried to do that either.

Besides the politics, it is extremely hard to both isolate and care for the elderly.

Are you going to put assisted care workers in a bubble ?

Stop doing all the routine health care that the 70+ age population needs?

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by suzzer99

This is an incredible article that answers so many questions I had about immunity and transmission. Thanks.

Yeah I thought it was one of the best articles I have read during this whole pandemic. Functional immunity sounds like what we might have with some waning thrown in.

[TLO]

Originally Posted by TLO

1394 a week ago today. Safe bet we'll come in under that number today.

By about 100. Not bad.

[Bob Dole]

But CASES!!!

[mr. tegu]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

It isn't due to social media at all. Social media is a symptom. The real disease goes much deeper but it's not something that can be discussed here.

You're spot on about the numbers though - a majority of the young people I work with feel worthless. They may manifest that in depression but some of them also manifest a sort of hedonism that if they're worthless, so is everybody else, so it doesn't matter if I hurt them to get what I want.

Social media is absolutely a causal factor in that age group’s high instances of depression and anxiety. It’s not unique to them but that age range is the first to truly grow up on it and start reaching adulthood.

Using feelings of worthlessness, those come from a variety of sources but one major one is constantly and obsessively comparing yourselves to others via social media and feeling as if you must be worthless in comparison due to consuming idealized versions people put out and not adequately deciphering that what you see isn’t reality. This isn’t new as girls comparing themselves to models of impossible standards has long been an issue for young girls. But now it’s much more persistent and reaches all ages and sexes in varied and different ways.

[lewdog]

Got my antibody results today and I do have antibodies for COVID.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Got my antibody results today and I do have antibodies for COVID.

Billay won't have to take the vaccine then .just pump him full of LewLoad.

[Pants]

So I now have my own SARS2 story I can share.

Earlier this month, both my parents contracted this thing. They are doing fine and their experience, thankfully, has been very much uneventful so far.

Still, there's some anecdotal stuff in there which some may find interesting in this thread.

On Sunday, 8/9, my parents had their best friends over for dinner. They have been hanging out with this couple all throughout the pandemic despite my numerous attempts to convince them otherwise.

During this dinner, nobody was exhibiting any symptoms and everything seemed normal.

The next day (Monday), the lady developed a fever and started coughing. She immediately got tested and got a positive COVID-19 result.

She informed my parents ASAP. They began taking a shit ton of zinc and continued this for a couple more days. My mom said they had to stop because the taste would just persist in their mouth at that point. I'm guessing they probably ended up taking way too much, but I have no actual idea.

On Tuesday, both the lady's husband and her teenage daughter (freshman in college) became symptomatic. Both got tested and got negative results. Clearly that was incorrect (they later got retested and were confirmed positive). It was the same testing center and hopefully others aren't as bad but that's still a bit discouraging. I mean, I can see one being wrong. Both of them being wrong is just... ugh.

Anyway.

The husband had a legit fever and felt very fatigued. The daughter had a low grade fever, a sore throat, and was very sleepy. She remained very sleepy for a number of days. Like she slept and slept and slept.

That same Tuesday, my dad developed a low grade fever (in the 99's). He got tested that day and was confirmed positive the following day. His test was the nasal swab kind. Note: my dad has Type 1 diabetes and is 61. Type 1 is the shitty autoimmune kind that is not reversible and is not caused by obesity or bad diets. Your body basically attacks the cells responsible for creating insulin or something like that. Hammas can explain it, I'm sure.

On Wednesday, my dad began coughing a bit.

On Thursday, my dad's cough worsened but was still pretty mild.

On Friday, my dad's low grade fever was gone. The mild cough persisted.

On Saturday, my mom went to get tested. She was completely asymptomatic. At the urgent care where she went for the test, she was told she was wasting resources by getting tested because if her husband tested positive, it was a given she would be positive too. Note: my mom is 55 and is on a low dose blood pressure med and some thyroid medicine.

On Tuesday of next week, my mom (still asymptomatic on the 8th day after exposure) got her test result back. She was positive. She got tested for the antigen, which means it's 99%+ accurate if it comes back positive.

Today, my dad went back to work. My mom, who never ended up developing any sort of symptoms is going back tomorrow.

Again, pretty uneventful and I am very grateful. I hope they are out of the woods at this point.

Another ****ed up thing was that my mom followed her job's COVID-19 procedures by calling the established hotline the day she found out she was exposed. She was told to don a mask and come to work. She was like "what in the actual ****?" Her actual boss naturally told her to stay the **** at home for at least two weeks. Given, that was before she got an official positive result, but that is still so irresponsible and dangerous. Just completely blows my mind.

In conclusion, they must have contracted the less dangerous strain. They probably got relatively low viral loads that Sunday because the friend was pre-symptomatic so there was no coughing or sneezing. Zinc may have actually helped too? I don't know.

Naturally, the first week was really scary for me. ****, I am just ready for the vaccines to be done so we can all breathe a little easier.

[IA_Chiefs_fan]

Thank you for sharing, Pants.

[lewdog]

Good stuff, Pants. Glad to hear it was easy for them.

The "allowing/requiring" people to return to work quickly, without following guidelines, is all too common. Definitely doesn't help slow the spread with poor policies like that.

[dirk digler]

Thanks for sharing Pants and very glad your family is ok

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Good stuff, Pants. Glad to hear it was easy for them.

The "allowing/requiring" people to return to work quickly, without following guidelines, is all too common. Definitely doesn't help slow the spread with poor policies like that.

There's a place here that's in trouble for not letting them leave in the first place, let alone forcing them to come back too early.

[O.city]

It was a mandatory 2 weeks off for us wary but Were now at “10 days post first symptom and with no more symptoms you can come back”

[O.city]

The collective thought at the time is that you’re the most contagious the 48 hours before symptom onset

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by O.city

It was a mandatory 2 weeks off for us wary but Were now at “10 days post first symptom and with no more symptoms you can come back”

This is how it should work. I had 7 days of symptoms but went back to work on day 10.