PlagueWatch 2020-23 - Coronavirus

[BD80]

This pretty much captures the mask debate. Spot on, no matter which side you're on!

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=284020486047804

[Bluedog]

This pretty much captures the mask debate. Spot on, no matter which side you're on!

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=284020486047804

Is that family from North Carolina? They came to fame with their Christmas Jammies song several years ago. I liked them until I just watched their second most recent video "Bored in the USA" and noticed their son wearing a UNCheats shirt
...

[CDu]

Is that family from North Carolina? They came to fame with their Christmas Jammies song several years ago. I liked them until I just watched their second most recent video "Bored in the USA" and noticed their son wearing a UNCheats shirt
...

Yeah they live in the Triangle. The dad used to be a local news anchor.

[camion]

I just made a grocery run to the Wal-Mart in Travelers Rest, SC, just north of Greenville to get kitty litter for the new house cat. I won't go back there. Less than half of the customers and less than half of the workers were wearing masks.

I also stopped at the Publix near Furman U. All of the workers and 90% of the customers were masked. So that is my default store henceforth.

Neither one of those stores is the the Greenville city limits and so neither is covered by the city mask ordinance.

[sagegrouse]

Yesterday, as you all recognize, had by far the most number of new COVID-10 cases -- 57,236 with 687 deaths. Not surprisingly, a dozen states showed more than 200 new cases per one million of population:

 FL 	471
 AZ 	458
 SC 	346
 GA 	327
 LA 	297
 MS 	292
 AR 	291
 TX 	260
 CA 	237
 AL 	234
 TN 	231
 IA 	225

These are mostly states from the southern tier.

In terms of total numbers of new cases, the list is similar -- but North Carolina is on this list, coming in at #6, just above SC, which has one-half the population:

FL	10,109
CA	9,352
TX	7,535
GA	3,472
AZ	3,333
NC	1,855
SC	1,782

[rsvman]

Newer study reported today that patients who got hydroxychloroquine had a better survival rate than those who did not. I suspect this is going to get a lot of press over the next little while, and we might as well throw another log on the fire that is mistrust of science, get it up to a nice roar.

I haven't been able to actually see the data or how they were collected. The authors say it is not particularly surprising that they reached a different conclusion from that of other studies; they base this on the fact that they started hydroxychloroquine early in the process, rather than waiting until the patients were on death's door. They believe that hydroxychloroquine is likely helpful if started in the earlier stages. They also said that they very carefully selected patients for the drug to minimize heart side effects, and that they followed them for cardiac side effects very closely.

Look for a lot of "I told you so" from Trump in the near future....

[-jk]

Yep. Several cities appear on both charts!

If you're the fastest and the slowest, does that make you half-fast?

Pete Fountain says laissez les bon temps rouler!

Fun guy. I worked with his son and son-in-law for ten years.

-jk

[Bluedog]

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/indi...ust-15-2256269

The first made-in-India coronavirus vaccine may be launched by August 15, with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) fast-tracking efforts to develop "Covaxin" in partnership with Bharat Biotech International Limited...The ICMR talked about plans to launch the vaccine for public health use by August 15, Independence Day.

Of course there is major skepticism with this date:

Experts have questioned the deadline, since the clinical trial is yet to begin..."How can ICMR say that the vaccine will be launched for public use by August 15? How can the clinical trial be completed in just one month for a vaccine," wondered Amulya Nidhi of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, a network of organisations working on public health...The Phase 1 is planned for completion in 28 days, which would meet the August 15 deadline. It is not clear how the vaccine can be made available for public use with just the results of the first phase.

Clearly, this is a scientific arm's race the like of which we haven't seen (maybe space exploration was similar...but that was contained to fewer countries). So, everybody wants to say "we'll be first!!" It is pretty amazing how so many different countries/institutions have come together for this though and how many possible vaccines are being studied - would be fantastic if multiple of them work rather than just one.

[jv001]

I just made a grocery run to the Wal-Mart in Travelers Rest, SC, just north of Greenville to get kitty litter for the new house cat. I won't go back there. Less than half of the customers and less than half of the workers were wearing masks.

I also stopped at the Publix near Furman U. All of the workers and 90% of the customers were masked. So that is my default store henceforth.

Neither one of those stores is the the Greenville city limits and so neither is covered by the city mask ordinance.

My wife and I just made a trip to the Wal-Mart on Peterscreek Pkway here in Winston Salem. We're trying to stock up on a few grocery items as the wife is having her 2nd knee replacement since Dec. 2019 on July 10th. There will be a few days of quarantine before and after her surgery for me, so the trip was necessary. I was pleasantly surprised with mask wearers. All employees had masks on and I only saw 3 customers not wearing one. The demographics of the three non wearers were evenly divided: 1 elderly white guy, 1 AFAM lady who looked to be in the 40-50 range and one Spanish man who looked to be in the 25-35 age group. I think the governor's message that masks are required in public places brought about this big change. I'm hoping to see some of our federal leaders step up and put a mask on when they are out and about.

[MChambers]

Newer study reported today that patients who got hydroxychloroquine had a better survival rate than those who did not. I suspect this is going to get a lot of press over the next little while, and we might as well throw another log on the fire that is mistrust of science, get it up to a nice roar.

I haven't been able to actually see the data or how they were collected. The authors say it is not particularly surprising that they reached a different conclusion from that of other studies; they base this on the fact that they started hydroxychloroquine early in the process, rather than waiting until the patients were on death's door. They believe that hydroxychloroquine is likely helpful if started in the earlier stages. They also said that they very carefully selected patients for the drug to minimize heart side effects, and that they followed them for cardiac side effects very closely.

Look for a lot of "I told you so" from Trump in the near future...

From what I've read, this study is another retrospective study, so is of limited value. And, because they "very carefully selected patients", it may be that they simply picked patients who were more likely to survive (especially since they were concerned about heart side effects). But you're right, will spark another bad debate.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

I just made a grocery run to the Wal-Mart in Travelers Rest, SC, just north of Greenville to get kitty litter for the new house cat. I won't go back there. Less than half of the customers and less than half of the workers were wearing masks.

I also stopped at the Publix near Furman U. All of the workers and 90% of the customers were masked. So that is my default store henceforth.

Neither one of those stores is the the Greenville city limits and so neither is covered by the city mask ordinance.

And... Greenville is one of the epicenters of COVID-19 outbreaks.

What a coincidence that places where people aren't wearing masks are experiencing these spikes! What are the odds?

[cspan37421]

From what I've read, this study is another retrospective study, so is of limited value. And, because they "very carefully selected patients", it may be that they simply picked patients who were more likely to survive (especially since they were concerned about heart side effects). But you're right, will spark another bad debate.

As a society (and maybe as a species), we're really not much into nuance.
I could go into detail about why, but ...

hey, where are you going?

[Bob Green]

https://www.wavy.com/news/health/cor...ulative-cases/

Hampton Roads seven day average of new cases has nearly doubled from two weeks ago. Another 100+ new cases today.

[sagegrouse]

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/indi...ust-15-2256269


Of course there is major skepticism with this date:


Clearly, this is a scientific arm's race the like of which we haven't seen (maybe space exploration was similar...but that was contained to fewer countries). So, everybody wants to say "we'll be first!!" It is pretty amazing how so many different countries/institutions have come together for this though and how many possible vaccines are being studied - would be fantastic if multiple of them work rather than just one.

Giving this ten seconds thought (which for me is a lot because my mind grows numb), it looks like China via its Army and India are gonna conduct hase III trials through the citizens of their countries rather than in controlled samples.

[dudog84]

Watching the daily new case number spiral out of control in the most advanced country the world has ever seen is distressing. 'merica!

[Tripping William]

hey, where are you going?

With your long face, pulling down, don’t hide away. Like an ocean, that you can see and you can small and the sound, the waves crash down.

[Sorry; couldn’t resist.]

[CameronBornAndBred]

New Bern is having their fireworks show tomorrow, while several other local cities have cancelled theirs. For us the show is within walking distance, and while being at the park it is pretty easy to social distance (every year we've gone, we've not had anyone sitting within 6' of us), the crowd walking in and out is pretty jam packed. It will be interesting to see how it goes this year. Will folks from other local towns drive in to see our show? Will people tend to stay away? Will there be any noticeable change one way or the other?

We are going to go in early and stay late to avoid the crowded rush.

[Dr. Rosenrosen]

NC hits another new high number of cases today at 2,099 and a record high number of hospitalizations at 951. Two weeks since the statewide mask mandate took effect. I hope we start to see these number level off and reverse direction next week. Though I suspect that will depend greatly on people’s behavior and choices throughout the holiday weekend.

[rsvman]

https://www.wavy.com/news/health/cor...ulative-cases/

Hampton Roads seven day average of new cases has nearly doubled from two weeks ago. Another 100+ new cases today.

Hadnt heard this, but it certainly jives with what I am seeing here with our ED and UC cases. I get notified of every positive test, since I am running occ health for my company.

Overall numbers for Virginia have been relatively stable, but our local numbers are definitely drifting up.

[aimo]

Yeah they live in the Triangle. The dad used to be a local news anchor.

Yeah, Penn Holderness is another Jordan HS grad.