CoVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2 Information and Questions

[Evil Sports]

And yes Adrian its going to have to run through 80% of the people before we see progress. I believe the CDC knows this now and thats why you are seeing a different approach these last few weeks.

 

[Bruce]

correlation between severity of outcome and blood type

I believe you have asked this before.

I am not aware of any medical organization recognizing such a correlation but there are many relevant publications.

If you want to investigate your curiosity I suggest starting at https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0,4&q=covid+blood+type&btnG=&oq=covid+bloo

 

[Jim_in_Delaware]

I would disagree that there are no home treatment plans and will add that the choice of what to do or not to do for an individual patient should ultimately be decided by the patient and their doctor.

The most current NIH COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel's current outpatient treatment recommendations are as follows (in order of preference):

• Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir 300 mg plus ritonavir 100 mg) orally twice daily for 5 days
• Sotrovimab 500 mg, administered as a single intravenous (IV) infusion
• Remdesivir 200 mg IV on Day 1, followed by remdesivir 100 mg IV on Days 2 and 3
• Molnupiravir 800 mg orally twice daily for 5 days

For most patients, the University of Chicago's Medicine website notes:

The most important thing to know about using over-the-counter medications to treat COVID-19 is that none of these common drugstore products are actually going to treat the virus itself. But these medications can certainly make you feel a whole lot more comfortable when you’re sick. Just make sure you’re following dosing guidelines on the label, especially for products like Tylenol. If you have other medical problems or take other medications, you should probably check to make sure OTC medicines aren’t a problem for you. That said, taking the things that work for you when you have a cold or the flu will probably make you feel better now, too.

In terms of specifics: acetaminophen (Tylenol), naproxen (Aleve) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) can help lower your fever, assuming you don’t have a health history that should prevent you from using them. It’s usually not necessary to lower a fever – an elevated temperature is meant to help your body fight off the virus. But if you feel really awful, it’s okay to take a fever reducer. If your temperature is over 104 F, or you or your child has a history of febrile seizures, you will probably need to take something and you should contact your doctor.

These medicines will also help you get through the body aches. You can also try to manage coughs and sore throats with chamomile or herbal tea, hot water with lemon, lozenges and decongestant balms like Vicks VapoRub (or something similar). Most OTC cough medications have been proven to be ineffective and I don’t recommend them.

Finally, if you have diarrhea or stomach issues, the best thing to do is to let them run their course and stay hydrated by drinking lots of liquids. If you can’t keep liquids down or feel dizzy, contact your doctor. Just remember, you aren’t really better until you feel well without taking any of these medications.

Jim

 

[Evil Sports]

Thanks but I was hoping to hear from a medical professional in here on the front lines

 

[Bruce]

Thanks but I was hoping to hear from a medical professional in here on the front lines

The question was already asked an answered by Doctor(s) working in the field on December 8th. If you want a different answer I suggest you follow my link to see what researchers have published on the topic.

 

[Julian]

Thanks but I was hoping to hear from a medical professional in here on the front lines

This article discusses this:

Study finds no evidence to support link between ABO blood group and COVID-19 risk

Researchers from the Boston University School of Public Health in the United States say there is no evidence to support a correlation between ABO blood group and the risk of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or the severity of coronavirus disease 2019...

www.news-medical.net

It would be very easy for a hospital (or hospital system) to pull a report on all covid deaths and check their blood type. One could get a pretty large sample size with a large hospital system. The fact that no large system has reported this correlation suggests to me there very likely isn't one. I may ask one of our analytics folks if they've pulled this from one of our large systems...

 

[Evil Sports]

BLOOD GROUPS A AND AB ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED RISK OF SEVERE CLINICAL OUTCOMES OF COVID-19 INFECTION
People with blood groups A or AB appear to exhibit greater COVID-19 disease severity than people with blood groups O or B, according to a separate retrospective study. Researchers examined data from 95 critically ill COVID-19 patients hospitalized in Vancouver, Canada. They found that patients with blood groups A or AB were more likely to require mechanical ventilation, suggesting that they had greater rates of lung injury from COVID-19. They also found more patients with blood group A and AB required dialysis for kidney failure.

 

[Bruce]

@Evil Sports, did you happen to notice how many subjects were included in that observational study?

 

[Jim_in_Delaware]

The blood type issue and its effect on the virus is an interesting one. Quite honestly, this far into the pandemic, I'm surprised that no one seems to have done a deep dive into patient data in a study that supports (or disproves) the hypothesis. I guess that it might get talked about to a fair degree on some of the media (like Fox) because my Mom will periodically ask me if I have heard anything (I haven't) one way or the other.

Jim

 

[the MfM]

…Along with CNN retiring their covid death tracker graphic it’s looking like things will be back to normal by Easter. Maybe Valentine’s Day at this rate.

Fauci voices hope for return to normalcy around February or March

If more Americans get vaccinated and boosted, the U.S. just might return to a semblance of normalcy by February or March, the country’s top infectious disease expert said on Sunday. Hopefully, enough people get vaccinated “to the point that when omicron comes down to a low level, we keep it down...

www.yahoo.com

 

[Bruce]

@the MfM, it would be great if this pandemic transitions to endemic by March however that would require a lot more vaccination or a lot more illness. Unfortunately I suspect that many are going to do this the hard way.

 

[Jim_in_Delaware]

@the MfM, it would be great if this pandemic transitions to endemic by March however that would require a lot more vaccination or a lot more illness. Unfortunately I suspect that many are going to do this the hard way.

As contagious as the omicron variant is, I would suspect that more illness will likely be the leading factor.

Being vaxed and boosted, I'm not personally worried about contracting a severe case of the virus, but, honestly, I don't want to contract a mild case either. My wife never really stopped wearing a mask in public. I did stop wearing a mask except in indoor crowded areas, and public transit, but have started wearing one again while indoors at the shops when its not as crowded.

Jim

 

[the MfM]

Rhode Island implement a strict vaccine mandate for health care workers a few months ago.

now they are in crisis staffing and calling in covid positive staff to work.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bostonglobe.com/2022/01/03/metro/covid-positive-employees-allowed-work-ris-state-run-hospital/%3foutputType=amp

 

[the MfM]

*personally, I’d rather have a pure blood treating my family members.

 

[Bruce]

pure blood

Are you suggesting that vaccination changes your blood in a concerning way? If so how?

 

[the MfM]

I’m saying the unjected shouldn’t have been fired.

 

[Jim_in_Delaware]

Rhode Island implement a strict vaccine mandate for health care workers a few months ago.

now they are in crisis staffing and calling in covid positive staff to work.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bostonglobe.com/2022/01/03/metro/covid-positive-employees-allowed-work-ris-state-run-hospital/%3foutputType=amp

Unfortunately, it won't let me read the article without a subscription.

Are they calling in covid positive staff to work? The other articles that I can find on-line say, "Rhode Island's Department of Health has said that hospital and nursing home staff who test positive for COVID-19 can return to work to solve a staffing crisis if needed." The key for now seems to be, IF NEEDED.

From Becker's Hospital Review today (sorry I can't post a link),
The Rhode Island Department of Health updated COVID-19 quarantine and isolation guidance Dec. 31, allowing asymptomatic healthcare workers who have tested positive to work without restriction in staffing "crisis" situations, as long as they wear N95 masks.

The guidance depends on a number of factors, including infection status, vaccination status and staffing status at specific facilities. In crisis situations, fully vaccinated and boosted workers have no restrictions while unvaccinated workers who have received religious exemptions can work with prior considerations.

Upon changing staffing categories, healthcare facilities must notify the department by reporting to the Center for Health Facility Regulations. Hospitals and skilled nursing facilities shifting from "contingency" to "crisis" staffing must also post their staffing status and an explanation on their websites or other public-facing platforms.

"Facility administrators should be using their clinical judgment in making staffing decisions," Health Department spokesperson Joseph Wendelken told The Providence Journal on Jan. 1. "For example, a facility may opt for a COVID-19 positive worker to only care for COVID-19 positive patients."

The one thing that the articles do not seem to mention is why there is a staffing shortage? Could be, in part, to to vaccine mandates, but it could also be skyrocketing covid cases, healthcare worker burnout, heathcare workers deciding to retire, or folks tired of working in nursing homes for crappy wages.

Jim

 

[the MfM]

By declaring staffing to be at “crisis” level they can and have had staff work after testing positive. Otherwise they would have had to wait out the current 5 day (previously 10 day) quarantine.

 

[Julian]

Unfortunately, it won't let me read the article without a subscription.

Are they calling in covid positive staff to work? The other articles that I can find on-line say, "Rhode Island's Department of Health has said that hospital and nursing home staff who test positive for COVID-19 can return to work to solve a staffing crisis if needed." The key for now seems to be, IF NEEDED.

From Becker's Hospital Review today (sorry I can't post a link),
The Rhode Island Department of Health updated COVID-19 quarantine and isolation guidance Dec. 31, allowing asymptomatic healthcare workers who have tested positive to work without restriction in staffing "crisis" situations, as long as they wear N95 masks.

The guidance depends on a number of factors, including infection status, vaccination status and staffing status at specific facilities. In crisis situations, fully vaccinated and boosted workers have no restrictions while unvaccinated workers who have received religious exemptions can work with prior considerations.

Upon changing staffing categories, healthcare facilities must notify the department by reporting to the Center for Health Facility Regulations. Hospitals and skilled nursing facilities shifting from "contingency" to "crisis" staffing must also post their staffing status and an explanation on their websites or other public-facing platforms.

"Facility administrators should be using their clinical judgment in making staffing decisions," Health Department spokesperson Joseph Wendelken told The Providence Journal on Jan. 1. "For example, a facility may opt for a COVID-19 positive worker to only care for COVID-19 positive patients."

The one thing that the articles do not seem to mention is why there is a staffing shortage? Could be, in part, to to vaccine mandates, but it could also be skyrocketing covid cases, healthcare worker burnout, heathcare workers deciding to retire, or folks tired of working in nursing homes for crappy wages.

Jim

One article I read said that 97% of RI healthcare workers are vaccinated, add to that the ones who have a medical exemption, and it isn't a huge impact....but when you combine it with a covid surge....less than ideal (but their mandate was for 10/1....so perhaps they'd handled that 1-2% attrition already? I wish my company only had 1-2% attrition!

 

[deubank1776]

Fauci voices hope for return to normalcy around February or March

If more Americans get vaccinated and boosted, the U.S. just might return to a semblance of normalcy by February or March, the country’s top infectious disease expert said on Sunday. Hopefully, enough people get vaccinated “to the point that when omicron comes down to a low level, we keep it down...

www.yahoo.com

How could things go back to normal? 2021 death toll surpassed the 2020 death toll with 3 month left.