COVID Get Vaccinated Against the Covid Delta Variant

[Sagittarius A-Star]

In Israel, the population is highly vaccinated, and the third dose will mainly be to try to raise protection against severe disease from the low 90s to the high 90s in a vulnerable population

In the report it looks differently. I seems, that the government wants the vaccinated to become less infectious to mitigate the virus spreading:

Israel will begin offering a third shot of the Pfizer (PFE.N)/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to people aged over 60, a world first in efforts to slow the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant.
...
Around 57% of Israel's 9.3 million population has been vaccinated. Around 160 people are hospitalized with severe symptoms and daily new infections have spiked to more than 2,000, up from a handful of cases per day a few months ago.

Bennett said his government hoped that stepped-up vaccination efforts would enable Israel to avoid further costly lockdowns.

Source:
https://www.reuters.com/world/middl...ople-over-60-israeli-news-reports-2021-07-29/

Here what is needed is not so much a third jab, as first jabs.

Sure, but I think that there are people, that are difficult to get convinced to get a jab. Maybe, that helps:

A Fully Vaccinated House

In consultation with medical and public health experts, the Met will be implementing a mandatory vaccination policy for audiences, who will be asked to show proof of vaccination upon arrival at the Met. All artists, orchestra, chorus, and staff will have to do the same. In compliance with the CDC guidelines for fully vaccinated individuals, the audience will be at full capacity, and face masks will be optional.

Source:
https://www.metopera.org/information/our-commitment-to-our-audiences/

 

[atyy]

In the report it looks differently. I seems, that the government wants the vaccinated to become less infectious to mitigate the virus spreading:

Source:
https://www.reuters.com/world/middl...ople-over-60-israeli-news-reports-2021-07-29/

But how about this report: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news...s-third-jab-campaign-gathers-steam-1.10065710
"Data presented at a discussion Wednesday suggested that the vaccine's effectiveness in preventing severe symptoms among those 60 and older has dropped to 81 percent from 97 percent in January."

The above data is probably not the same as the one in this paper, but this paper give interesting detail about vaccine breakthrough cases in Israel with severe disease: https://www.clinicalmicrobiologyandinfection.com/article/S1198-743X(21)00367-0/fulltext
BNT162b2 vaccine breakthrough: clinical characteristics of 152 fully vaccinated hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Israel, Brosh-Nissimov et al, Clinical Microbiology and Infection, 2021
"We found that severe COVID-19 infection, associated with a high mortality rate, might develop in a minority of fully vaccinated individuals with multiple co-morbidities. Our patients had a higher rate of co-morbidities and immunosuppression compared with previously reported non-vaccinated hospitalized individuals with COVID-19. Further characterization of this vulnerable population may help to develop guidance to augment their protection, either by continued social distancing, or by additional active or passive vaccinations."

 

[Astronuc]

July 30 - Just two weeks ago, DuPreez said life was great. She was on vacation in San Diego with her fiancé Michael Freedy, known as “Big Mike” at the M Resort where he worked, and their five kids, ages 17, 10, 7, 6, and 17 months. Freedy's sunburn was so bad, he went to the ER when back in Vegas. A COVID test at the hospital came back positive, but he went home to try and fight it out in isolation. He went back to hospital a second time, but was sent home again.

The third time (in 4 days) he went to the ER, he was admitted. It seemed like he was slightly improving, until he crashed and his lungs failed last Friday (July 30). Freedy had just turned 39.

https://www.kktv.com/2021/07/30/i-should-have-gotten-damn-vaccine-father-5-dies-covid-age-39/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...etting-not-getting-vaccine-fiance/5442240001/

https://news.yahoo.com/florida-covid-17-093-daily-225319998.html

Florida reported 17,093 new COVID cases to the federal government Thursday, the ninth consecutive day of daily COVID cases over 10,000, as the state battles a contagious delta variant coming up against pockets of people who remain unvaccinated and are filling up hospital intensive-care units.

Florida, which represents about 6.5% of the U.S. population, is accounting for about 21% of the country’s new cases, based on the data the state is reporting to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Florida’s seven-day average of new cases was 14,757 as of July 29, levels not seen since January, Florida’s worst month of the pandemic. The state also reported 75 new deaths.

From July 23 to July 29, the number of new Florida resident COVID cases jumped by 110,724, [up from 73,166 new cases and 282 new deaths the prior week].

New York State reported 3050 new cases on Friday, July 30, and the first time above 3000 news cases in one day since May 7. On Saturday, one fatality was recorded in the 10-19 year old age group.

In the face of the delta variant, some are coming around to get the vaccine. But for some, it's too late.

 

[morrobay]

Yes vaccination probably would have saved Mr. Freedy. But probably being not obese would have saved him also.

 

[Evo]

Has anyone read this article?

The virus mutated to allow it to survive better and reproduce faster, including changes to the spike protein, which is used to enter cells. It also changed its surface proteins as if to escape antibodies, even though the patient was so immunocompromised that there were no antibodies present.

"This was puzzling,” said Evgeniia Alekseeva, the joint first author of the paper. "Why would the virus hide from something that is not there? And why would it camouflage its parts that antibodies cannot see anyway?"

Scientists said the virus may have been evolving to escape T-cells, a second part of the immunity system. Although there was no onward transmission of the mutated virus, researchers said other variants could emerge in similar ways.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/virus-used-world-longest-covid-154818412.html

 

[StevieTNZ]

From Harvard University:

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed what Harvard-affiliated physicians had reported from anecdotal and laboratory evidence: the Delta variant of COVID-19 not only spreads more rapidly than other versions of the virus, it can sicken vaccinated individuals who can then spread the virus to others.

In its “Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report,” the CDC on Friday revealed that 75 percent of patients in a cluster of 469 cases in Provincetown, Massachusetts, were vaccinated, a sobering statistic for Americans who only weeks ago were optimistic that the pandemic’s end was in sight.

-- https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/st...-stress-testing-vaccination-amid-delta-surge/

 

[atyy]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/virus-used-world-longest-covid-154818412.html

https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-750741/v1
SARS-CoV-2 escape from cytotoxic T cells during long-term COVID-19
Stanevich et al

 

[atyy]

With respect to the reports of posts #8 & #9, are we allowed to feel relief that it's just a few epitopes, with the T cell response still expected to be very robust because it can depend on many, many epitopes?

 

[Evo]

This is a hospital not far from me, it used to be part of my territory when I worked for AT&T and I had to go there several days very other week, if not more often.

In July, more than half of the patients admitted to a Springfield hospital system’s intensive care unit with Coronavirus died, according to a hospital official.

Five days into August, the Coronavirus has killed 17 patients, he said. As of Thursday, there were 144 COVID-10 patients across the hospital system.

As of Thursday, none of the patients in the ICU or on ventilators are fully vaccinated, Frederick said. Overall, 93% of those admitted to the hospital with the Coronavirus are not vaccinated.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/more-half-covid-patients-springfield-165623184.html

 

[nsaspook]

From Harvard University:-- https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/st...-stress-testing-vaccination-amid-delta-surge/

Be careful of using that percentage as some sort of actual vaccinated risk assessment here.

https://garycornell.com/2021/07/28/...s-are-among-the-vaccinated-is-a-bs-statement/

Suppose you see a headline that says something like: “50% of our 100,000 new Covid cases were among the vaccinated”? Should you be concerned that the vaccine isn’t working anymore? The answer is: absolutely not – well, not without a lot more information. This statement is an example of using numbers to confuse rather than illuminate. And the best way to understand that this is almost certainly a totally meaningless statistic, perhaps even rising to the level of complete BS, is to use a technique I’ve explained before – think about what a statement would mean at extremes.

http://bear.warrington.ufl.edu/brenner/mar7588/Papers/barhillel-acta1980.pdf

 

[nsaspook]

Unfortunately it looks like the NSW Delta outbreak is not containable with current measures.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw...alls-for-circuit-breaker-20210806-p58gm6.html

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the state must learn to live with COVID-19 as the number of people in hospital with the virus doubled within a week and the nation’s chief medical officer called for a circuit-breaker to halt the spread across Sydney.
...
“It’s obviously a challenge for us to get down to that number, but that has to be our aspiration. We have to try and get down as low as we can,” she said.

“We know, given where the numbers are and the experience of Delta overseas, that we now have to live with Delta in one way or another – and that’s pretty obvious. But the higher the vaccination rate, the safer we all are and the more free we will be”.

November 2020 circuit-breaker

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-54983104

• People must stay home and cannot leave for exercise
• Mask-wearing to be mandatory in public
• All schools and universities closed except for children of essential workers
• Shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs closed with no takeaway options
• Bans on regional travel

 

[Astronuc]

The death of the 49-year-old Greenwood native, father of two, community leader, mountain biker and outdoorsman, has rattled this western Arkansas town, where it seems like nearly everyone knew Mr. Lejong. It comes amid a spate of other recent deaths and skyrocketing hospitalizations in a region where many are deeply skeptical of the Covid-19 vaccines, and doctors and political leaders are trying everything to persuade a reluctant populace to take them.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/neighbors-deaths-from-covid-19-have-arkansas-town-reassessing-vaccines/ar-AAN4jvS
Mr. Lejong would be considered at low risk for mortality, but at higher risk than 20 or 30-somethings.

Sebastian County, which includes Greenwood and the much larger city of Fort Smith, has had 292 Covid-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic and currently has an estimated 737 cases, according to the state department of health, and has been adding about 73 new cases each day. The state overall has been adding more than 2,800 new cases daily and has more than 1,000 patients in hospitals, near the previous high level in January. Deaths, a lagging indicator, have been averaging more than 20 a day, and the percentage of Covid-19 tests returning positive results hit an all-time high last month.

The county had less than 36% of residents 12 and older fully immunized as of last week, compared with 42% in Arkansas overall and 50% in the U.S. overall.

In the UK, an unvaccinated man, who was considered fit, died after of month of battling COVID-19.

An unvaccinated 42-year-old fitness fanatic who regularly climbed mountains and competed in the ironman has died of COVID-19, his family said.

John Eyers, a construction expert and bodybuilding competitor from the seaside town of Southport, England, died last week, one month after catching the virus.

https://news.yahoo.com/42-old-fitness-fanatic-beating-090128572.html

In just two weeks, six members of a Florida church died from Covid-19. All were unvaccinated, their pastor said.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/6-members-of-a-florida-church-died-of-covid-19-in-2-weeks-pastor-says-on-sunday-the-church-held-a-vaccination-clinic/ar-AAN5fb9

Four of the deaths were members under the age of 35 and that they were all healthy -- but that none of them were vaccinated. One 24-year-old kid, . . .

Another 15-20 church members were in the hospital battling Covid and around 10 members were at home with the virus . . .

On Friday, August 6, Florida reported 134,506 new Covid-19 cases over the last week, more than any other 7-day period during the pandemic.

Again, folks under 35 would be considered low risk for serious consequences, but then the Delta variant seems more aggressive.

All nations are still in the middle of this pandemic. Worldwide, there have been more than 4.2 Million deaths attributed to Covid-19. But now we have vaccines.From April 01, Measuring Mortality In The Pandemics Of 1918–19 And 2020–21
https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20210329.51293/full/

Back in April, the US had almost 550k deaths, and at the beginning of August, the US passed 600k deaths, and it's still climbing, perhaps to 700k.

Back in October 2000, there was an article about a "UC Berkeley demographer finding undetected tuberculosis may have been real killer in 1918 flu epidemic".
https://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2000/10/25_flu.html

Noymer's analysis shows that the 500,000 people who died in 1918 were almost exactly the number who would have been in various stages of disease from TB. Using pre-1918 death rates, Noymer calculated that 500,000 more TB deaths would have occurred between 1918 and 1932 had there never been a flu epidemic.

As a result of the excess death among men in 1918, a healthier male population was left, said Noymer. For years afterward, the life expectancy of men, which usually lagged behind women by six years, moved up to more closely resemble the female pattern. It was this startling change that sparked Noymer's research, when he saw something no demographer had ever noticed before - a precipitous drop in 1919 in the gender differential from six to two years.

Comorbidities, such as a pulmonary disease or infection, seem to be a key factor with SARS-Cov-2.

The CDC puts the mortality in 1918 at about 675k.
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-commemoration/1918-pandemic-history.htm

With no vaccine to protect against influenza infection and no antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that can be associated with influenza infections, control efforts worldwide were limited to non-pharmaceutical interventions such as isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, and limitations of public gatherings, which were applied unevenly.

The original Alpha variant was bad enough, but now the Delta variant is worse. However, infections of vaccinated folks appears to be milder than in those who have not been vaccinated.

Please encourage family and friends to get the vaccine against SARS-Cov-2

 

[Astronuc]

Half of Texas Trauma Hospitals Run out of ICU Beds as COVID Surges​

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/half-of-texas-trauma-hospitals-run-out-of-icu-beds-as-covid-surges/ar-AAN9Z5C

Half of the state of Texas' 22 trauma service areas say they have run out of intensive care unit (ICU) beds, with numerous major hospitals in cities like Houston and Laredo reporting 95 percent capacity rates.

The Harris Health System in Houston reported Tuesday that one out of four patients in its two hospitals tested positive for COVID-19, prompting administrators to begin preparing tents for a surge of overflowing patients. In Austin, five hospitals reported hitting 90 percent capacity rates and two hospitals said they have zero available ICU beds. Half of Texas' 22 trauma service areas said they have 10 or fewer ICU beds available as of Sunday as nearly 10,000 COVID-19 patients have flooded into the state's ICUs.

And from a family member involved in this mess, Texas Children's Hospital (TCH, in Houston) has to convert another floor to ICU/Covid because so many children are becoming ill with Covid! I don't have all the detail, but it's a very troubling situation, and it is preventable through vaccinations and various protective measures. TCH was taking adults in June.

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/ne...admitting-adult-patients-because-15359004.php
https://www.khou.com/article/news/h...rise/285-5aa0a132-a318-4a41-81b3-6659086c2ef7Locally, a month ago (30 days), we had 55 active cases and 4 people hospitalized. Today we have over 500 active cases and 21 people hospitalized (during July there were 2 to 4 hospitalized). Until this weekend, we had no deaths since early July, now 3 have died due to Covid in three days.

Edit/update: Since this post yesterday, we've had two more fatalities due to Covid-19. Three more people have been hospitalized.

 

[Astronuc]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-scientist-who-came-out-of-retirement-to-help-fight-covid-loses-his-own-battle/ar-AANbZFm
Scientist who came out of retirement to help fight Covid loses his own battle

Thomas Hodge III logged on from his hospital bed for what would be his last weekly Zoom meeting with some 200 scientific collaborators. Gaunt and unshaven, he conferred with the group on how to defeat this country’s latest surge of Covid-19 — the virus Hodge’s body was battling a second time.

The prominent immunologist died two days later of complications from the disease.

Edit/Update:
Newsweek had a sensational headline - Man's Entire Family Dies of COVID in the Same Week After Refusing to Get Vaccinated
https://www.newsweek.com/mans-entir...me-week-after-refusing-get-vaccinated-1617994
It was two parents (ages 73 and 65) and a brother (40s?). The brother is described as healthy.

A 28-year-old unvaccinated man in Georgia died from COVID-19, while his wife, who had received one shot, survived. "He was deep into TikTok conspiracy theories and, for him, he just didn't want to get [the shot]," said the 25-year-old widow. After becoming ill, she said he had changed his stance on the vaccine, wishing he had gotten it.

On Friday, a 22-year-old in New Orleans died after contracting COVID-19. He was unvaccinated, despite his mother's pleas. "Don't stop talking to your kids. Don't stop asking them to be vaccinated," said his mother to a news outlet.

According to data from CDC, 46272 children in the US were hospitalized with COVID-19 during the first week of August, 2021.

From the AP: Oregon issues mask mandate, warns of hospital surge

The mask mandate comes as the state on Wednesday set a second consecutive record of hospitalized COVID-19 patients — 665 people. The previous record of 622 people hospitalized was set during November’s surge, when vaccine doses were not yet available.

Intensive care unit beds across the state are about 90% full, and some hospital regions have less than five ICU beds available, Brown said.

“When our hospitals are full, there will be no room for additional patients needing care –– whether for COVID-19, a heart attack or stroke, a car collision, or a variety of other emergency situations," Brown said.

In addition, on Tuesday the Oregon Health Authority reported 2,329 new cases, the state's highest daily case total since the pandemic started.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/30-year-old-with-covid-gives-birth-holds-baby-girl-just-once-dies-days-later/ar-AANeE2p

A 30-year-old Florida woman with COVID-19 ended up in the intensive care unit after holding her newborn baby just once, and died days later.

Kristen McMullen gave birth to her daughter via emergency C-section on July 27. She was able to cradle her newborn, named Summer Reign, for a few minutes before she was rushed off to the ICU, McMullen's aunt Melissa Syverson said.
. . . .

McMullen, of West Melbourne, developed COVID-19 symptoms about three weeks before her due date and was later hospitalized with with coronavirus-related pneumonia, Syverson wrote on a GoFundMe page.

She was sent home after four days but returned within 48 hours struggling to breathe and concerned for her unborn baby, Syverson wrote.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/taking-a-toll-pediatric-covid-cases-surge/ar-AANeqmU

In the last week, 94,000 new pediatric COVID-19 cases were reported, representing 15% of all reported new infections. Similarly, pediatric COVID-19-related hospital admissions are at their highest level since the onset of the pandemic.

 

[Astronuc]

The Delta variant is driving a new wave of cases nationwide, pushing the daily total to the highest level since February, as the virus spreads among the unvaccinated. In Texas, the number of new cases has more than doubled in the past two week. Hospitals are swamped, and there is a new, troubling uptick of young patients: some 240 across the state [Texas].

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/inside-a-san-antonio-hospital-children-battle-for-breath/ar-AANfSiG

Dr. Abhishek Patel, who works in the hospital’s pediatric I.C.U., walked in and out of a room where a 6-month-old and a 2-month-old battled severe Covid infections, breathing with the aid of supplemental oxygen. This week alone, he said, two teenagers, who had other underlying health problems, died with the virus.

Edit/update: In Florida, a teen died shortly after developing Covid-19

Jo'Keria Graham was 17 years old and a student at Columbia High School. Her brother, Jaylen Brown, said her death "just happened out of nowhere."

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/florida-teens-covid-related-death-just-happened-out-of-nowhere-brother/ar-AANibRV

 

[atyy]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-scientist-who-came-out-of-retirement-to-help-fight-covid-loses-his-own-battle/ar-AANbZFm
Scientist who came out of retirement to help fight Covid loses his own battle

The article says "At his home on St. Simons Island, Ga., Hodge beat the virus last year. He hoped that bout would stave off a future infection, especially because a medical condition meant he could not get vaccinated."

I wonder if that is accurate, since apart from an allergy to the ingredients in a vaccine, there is no reason not to be vaccinated. And if one is allergic to the Pfizer/Moderna vaccines, then usually one is still eligible for the Janssen vaccine (or is it rare for both to available in a place)? Also, usually a first infection will mean the second infection is mild. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/a...-exemptions-medical-reasons-aren-t-persuasive

The story makes me wonder whether his first infection was correctly diagnosed.

There is new research suggesting that even if one discovers one is allergic to the ingredients in a vaccine after the first shot, that the second shot can be safely given to give higher protection against COVID.
https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-per...er-second-dose-mrna-covid-vaccine-study-finds

 

[Astronuc]

A Mississippi eighth grader died on Saturday just hours after receiving a positive test for COVID-19.
The girl attended junior high school, which began on August 6, just a week before her death, the Mississippi Free Press reported.

https://www.businessinsider.com/mis...-of-covid-hours-after-testing-positive-2021-8

More than 1,900 children hospitalized with COVID-19 in the US as country battles the Delta surge
https://www.businessinsider.com/cov...ildren-in-us-hospitals-as-delta-surges-2021-8

as students and employees in the school district tested positive within the first three days of classes, the school district reversed course. “After much consideration for the welfare of our children, Smith County Schools will require all personnel and students to wear a mask,” the district announced on Aug. 10. By Friday, at least 76 students and 11 educators had tested positive; 411 students and 11 educators were quarantined by that point.

Locally, an additional two persons have died from Covid-19, bringing the total deaths to 8 in the past week. This after a month without a death due to Covid-19. In a month, we've gone from about 80 cases to nearly 700 active cases, and hospitalizations increased from 2 to 22. It might have been 30 cases, if 8 patients had not died.

Edit/update: Now 28 hospitalizations as of yesterday, and three new deaths, making 11 deaths from Covid-19 in the past 9 days.

 

[atyy]

https://kottke.org/21/08/one-womans-mission-to-get-vaccines-to-her-rural-alabama-town

Oliver’s charm with the skeptics is remarkable, but so is her determination to bring the vaccine to her underserved town. Most of the women and men Oliver talked to leaped at the opportunity to sign up for the vaccine. On vaccine day, they rolled down their car windows to thank her. “We appreciate y’all giving it to us, because a lot of people don’t really know where to go to take these vaccines,” one woman tells her. Vaccine hesitancy in Black communities has been harped on in the media, but those conversations can gloss over questions of availability. Levine told me that they were struck by how many people had put off vaccination for logistical rather than ideological reasons. In Panola, he says, they regularly heard people say, “I want the shot. How do I get this? I don’t have a car; how am I going to get forty miles to the closest hospital and back?”

The result? In a state with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country, 94% of adults in Panola have been vaccinated, due in part to Oliver’s and Russ-Jackson’s efforts.

 

[StevieTNZ]

Covid is back in NZ - https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/he...y-case-being-investigated-by-health-officials

Whether its delta or not, not sure. What action will the Govt take? Probably lock down, Auckland or the entire country.

 

[StevieTNZ]

Well NZ is heading into a level four alert level lockdown at 11.59pm tonight for 3 days, excluding Auckland which will be for 7 days. The Govt. is assuming the variant is delta, though that won't be known for sure until early tomorrow morning.

 

[StevieTNZ]

Unfortunately the variant is delta, and four others have already caught it (including one fully vaccinated hospital worker) - https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/he...ng-total-cases-to-five-says-pm-jacinda-ardern

 

[Astronuc]

https://news.yahoo.com/georgia-couple-dies-covid-just-160221359.html

Martin and Trina Daniel fell ill with the virus around July 4 and their children, who also contracted COVID explained that their symptoms “quickly spiraled” out of control, ABCNews reported.

Martin passed away while at home on July 6 while Trina died shortly after being hospitalized that same night.

Two days!

I have to wonder if they got treatment other than supplemental oxygen.

In many states, like Florida and Texas, apparently the emphasis is on treatment after infection rather than prevention. The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, developed COVID-19 after attending a gathering and apparently not wearing a mask. Abbott is vaccinated though and is receiving the Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment.
https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/l...toms/287-22b6ea37-9784-42a2-8e54-03235f451882

Aug 17 - New cases are emerging at their highest rates since winter as the Delta variant sweeps across the country and Americans come to terms with the fact that Covid is not going away any time soon.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-cases.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/16/us/covid-delta-variant-us.html

 

[nsaspook]

https://news.yahoo.com/georgia-couple-dies-covid-just-160221359.html

Two days!

I have to wonder if they got treatment other than supplemental oxygen.

In many states, like Florida and Texas, apparently the emphasis is on treatment after infection rather than prevention. The governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, developed COVID-19 after attending a gathering and apparently not wearing a mask. Abbott is vaccinated though and is receiving the Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment.
https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/l...toms/287-22b6ea37-9784-42a2-8e54-03235f451882https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/covid-cases.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/16/us/covid-delta-variant-us.html

Hopefully the trend of reaching peak cases in high vaxx locations continues. Locally (near Portland Oregon) cases may have peaked. California is also peaking.

https://ktla.com/news/local-news/california-seeing-signs-covid-surge-is-slowing/

California enters a crucial phase in its battle against the Delta variant this week — the reopening of schools — with some hopeful signs: The number of people being infected and falling seriously ill with COVID-19 is no longer accelerating at dramatic rates and even beginning to flatten in some areas.

The rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations is also slowing. California on Sunday reported 7,166 people with COVID-19 in its hospitals, up 20% from the previous week. But that’s an improvement from late July, when there was a 50% week-over-week jump in hospitalizations, and still far below the wintertime peak of 22,000.

 

[BillTre]

Science magazine has a little article on Covid's evolution, here.
Don't think its open access, but might be.

Two things interested me,
A phylogeny of some of the variants:

Too bad the phylogeny is not showing much detail.

and where on the viral molecules the mutations fall:

 

[jim mcnamara]

@BillTre
The phylogenetic tree: https://nextstrain.org/ncov/gisaid/global
Version is zoomable with all kinds of other resources like references, genomic dataset downoads, etc.
https://nextstrain.org:
Cool toolset and access to other pathogen genomes.

I think this is a standard repository for researchers.

 

[Astronuc]

A pregnant mom-to-be lost her unborn twins to COVID-19 after she contracted the Coronavirus earlier [during July] this year, Texas health officials reported.

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/nation-world/national/article253570389.html
https://www.wane.com/community/heal...nces-fetal-fatalities-attributed-to-covid-19/

Meanwhile in Florida, people are going to makeshift clinics for Regeneron monoclonal antibody treatment. https://news.yahoo.com/were-very-sick-viral-photo-002311187.html

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Louie Lopez showed up to the downtown Jacksonville Main Library Conference Center in the early afternoon for a Regeneron therapy appointment. His primary care doctor recommended it after Lopez tested positive for COVID-19 and was experiencing moderate to severe symptoms.

While waiting in line for his turn, two other people got in the line behind Lopez. Both of them, he says, sat down on the floor immediately. They eventually laid down “sick and moaning.” Lopez, 59, told The Florida Times-Union, part of the USA TODAY Network, that the woman pictured in yellow was dragging herself on the floor as the line slowly moved forward.

Apparently some very ill people who should be going to hospital are instead coming to the clinic.

The therapy treatment is for people in the early stages of COVID-19 and the makeshift clinic where Lopez took the photo is not meant to serve as a full-fledged hospital. But amid rising COVID infections and increased worry, some people in more advanced stages of COVID have opted to go to makeshift clinics instead of hospitals due to potentially long waits.

Workers at the site said the clinic is not for very sick patients; people in that category should go to a hospital.

 

[atyy]

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/08/grim-warning-israel-vaccination-blunts-does-not-defeat-delta
A grim warning from Israel: Vaccination blunts, but does not defeat Delta
Meredith Wadman

I'm not sure if the title is right. The UK seems to be doing ok! Maybe it's because the UK has higher seropositivity (due to natural infections and vaccinations) than Israel? The UK's seropositivity rate is in the report below, not sure what Israel's is.

https://assets.publishing.service.g...420/Vaccine_surveillance_report_-_week_33.pdf
Public Health England COVID-19 vaccine surveillance report Week 33
"Roche S seropositivity increased first in donors aged 70 to 84 and has plateaued since week 13, reaching 99.9% in weeks 28 to 31. Seropositivity has also plateaued since week 16 for those aged 60 to 69 reaching 98.9% in weeks 28 to 31. Plateauing in Roche S seropositivity has been observed since week 19 in those aged 50 to 59 reaching 99.1% in weeks 28 to 31 2021."

 

[morrobay]

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/08/grim-warning-israel-vaccination-blunts-does-not-defeat-delta
A grim warning from Israel: Vaccination blunts, but does not defeat Delta
Meredith Wadman

60% of those gravely ill are fully vaccinated ?

 

[PeroK]

60% of those gravely ill are fully vaccinated ?

Almost all the older and more vulnerable in Israel are fully vaccinated. The important figure is how many are gravely ill, not what proportion are vaccinated. Especially compared to how many would be gravely ill if there had been no vaccine.

If everyone were vaccinated then 100% of those ill would be vaccinated.

 

[OmCheeto]

Almost all the older and more vulnerable in Israel are fully vaccinated. The important figure is how many are gravely ill, not what proportion are vaccinated. Especially compared to how many would be gravely ill if there had been no vaccine.

If everyone were vaccinated then 100% of those ill would be vaccinated.

It will be interesting to see how their 3rd dose program works out.
Amazing how fast they do things. They just started administering the 3rd doses 3 weeks ago.

ref: https://datadashboard.health.gov.il/COVID-19/general

 

[atyy]

Eran Segal: "Israel is reporting a 4-fold increase in protection from infection after a 3rd booster shot, compared to an age-gender matched cohort of 2 doses And 5-6 fold increased protection from hospitalization and severe disease 3rd dose now approved for all, tomorrow starting in 40+ y/o"

Israel's vaccine effectiveness for 60+ is about 88% against severe disease caused by the Delta variant. A 5-6 fold increase in protection would bring it to about 98%, which is excellent.

 

[morrobay]

The important figure is how many are gravely ill, not what proportion are vaccinated. Especially compared to how many would be gravely ill if there had been no vaccine.

That figure is 514 hospitalized severally or critically ill. 59% were fully vaccinated. I have no agenda on this, just restating from report that also says the hospitals are being stretched. And there are facts about these patients missing such comorbidities .Sure you can make counterfactual arguments.

 

[atyy]

That figure is 514 hospitalized severally or critically ill. 59% were fully vaccinated. I have no agenda on this, just restating from report that also says the hospitals are being stretched. And there are facts about these patients missing such comorbidities .Sure you can make counterfactual arguments.

@PeroK is correct.

The numbers you cite are from Israel. Most vaccinated serious cases are 60 years old or older, where the vaccination rate is approximately 90%

Let the vaccine reduce severe cases by r. In an unvaccinated population x fraction are severe cases. In a vaccinated population (1-r)x fraction are severe cases. If v of the total population is vaccinated, then the fraction of severe cases due to vaccinated people is z = [v(1-r)x]/[v(1-r)x + (1-v)x]. Solving gives r = [v - z]/[v(1-z)]. Using z = 0.60 as the vaccinated fraction of severe cases, and v = 0.9 as the vaccinated fraction of the 60+ population, gives r ~ 0.8, ie ~80% protection against severe illness by the vaccine.

You can see a more detailed calculation in https://www.covid-datascience.com/p...strong-when-60-of-hospitalized-are-vaccinated. Overall, these are consistent with protection against hospitalization or severe disease being estimated by Israel at various times to be at 88%, 91%, 93%. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news...ata-preventing-hospitalizations-88-1.10021477

Currently, the Israel dashboard gives among the 60+, that 194.9/100000 serious cases among the unvaccinated, and 20.1/100000 serious cases among the vaccinated, which corresponds to 1-(20.1/194.9) ~ 89% vaccine effectiveness. [Edited after @hutchphd pointed out below that I interchanged the vaccinated and unvaccinated numbers]

See also the points made by Yair Lewis that most recent cases are from cities with vaccination rates above the national average, and hence using the national average may lead to an underestimate of vaccine effectiveness.

Israel's recent vaccine effectiveness estimates are broadly consistent with, but still seem a bit lower than the UK numbers of 91-98% protection against hospitalization. https://assets.publishing.service.g...420/Vaccine_surveillance_report_-_week_33.pdf (p7)

For comorbidties (not all data is from after Delta), see:
https://www.news-medical.net/news/2...fizer-vaccination-4025-immunocompromised.aspx
https://www.reuters.com/world/middl...through-cases-mostly-older-sicker-2021-08-20/

https://www.clinicalmicrobiologyandinfection.com/article/S1198-743X(21)00367-0/fulltext
BNT162b2 vaccine breakthrough: clinical characteristics of 152 fully vaccinated hospitalized COVID-19 patients in Israel
Brosh-Nissimov T, Orenbuch-Harroch E, Chowers M, Elbaz M, Nesher L, Stein M, Maor Y, Cohen R, Hussein K, Weinberger M, Zimhony O, Chazan B, Najjar R, Zayyad H, Rahav G, Wiener-Well Y. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2021 Jul 7:S1198-743X(21)00367-0.

 

[hutchphd]

Currently, the Israel dashboard gives among the 60+, that 194.9/100000 serious cases among the vaccinated, and 20.1/100000 serious cases among the unvaccinated, which corresponds to 1-(20.1/194.9) ~ 89% vaccine effectiveness.

My brain shut down an hour ago...are these backwards?

 

[atyy]

My brain shut down an hour ago...are these backwards?

Oops yes, will correct.

 

[Astronuc]

As Covid-19 hospitalizations increase, a greater number of Americans are deciding to get vaccinated
https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/20/health/us-coronavirus-friday/index.html

As Covid-19 cases rise among teens, so do vaccinations, CNN analysis finds
https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/18/health/covid-19-teens-vaccinations-rise-analysis-wellness/index.htmlEdit/Update:
AP - Though young and healthy, unvaccinated father dies of COVID
https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/young-healthy-unvaccinated-father-dies-covid-79576893

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Healthy and in their 30s, Christina and Josh Tidmore figured they were low-risk for COVID-19. With conflicting viewpoints about whether to get vaccinated against the virus filling their social media feeds and social circles, they decided to wait.

On July 20, Josh came home from work with a slight cough initially thought to be sinus trouble. On Aug. 11, he died of COVID-19 at a north Alabama hospital as Christina Tidmore witnessed a doctor and her team frantically try to resuscitate her husband.

Tidmore might have been less susceptible to serious consequences with the original or Alpha variant, but clearly the Delta variant is more severe. "Christina Tidmore also had COVID-19 but recovered. She said she and her husband were not anti-vaccine, but heard conflicting information — including, she said, from doctors." The couple have three children.

I wonder if mentions of the uncertainties about the effects of the vaccine or vaccine efficacy resulted in doubts (or anxiety) to the point of discouraging people form receiving the vaccine.

“Josh was completely healthy, active, not a smoker.” He would have turned 37 on Saturday.

Doctors say they are seeing a spike in cases among young adults and children as the highly contagious delta variant sweeps through unvaccinated populations. Medical officials say there is conflicting information on whether it makes people more severely ill or whether young people are more vulnerable to it, but it's clear the contagiousness means more young people and children are getting sick.
. . .

In the past four weeks, people ages 25 to 49 years, made up 14% of all COVID deaths in the state. And people 50 to 64 years made up about 29%.

The state is also seeing a surge in COVID cases among children, although deaths so far have been rare. The state this week set a record for pediatric hospitalizations with 50 children hospitalized with COVID-19.

In the past four weeks, 6% of cases of COVID-19 in Alabama have been among children under five while 8% have been among children between the ages of five and 17, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

 

[nsaspook]

IMO some important results on the effectiveness of virus transmission countermeasures like masks and ventilation.

https://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/5.0057100

Experimental investigation of indoor aerosol dispersion and accumulation in the context of COVID-19: Effects of masks and ventilation

The results demonstrate that the apparent exhalation filtration efficiency is significantly lower than the ideal filtration efficiency of the mask material. Nevertheless, high-efficiency masks, such as the KN95, still offer substantially higher apparent filtration efficiencies (60% and 46% for R95 and KN95 masks, respectively) than the more commonly used cloth (10%) and surgical masks (12%), and therefore are still the recommended choice in mitigating airborne disease transmission indoors. The results also suggest that, while higher ventilation capacities are required to fully mitigate aerosol build-up, even relatively low air-change rates (2 h−12 h−1) lead to lower aerosol build-up compared to the best performing mask in an unventilated space.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210819124528.htm

A new study is highlighting a need for widespread use of better face masks and the importance of good ventilation to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 indoors.

 

[atyy]

IMO some important results on the effectiveness of virus transmission countermeasures like masks and ventilation.

https://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/5.0057100

Experimental investigation of indoor aerosol dispersion and accumulation in the context of COVID-19: Effects of masks and ventilation

I don't think the N95 is practical for most people in everyday settings (too uncomfortable)? So I think ventilation is a priority, then preferably a surgical mask (comfortable enough for most people, but expensive) or cloth mask?

A quick read seems to show their conclusions are consistent with https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.04.16.20067728v1, but I'm not sure how to convert between their units of airflow (L/s/person) and the one in the paper you posted (ACH)?

In high risk settings, one would prefer an FFP3 (N99) if available.
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-57636360

 

[Sagittarius A-Star]

In USA, the sub-variant Delta AY.3 makes now 12.3 percent of all infections:
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tr...ryName=USCDC_2146-DM60904#variant-proportions

What do we know about the AY.3 variant, the Delta mutation that also makes Israel tremble
...
According to reports to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz by Tom Hertz, head of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Generics at the Ben Gurion University of the Negev, the Delta variant is showing to create more problems than he imagined: “We are identifying new versions of the Delta variant that feature new family mutations over previous variants. What allows it to spread in this way is a combination of vaccine attenuation over time and traits that allow the variant to evade some of the antibodies”.

Source:
https://then24.com/2021/08/19/what-...elta-mutation-that-also-makes-israel-tremble/

 

[artis]

What the experts think of this? I think it is generally a sound advice and interesting take on the situation.
Would love to hear some comments on the information told from 14:00 about the difference in the IgM and IgA and natural infection vs vaccine.

 

[atyy]

What the experts think of this? I think it is generally a sound advice and interesting take on the situation.
Would love to hear some comments on the information told from 14:00 about the difference in the IgM and IgA and natural infection vs vaccine.

I'm not an expert. But here are my thoughts anyway.
He's usually good, and this discussion is informed and thoughtful.
We discussed this a bit also in another thread.
Here is a link to the article: https://www.bbc.com/news/health-58270098: Covid: What’s the best way to top up our immunity?

However, on the minor technical issue of whether the vaccine really doesn't produce IgA at all, there are a couple of dissenting reports. If these are correct, it doesn't negate his discussion, which only depends on the vaccine producing long lasting protection against severe disease, although not against infection.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8011028/ (mostly guessing, no direct evidence)
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.11.434841v1 (seems to have direct evidence)

 

[Astronuc]

What the experts think of this? I think it is generally a sound advice and interesting take on the situation.
Would love to hear some comments on the information told from 14:00 about the difference in the IgM and IgA and natural infection vs vaccine.

Also, not a subject matter expert, but I apply the review process that I use in reading scientific literature on various subjects.

I notice that in the initial 7 minutes Campbell does not discuss age effects. That is, as people age, the immune system is diminished and some develop various co-morbidities. A vaccine helps the body to some extent to develop some immunity, which one does not otherwise have.

At around 6:45, Campbell mentions that the various vaccines, Pfizer, Moderna and AZ act on the spike protein (which can change by mutations/variants), and that seems enough to reduce the severity of infection, but it's one protein, or two, as opposed to the 28 proteins in the virus. At ~7:05, he talks about the lymphocytes, B and T cells.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymphocyte#T_cells_and_B_cells

Natural immunity helps protect one against the larger number of proteins, which he mentions as greater immunity - assuming one survives the initial infection. Those with compromised immune systems or immunodeficiency are less likely to survive. And then there is the chance of sequela (pl. sequelae), or the long term consequences of viral attack on different areas of the body beyond the respiratory tract. Lung damage is bad enough by itself.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequela

Regarding immunodeficiency - "Doctors may check immunoglobulin levels to see if a person has an infection or is protected from getting an infection (is immune to it). Doctors also use immunoglobulin tests to help diagnose immunodeficiencies (when the immune system isn't working as it should). Doctors may suspect an immunodeficiency in a child who gets a lot of infections or unusual infections."

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/test-immunoglobulins.html
https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/immunoglobulin-test
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/immunoglobulin-a-deficiency

https://www.thermofisher.com/us/en/...ntibody-methods/immunoglobulin-iga-class.html

https://www.nationaljewish.org/pati...ces/the-difference-between-tests-for-covid-19Regarding natural infection vs vaccine, should one deliberately expose oneself to a natural infection as opposed to a third (or second) booster vaccination? Probably not. We are still learning about breakthrough infections caused by the Delta variant, and perhaps Delta-plus, and Lambda variant. Some fully vaccinated folks with Delta variant are becoming severely ill and some hospitalized, but the numbers appears to be much less than those who are unvaccinated. I'd rather face an infection with a third booster than without. Remember, each infections is chance for damage to lungs, blood system, and other organs, such as the heart. This is also the case with influenza. That is each infection can cause damage to the pulmonary system, which is a good reason to get an influenza vaccination each year.

 

[artis]

Well I guess the vaccine would have been better if it produced IgA just as much as it does IgM, because as far as I'm aware the IgM helps you stay out of trouble but the IgA would truly help to stop the spread as such because due to the leaky nature of this vaccine , vaccinated folks still get infected and it's just a "sandbox" for the virus to play out various tricks where it can then potentially learn to evade the "updated" immune response.

 

[artis]

I'd rather face an infection with a third booster than without.

Yes I get your point , but in case Covid stays around then it becomes the question how regularly will you boost yourself versus just getting out there and living life as usual with all the added risks that come with it.

 

[pinball1970]

Yes I get your point , but in case Covid stays around then it becomes the question how regularly will you boost yourself versus just getting out there and living life as usual with all the added risks that come with it.

Same as seasonal flu jab once per year?

 

[Laroxe]

Also, not a subject matter expert, but I apply the review process that I use in reading scientific literature on various subjects.

I notice that in the initial 7 minutes Campbell does not discuss age effects. That is, as people age, the immune system is diminished and some develop various co-morbidities. A vaccine helps the body to some extent to develop some immunity, which one does not otherwise have.

At around 6:45, Campbell mentions that the various vaccines, Pfizer, Moderna and AZ act on the spike protein (which can change by mutations/variants), and that seems enough to reduce the severity of infection, but it's one protein, or two, as opposed to the 28 proteins in the virus. At ~7:05, he talks about the lymphocytes, B and T cells.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lymphocyte#T_cells_and_B_cells

Natural immunity helps protect one against the larger number of proteins, which he mentions as greater immunity - assuming one survives the initial infection. Those with compromised immune systems or immunodeficiency are less likely to survive. And then there is the chance of sequela (pl. sequelae), or the long term consequences of viral attack on different areas of the body beyond the respiratory tract. Lung damage is bad enough by itself.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequela

Regarding immunodeficiency - "Doctors may check immunoglobulin levels to see if a person has an infection or is protected from getting an infection (is immune to it). Doctors also use immunoglobulin tests to help diagnose immunodeficiencies (when the immune system isn't working as it should). Doctors may suspect an immunodeficiency in a child who gets a lot of infections or unusual infections."

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/test-immunoglobulins.html
https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/immunoglobulin-test
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/immunoglobulin-a-deficiency

https://www.thermofisher.com/us/en/...ntibody-methods/immunoglobulin-iga-class.html

https://www.nationaljewish.org/pati...ces/the-difference-between-tests-for-covid-19Regarding natural infection vs vaccine, should one deliberately expose oneself to a natural infection as opposed to a third (or second) booster vaccination? Probably not. We are still learning about breakthrough infections caused by the Delta variant, and perhaps Delta-plus, and Lambda variant. Some fully vaccinated folks with Delta variant are becoming severely ill and some hospitalized, but the numbers appears to be much less than those who are unvaccinated. I'd rather face an infection with a third booster than without. Remember, each infections is chance for damage to lungs, blood system, and other organs, such as the heart. This is also the case with influenza. That is each infection can cause damage to the pulmonary system, which is a good reason to get an influenza vaccination each year.

Yes, it is confusing that age isn't mentioned, in the UK people ages 75 and older, despite representing only around 0.5% of new positive tests, account for around 45% of all hospital admissions and half of all deaths. This was of course the group offered the vaccine first and while the antibody response was high it might be expected to be falling now. Its perhaps the fact that at this age people are generally less able to tolerate significant health challenges.

The vaccines don't really induce antibodies against the whole spike protein, dendric cells chop the protein up and present a number of antigens to the immune cells, we actually produce a number of different antibodies, its suggested that some variants can evade some of these antibodies, but not all of them. Its true that natural infection will present many more antigens to the immune system, which might suggest a broader range of antibodies, but remember the main reason the spike was the vaccine target was that the antibodies targeting these antigens were the only ones that had a significant effect. We also have to consider that this virus actually attacks the structures responsible for developing immunity, it's this ability that is the principal cause of very severe illness and death. Even among the recovered, there are quite a few people who fail to develop an appropriate immune response, vaccines are more reliable. Its true that high levels of antibodies offer significant protection from infection, but people get caught up in the figures given for effectiveness. The reality is that there is no single figure to represent vaccine effectiveness antibody levels increase at different rates following 1st and 2nd vaccination, they continue to rise for several weeks after the 2nd and then start to decline quite quickly. We have usually lost a significant proportion by around 6 months, a booster at this point would clearly offer enhanced protection, but again this would be time limited.

This is why attention has shifted to the B and T cell response, these respond to infection by cutting short the time needed for an effective immune response. The virus is recognised very quickly, the variants don't change this and as the B cells reproduce and start producing antibodies, the process of refining these antibodies continues increasing their specificity to the infecting variant. So people can develop the infection, though even this is less likely because of the immediate T cell responses, but the illness is generally shorter and milder.

I've included a link to the current UK data which shows that the rate of infection remains high but the severity of infections and the numbers of deaths are very different. The latest population screening suggests that more than 90% of the population have antibodies at some level. I think the fact that this virus seems to be particularly promiscuous in the various cells it infects and the various species that can transmit it, we can forget the idea of herd immunity, though we can still make it manageable.

I saw some work suggesting that giving the AZ vaccine, which uses a viral vector, intranasally could be used as a booster while enhancing humoral immunity. I'll try to find the link.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopula...icles/coronaviruscovid19latestinsights/deaths

 

[Astronuc]

More people hospitalized and more patients in ICU, many younger than 60 or 65.
https://theconversation.com/were-se...s-rise-that-affects-the-whole-hospital-165966

The need for separate wards for infectious diseases like SARS-Cov-2 and use of ICUs for COVID-19 patients puts a burden on any hospital, especially those at which ICUs fill to capacity. And it puts staff at risk.

The International Council of Nurses’ latest analysis shows the number of nurses who have died after contracting COVID-19 globally is greater than 2,200 – more than any other health-care worker. This data are from earlier this year, so we expect those figures to have risen since then.

I guess the number is just nurses, but I suspect to actual number to be higher.

In the US alone, Kaiser Health News reports "More Than 3,600 US Health Workers Died in Covid’s First Year"
https://khn.org/news/article/us-health-workers-deaths-covid-lost-on-the-frontline/

My doctor told me the other day that one patient, older than 65 decided not to get the vaccine, because the patient didn't believe in it and that it was not FDA approved (it was under EUA). Then the patient, with a number of health issue that put the person at risk for complication due to COVID-19 did test positive. The doctor arranged a monoclonal antibody treatment (the was EUA by FDA).
https://www.fda.gov/news-events/pre...izes-monoclonal-antibodies-treatment-covid-19
The monoclonal antibody treatment is more than 10 times the cost of the vaccine, which has been available for 7 months, so the patient could have received a vaccine and been fully vaccinated 6 months ago.

I read one story where a cancer patient was discharged from hospital and had to complete treatment at home because the hospital had to use the space for treatment of COVID-19 patients, most of whom chose to remain unvaccinated.

 

[Laroxe]

I don't think the N95 is practical for most people in everyday settings (too uncomfortable)? So I think ventilation is a priority, then preferably a surgical mask (comfortable enough for most people, but expensive) or cloth mask?

A quick read seems to show their conclusions are consistent with https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.04.16.20067728v1, but I'm not sure how to convert between their units of airflow (L/s/person) and the one in the paper you posted (ACH)?

In high risk settings, one would prefer an FFP3 (N99) if available.
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-57636360

Really, I don't think the recommendation to wear masks is based on their ability to filter out the virus, that's an issue for people working in high risk environments. It's probably better to think of it rather like social distancing. Staying the recommended, 2 meters apart won't protect someone, but it does greatly reduce the risk, simply because of the way the airflow affects the dispersion of droplets / virus following exhalation. In the same way, simple masks alter the airflow, some droplets will be trapped but its the fact that exhaled air is directed into several streams and has to follow routes around the mask. This reduces the force and direction of exhaled air, its rather like increasing the distance, and by combining different strategies we can increase the cumulative risk reduction. Like other strategies it's not about avoidance, that is very difficult to achieve, it's about reducing the amount of exposure to the virus and not receiving a dose sufficient to cause infection. In fact, multiple small exposures over time might be useful to establish and maintain some immunity. The recommendation for simple masks should mean more people being willing to wear them, its a trivial requirement in terms of comfort or inconvenience, but somehow it's become a symbol of allegiance, but I'll avoid what I think this might be too.

 

[StevieTNZ]

Some humour - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...-zealand-makes-hay-with-covid-ministers-gaffe

 

[Astronuc]

A 41-year-old Florida teacher whose doctor had advised her against getting vaccinated has died of COVID-19 complications after she was forced to return to in-person teaching where there was no mask mandate, local outlets say.

Kelly Peterson was not vaccinated against the Coronavirus because she had leukemia and her doctor advised against getting the shot in her already weakened state, her sister, Christin, told KTVU.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/a-florida-teacher-who-couldnt-get-vaccinated-because-of-her-cancer-treatment-died-of-covid-19-her-union-says-she-caught-it-from-her-classroom-which-had-no-mask-mandate/ar-AANJ8WH

APNews (Aug 24) - The Latest: COVID hospitalizations surge in Washington state
https://apnews.com/article/business...rus-pandemic-10c81f06b6b8429c4cb276f400539866

OLYMPIA, Wash, — Washington state health officials say the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients is doubling every 18 to 19 days in the state.

Dr. Umair Shah is the state secretary of health and said Wednesday that the surge driven by the delta variant of the Coronavirus has “stressed, stretched and strained” hospital resources across the state,.

One hospital official said hospitals throughout the state are facing their highest levels of occupancy ever, and the impact has been especially hard on regional and rural hospitals where there are no critical care beds left.

According to the state Department of Health, 1,346 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 on Tuesday. There have been more than 488,000 confirmed Coronavirus infections in Washington state during the pandemic, and 6,448 deaths related to COVID-19.

New NY governor adds 12,000 deaths to publicized COVID-19 tally
https://apnews.com/article/andrew-cuomo-health-coronavirus-pandemic-7312b49695e726eda8d59848e82271c5

The 'official' count of Covid-19 mortality today is 43432. The new governor of NY State is adding 12,000 to that number for a total of 55,432 deaths. This is more in line with the number the NY Times has been publishing, which as of today is 53,691 deaths. I presume it will take some time to get an 'accurate' number, from where I don't know.

The higher number is not entirely new. Federal health officials and some academic institutions tracking COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have been using the higher tally for many months because of known gaps in the data Cuomo had been choosing to publicize.

But Hochul, who was lieutenant governor before being propelled to the state’s highest office, said it is vital to be fully transparent about the numbers.

“There’s a lot of things that weren’t happening, and I’m going to make them happen,” Hochul said Wednesday on MSNBC. “Transparency will be the hallmark of my administration.”

The Associated Press first reported in July on the large discrepancy between the figures publicized by the Cuomo administration and numbers the state was reporting to the CDC.

The count used by Cuomo in his news media briefings and on the state’s COVID-19 fatality tracker included only laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 deaths reported through a state system that collects data from hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities.

The last paragraph states what I suspected. The cases that have been reported are confirmed cases, and the cases being added to the total are probable.

. . . the tally excluded people who died at home, in hospice, in prisons or at state-run homes for people with disabilities. It also excluded people who doctors believed died of COVID-19 but never got a positive test to confirm the diagnosis. Such tests were scarce in the initial months of the pandemic, when hundreds of New Yorkers were dying each day.

From the NY State official site
https://covid19tracker.health.ny.gov/views/NYS-COVID19-Tracker/NYSDOHCOVID-19Tracker-Map?:embed=yes&:toolbar=no&:tabs=n#/views/NYS-COVID19-Tracker/NYSDOHCOVID-19Tracker-Fatalities

I did some screen captures to show the 'offical' tally, and the soon to be 'official' tally.

The way the page is set up, I haven't discovered how to capture each table on the screen.