Coronavirus (No politics)

#2,004
#2,004
Since I work in an office that deals with unemployment. This whole thing is backward for me, compared to most. Everywhere else is laying off or cutting back. We're extending our hours. The office is closed to foot traffic, but the phones and email still work. I'll be in at the @$! crack of dawn for the foreseeable future. Strange times.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AM64
#2,006
#2,006
RavinDave said:
Interesting that you point out how a “cytosine storm” autoimmune reaction could potentially complicate the use of the Hydroxychloroquine with (or perhaps without as well) the Azithromycin... In the Spanish flu pandemic a much younger profile was hardest hit with many deaths of the healthiest people ascribed to an aggressive autoimmune response that basically overloaded their lungs with the detritus from their own white blood cells and other warrior cells attacking the virus. How that may play out with COVID-19 and different drugs used to treat it... time will tell.

Coming closer to home, I had a call this morning from a customer in Colorado, a guy in his 60’s who has a 30-yr old son in Houston (where I live) working as a natural gas trader. He told me both his son and the son’s wife have the virus. About a week ago the son started with a cough and body aches and the same night developed a fever of 103. Took bed rest at home and after 48 hours was doing better but it’s all he can do to walk the dog. His wife’s case was less severe but she was pretty sick for about 24 hours.
Click to expand...

It's certainly possible but I don't know of any good data on that. Just searching quickly led me to this paper which postulated that a cytokine storm may be a contributing factor because autoimmune serum biomarkers were elevated. They also proposed myocarditis as another potential etiology. I was trying to point out that you can basically make up pathophysiology reasons with really limited data sets to support efficacy or endorse risks and you ultimately need good and thorough science to guide you to know more reliably. There are some experts who believe cytokine storm is happening*. The Chinese treatment guidelines according to this article have recommended using a biologic immunomodulatory drug for very sick covid patients. Again, it's a phase I trial in a country without the greatest track record of transparency and everyone is scrambling for answers, time will tell. I'm also in no way qualified to know in any more detail that cytokine storm is a concern other than reading it on the Rheumatology website and certainly not qualified to treat it.

As far as the 1918 influenza pandemic, I don't know that there is a definitive answer or simply one reason why it was such a bad pandemic for younger folks. This paper cited 4 potential reasons with Cytokine storm listed third although I don't think they were in any particular order.

At least based on the mortality by age curves thus far they aren't similar in the age distribution in terms of mortality which suggests that for one reason or another, the same is hopefully not occurring with Covid 19. I'm not too savvy with bringing in images but I attached the age distribution of mortality to this post including the "W" death curve that gets talked about a lot with the 1918 outbreak.

I'm sorry to hear those folks aren't feeling well. I hope they stay in contact with their medical providers regularly and seek further treatment if necessary. By all accounts I've heard it can make many people feel much worse than the "regular flu" and progress quickly.

*Vox article was written by some experts on the stuff. Seems like if anyone would know about it they would. Here's there credentials:

Randy Q. Cron, MD, PhD, is a professor of pediatrics and medicine and director of the Division of Pediatric Rheumatology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In November 2019, he published Cytokine Storm Syndrome, the first dedicated textbook on cytokine storms.

W. Winn Chatham, MD, is a professor of medicine, clinical immunology, and rheumatology; senior scientist at the Comprehensive Arthritis, Musculoskeletal, Bone and Autoimmunity Center (CAMBAC); and director of Rheumatology Clinical Services at University of Alabama at Birmingham
 

Attachments

  • 1918.png
    1918.png
    4.6 KB · Views: 5
  • ETuMzdBWAAgzf-T.jpeg
    ETuMzdBWAAgzf-T.jpeg
    38.2 KB · Views: 5
#2,009
#2,009
RavinDave said:
A few days ago I got an email from FedEx as I assume did anyone else who has an account with them, saying “Business as usual, for now...”

I also use FedEx Freight a lot and talked to the driver making a pickup at my warehouse today. He said they had just been told by their CEO basically that they will keep running unless he!! freezes over. That was music to my ears!
Click to expand...

We won't stop until there is nothing left to ship. Let's hope it never comes to that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AM64, DocVOLiday and headhunter15
#2,011
#2,011
xavierbballfan said:
It's certainly possible but I don't know of any good data on that. Just searching quickly led me to this paper which postulated that a cytokine storm may be a contributing factor because autoimmune serum biomarkers were elevated. They also proposed myocarditis as another potential etiology. I was trying to point out that you can basically make up pathophysiology reasons with really limited data sets to support efficacy or endorse risks and you ultimately need good and thorough science to guide you to know more reliably. There are some experts who believe cytokine storm is happening*. The Chinese treatment guidelines according to this article have recommended using a biologic immunomodulatory drug for very sick covid patients. Again, it's a phase I trial in a country without the greatest track record of transparency and everyone is scrambling for answers, time will tell. I'm also in no way qualified to know in any more detail that cytokine storm is a concern other than reading it on the Rheumatology website and certainly not qualified to treat it.

As far as the 1918 influenza pandemic, I don't know that there is a definitive answer or simply one reason why it was such a bad pandemic for younger folks. This paper cited 4 potential reasons with Cytokine storm listed third although I don't think they were in any particular order.

At least based on the mortality by age curves thus far they aren't similar in the age distribution in terms of mortality which suggests that for one reason or another, the same is hopefully not occurring with Covid 19. I'm not too savvy with bringing in images but I attached the age distribution of mortality to this post including the "W" death curve that gets talked about a lot with the 1918 outbreak.

I'm sorry to hear those folks aren't feeling well. I hope they stay in contact with their medical providers regularly and seek further treatment if necessary. By all accounts I've heard it can make many people feel much worse than the "regular flu" and progress quickly.

*Vox article was written by some experts on the stuff. Seems like if anyone would know about it they would. Here's there credentials:

Randy Q. Cron, MD, PhD, is a professor of pediatrics and medicine and director of the Division of Pediatric Rheumatology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In November 2019, he published Cytokine Storm Syndrome, the first dedicated textbook on cytokine storms.

W. Winn Chatham, MD, is a professor of medicine, clinical immunology, and rheumatology; senior scientist at the Comprehensive Arthritis, Musculoskeletal, Bone and Autoimmunity Center (CAMBAC); and director of Rheumatology Clinical Services at University of Alabama at Birmingham
Click to expand...
Thanks for the additional information. I am reading The Great Influenza which is where I got my understanding (whether it reflects the latest medical thinking or not) about why the 1918 pandemic saw highest mortality in younger adults.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xavierbballfan
#2,014
#2,014
(12) 3/23: Today is the first day that I could breath deep and my lungs felt like they were functioning properly. No scratchy/uncomfortable feeling. I did get a little shortness of breath when I was running up and down the stairs to grab the phone but nothing major. I did another handful of push-ups and my recovery time was drastically improved from the day before. It was minutes not hours to recover. I returned to work via telecommuting and I had no fatigue and was able to work a full day without a nap. I finally called my Dr about my test results and still no results, nurse said that some are taking a really long time. Symptoms: slight shortness of breath.

Since I am feeling better and the average recovery time for covid-19 seems to be 14 days I am going to stop these updates at 14. If my test results return after that I will make a special post for that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MWR, InVOLuntary, tbh and 22 others
#2,015
#2,015
maotai said:
(12) 3/23: Today is the first day that I could breath deep and my lungs felt like they were functioning properly. No scratchy/uncomfortable feeling. I did get a little shortness of breath when I was running up and down the stairs to grab the phone but nothing major. I did another handful of push-ups and my recovery time was drastically improved from the day before. It was minutes not hours to recover. I returned to work via telecommuting and I had no fatigue and was able to work a full day without a nap. I finally called my Dr about my test results and still no results, nurse said that some are taking a really long time. Symptoms: slight shortness of breath.

Since I am feeling better and the average recovery time for covid-19 seems to be 14 days I am going to stop these updates at 14. If my test results return after that I will make a special post for that.
Click to expand...

I knew some of the testing was taking longer than most, but your’s and your wife’s waiting is boarding ridiculous.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AM64, maotai, RikidyBones and 6 others
#2,016
#2,016
@bigdaddy @kiddiedoc plus other physicians, nurses, respiratory techs etc. here on VN (I cant remember who does what)

My daughter is a primary care physician who is attempting to keep her family from getting sick, as she assumes that she will become infected at some point. She shared this article describing successful protection of healthcare workers in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Feel free to share if you like, and please know how grateful we are for what you are doing. Stay safe, dang it! 💕

Keeping the Coronavirus from Infecting Health-Care Workers
 
  • Like
Reactions: A.Vol70, Regulator, kiddiedoc and 7 others
#2,017
#2,017
I know it's an assumption but if the percentage of private positives are equal to the percentage of public then TN has done quite a bit of testing
Public
72 positives / 983 tests = 7.3% positive
Private
543 assume 7.3% positive
So 543/X 7.3/100= 7, 438 private tests
983+7,438= 8,421 total tests
20200323_193932.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Sudden Impact
#2,018
#2,018
Dustin4Vols said:
Any word on how this affects people with asthma? My wife and 5 year old have it
Click to expand...

I'm interested in this as well. I take comfort in the mind boggling stats like no one under 30 has died in Italy...I think that is correct. You have to know there are people under 30 with Asthma getting this, but yet prevailing. I guess.
 
#2,019
#2,019
Looks like the US is closing in on 300k tests with about a 15% positive result 3.3k in the hospital right now...that compares to about 24k per month for H1N1 outbreak

20200323_203942.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lurkerin
#2,023
#2,023
Orangeredblooded said:
I knew some of the testing was taking longer than most, but your’s and your wife’s waiting is boarding ridiculous.
Click to expand...
maotai said:
I was thinking the same thing as I was talking with the nurse on the phone. I think she was kinda thinking the same thing as she was very apologetic.
Click to expand...

I should also add, at this point the results do not matter other than paperwork with our employment. Even if the test comes back negative you cannot convince me that we did not have it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: davethevol and Orangeredblooded
#2,025
#2,025
maotai said:
I was thinking the same thing as I was talking with the nurse on the phone. I think she was kinda thinking the same thing as she was very apologetic.
Click to expand...

Have you read about patient 1 in West VA?

His wife had to badger the hospital into even giving him a test. THEN the lost sample!
 
  • Like
Reactions: maotai
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top