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Sensible information and advice about Coronavirus (COVID-19)

posted elsewhere, welcome to scrutinise


There is some confusion and uncertainty about taking OTC antiinflammatories to suppress the fever.

Recent stories from France suggest that ibuprofen may make symptoms worse for some people with C-19.



It’s far room soon for any in depth studies to have been done, so to some extent we’re being forced to take on board anecdotal evidence like this story from France.

Paracetamol is being suggested in preference to ibuprofen because of the concerns about antiinflammatories.

However, there is also some evidence that paracetamol and aspirin may prolong symptoms and increase viral shedding, which means potentially increased contagiousness within the household.



Again, we don’t know if these finding apply to the current coronavirus.


This is not to say don’t take these medicines. But since this outbreak is potentially so serious for some people, it’s worth knowing these concerns so that we can make pragmatic sensible

There are other old fashioned ways to manage a fever. Lots of easily available herbs are anti-pyretics and diophoretics. If anyone wants suggestions for herbal approaches to this virus please pm me.
 
NHS now advising against taking ibuprofen: Stay at home advice - NHS

"There is currently no strong evidence that ibuprofen can make coronavirus (COVID-19) worse. But until we have more information, take paracetamol to treat the symptoms of coronavirus, unless your doctor has told you paracetamol is not suitable for you. If you are already taking ibuprofen or another non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) on the advice of a doctor, do not stop taking it without checking first. "
 
This is pretty good.

Carrington says: “As far as possible, try to maintain as much of a routine as you can. Wake up and go to bed at healthy times to ensure you get enough sleep.”

Although you want to maintain a routine, Dr Lucy Atcheson does warn against just falling into a cycle of sleeping, working, eating, and repeating: “Find some time to still have value to your day, life cannot be just eating and sleeping. Do something fun for yourself (that isn’t just Netflix).

“I’m seeing a lot of people who are self isolating are losing their optimism for the future, they are using time for self reflecting and picking apart everything that is wrong with their life: their job, their relationship, their friendships. When we’re overwhelmed by a mundane life, it can quickly draw out the joy, so make fun for yourself.”

 
I was in two minds about posting this here, because of the language barrier, but I guess we have got at least a few German speakers amongst us. All episodes are also available as downloadable scripts, so could potentially be put through Google translate.

A top German virologist, Christian Drosten, has been doing daily podcasts in conversation with a journalist for the last two weeks, bringing the latest scientific findings, background information and public health info to the general public, and answering some of the questions that are emerging among the listeners as situations unfolds.

It is an excellent resource; and he manages to strike the perfect balance between making the material accessible to lay people without oversimplification.
 
I’m concerned by interpretations I see creeping into reports. Not just the ways those can be interpreted by the reader, but also the way the writer seems to have misunderstood.

In the Telegraph I saw “if you think you have Coronavirus you should self-isolate for...”. No. Stop there. If you have one of these symptoms you should self-isolate: persistent cough or fever. Full stop. You aren’t required to diagnose, but to accept cautious practise.

On the BBC I heard Laura Foster say “ if you have a runny nose, that isn’t Coronavirus”. No. A runny nose is not evidence you don’t have Coronavirus. According to WHO some people do experience a runny nose. It’s just not a particularly common symptom.

I read in the Mirror “this is what Coronavirus feels like”. No, it’s what Coronavirus felt like for that person. Different people have different severity of symptoms.

I saw an online piece “hear what a proper Coronavirus cough sounds like”. No. Hear what this person’s cough sounds like. People should not being using that comparison to rule out Coronavirus in themselves.

There are different degrees of severity. There is a list of symptoms you may or may not get. You are not a health professional. You can’t diagnose yourself.

Journalists should be more careful than ever not to mislead or cause confusion. They’re not faring well so far.
 
As I noted in another thread, the Mayor of Miami has tested positive for Covid-19: his only symptoms? Aches and a runny nose. This is spectacularly irresponsibility reporting from the BBC, and just emphasizes the urgency of getting mass testing launched ASAP.
 
I want to clarify something I've been posting and also add some information.

I've said in various places a couple of time in this sprawling forum that there have been reports from China that some survivors have been shedding the virus for 37 days after recovery.

This is not correct. The Lancet report shows that people who have recovered from the virus were viral shedding for 37 days, with measures starting from the point of diagnosis. So not 37 days after recovery, 37 days from point of diagnosis. So thats about 7 days after recovery. However, I'm unclear what point "recovery" was pinpointed. I think it means the point at which they were no longer in ICU, no longer needing respirator support.

Also, as a separate thing, this confusing and worrying story about people testing positive after apparently recovering for the virus and testing negative. It's happened enough for it to cause concern.

I've just received this email from a colleague, which hopefully throws a little light on things, if not solving the issue:

There have been suggestions that people can get reinfected by the
SARS-CoV-2 after recovery. Here is some hopeful evidence from a small
study of macaques that found the animals did not develop a coronavirus
infection the second time they were exposed. The study found that the
animals developed antibodies that presumably fended off the second
exposure. Also, a couple of things of note:

1. Peak coronavirus titres occurred after just 3 days after exposure,
not over a longer period as has been suggested might be the case in humans;

2. After the infection ran its course (and before a second exposure),
there was no coronavirus present, which is significant because it has
been reported that recovered patients can still have coronavirus present
and can still infect others.

This study is very small, and the report has not been reviewed yet. And
of course what happens to macaques may not be the same what happens to
people.

Here is a readable summary:

Monkeys Develop Protective Antibodies to SARS-CoV-2

and here is the preprint:

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.03.13.990226v1.full.pdf



The least we can glean from this is that hard core studies are being conducted at the forefront of this pandemic.

(with thanks and blessings to the macaques)
 
That’s peculiar and interesting.



Thank you for that elbows

Thank you for all that you’re doing here. It can’t be easy to be immersed in it (apparently) 24/7.
 
That suggests that the virus invades and replicates not only in the deeper respiratory system. That’s really bad. It suggests greater ability /opportunity for genetic mutation, but also explains why it seems stable (doesn’t need to mutate and change in order to infect and replicate.)

We have reports that fecal matter and blood show evidence of infection. With this symptomology added to that, it looks like this virus could well be systemic. Which makes sense given what (little) we know/assume about how it developed the ability to jump to humans.
 
This seems to be the central Government page on Covid-19


I have just been hunting for the proposal to pay 80% of employee salaries which I recall being announced by the chancellor but - it might be me - I can't find it.
 
Volunteering Portal.

Find Your Local Group

Just signed up for Bexley and got this encouraging email.

Thank you for your offer of support!

It’s been wonderful to see how many people are keen to get involved and help people during this difficult and stressful time. We’ve had over 500 volunteers in the door in just a few days!

While we want to get you all working as soon as possible, we need to make sure we’re getting this right. Our Volunteer Hub project a longer-term project of support which will be there for people throughout this crisis, rather than an immediate short-term response. We’re building a lot of this from the ground up and want to make sure we’ve got everything in place before we bring you all in. We’re doing our best to remember that this is a marathon, not a sprint.

It’s also been an incredibly hard week for many of Bexley’s charities. They have been overwhelmed with making logistical changes and finding ways to deliver their services remotely, so while we work to support them it may take a bit longer than we thought for us to direct you to where you are needed. Please do bear with us. We’ll keep you all updated on our plans as they develop.

In the meantime, please have a thorough read of our volunteering welcome document attached. It should lay out some key details on how this will work as well as very important information on safeguarding vulnerable adults.

You can also take a look at the options below to help people in the immediate short term:
Donating to your local Food Bank
Joining Next Door to respond to local requests for help
Taking a look at local mutual aid groups

On behalf of all our local charities and community groups, we’re so thankful for your help and your patience.

We’ll be in touch soon,


The Team at BVSC
 
can you use an old mask that has been in the cupboard, my cleaner is coming soon, i have the flu, if not C19, and want to protect her.
 
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