2019 Novel Coronavirus Covid-19 Discussion

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#2542931 17-Aug-2020 14:57

Geektastic:
Zepanda66:

Do we know if the MoH ever looked further into rapid testing like their doing overseas? I saw the FDA just gave emergency approval to a rapid saliva test from Yale. Or is it not worth it given the potential for inaccurate results?

https://news.yale.edu/2020/08/15/yales-rapid-covid-19-saliva-test-receives-fda-emergency-use-authorization

I recall reading that Emirates were doing fast tests before allowing passengers to board aircraft. 10 minute results.

It was a trial before a flight to Tunisia. It was about 30% accurate so they didn't continue.

DPI blood tests are being done here now.

Batman

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#2542938 17-Aug-2020 15:00

Yeah this has been flogged to death - all the fast tests so far have been duds. Meaning if that test is positive you may or may not have Covid. If that test is negative, you may or may not have Covid.

kingdragonfly

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#2542954 17-Aug-2020 15:32

This is specific to a country with third-world health care policies, the USA.

Some may find it interesting.

Hmmm.... I wonder how the New York Times website reacts to disabling Javascript??? Oh well, I guess I'll never know.

New York Times: Your Questions About Coronavirus Testing, Answered

America needs a national testing plan. In the absence of that, here’s what local governments, institutions and individuals need to know.

What should the federal government be doing?

What can state and local governments do in the meantime?

What about individual institutions?

Should US schools require testing?

Given the shortages and delays in the US, when should people seek testing?

What’s the point of investing in testing if a vaccine is on its way?

ezbee

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#2543097 17-Aug-2020 16:39

Well I guess there is exposure and then there is exposure.

Toronto: strip club employee may have exposed about 550 people to Covid-19
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/16/canada-toronto-strip-club-brass-rail-tavern-covid-19

""
“Why are strip clubs open before schools can safely open? Are these the right priorities?” Ontario doctor Jennifer Kwan wrote on Twitter.
""

The virus just does what it does , Church or Strip club it does not judge.

debo

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#2543110 17-Aug-2020 17:11

wellygary:

Hemi88: With the amount of testing being done and hot finding any random cases it’s looking good 🤞

Yeah, although some more transparency would be helpful... the regional testing stats only go up to the 10th of August..... ( pre the discovery of this outbreak)

We really need to see what the testing numbers look like up and down the country to get a real handle on whether there has been any more spread....

Have they said how many cases have been picked up via contact tracing induced test vs someone being sick induced test? We can assume all the "under investigation" cases are due to people being tested cause they are sick.

debo

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#2543117 17-Aug-2020 17:23

Batman: Yeah this has been flogged to death - all the fast tests so far have been duds. Meaning if that test is positive you may or may not have Covid. If that test is negative, you may or may not have Covid.

Except for the antigen fast tests. Their results are excellent when people are contagious. The trouble is that they are not good once your immune system has kicked in and won over the virus. This is where the PCR tests excel at finding the extremely low levels of virus. By then you are not longer contagious for a false negative is not so important. Unfortunately too many people, including the FDA, are hooked up on the idea that any fast test has to be the same sensitivity as the PCR.

Fred99

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#2543118 17-Aug-2020 17:25

Handle9:

DPI blood tests are being done here now.

Are they any use?

I had to google to see what the test was. It's not specific - so might pick up all kinds of other things (infections or conditions other than than Covid). I don't know if it works usefully for covid, and even if it does - then does it pick it up when or before someone's first infectious, or too late?

I'm sceptical. I wonder if it's mainly a PR exercise. Make the punters feel safe - and if they're not safe, well there's Emirates travel insurance covering Covid.

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Handle9

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#2543122 17-Aug-2020 17:33

Fred99:

Handle9:

DPI blood tests are being done here now.

Are they any use?

I had to google to see what the test was. It's not specific - so might pick up all kinds of other things (infections or conditions other than than Covid). I don't know if it works usefully for covid, and even if it does - then does it pick it up when or before someone's first infectious, or too late?

I'm sceptical. I wonder if it's mainly a PR exercise. Make the punters feel safe - and if they're not safe, well there's Emirates travel insurance covering Covid.

It's being used for mass screening. If you fail the DPI test you do a PCR test to confirm COVID.

It's nothing to do with tourists, it's being used specifically at the internal border between Abu Dhabi and Dubai as you can't enter Abu Dhabi without a negative test in the last 48 hours.

debo

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#2543134 17-Aug-2020 18:03

Fred99:

Handle9:

DPI blood tests are being done here now.

Are they any use?

I had to google to see what the test was. It's not specific - so might pick up all kinds of other things (infections or conditions other than than Covid). I don't know if it works usefully for covid, and even if it does - then does it pick it up when or before someone's first infectious, or too late?

I'm sceptical. I wonder if it's mainly a PR exercise. Make the punters feel safe - and if they're not safe, well there's Emirates travel insurance covering Covid.

They are testing for the boodys response to an infection. The report I read said it looks for "surging red blood cells". Is that even a thing? I'm also sceptical on anything that does not test for the virus directly.

kingdragonfly

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#2543142 17-Aug-2020 18:36

Washington Post: In the US, the number of pregnant Latinas with covid-19 is staggering. And a warning sign, doctors say.

...Nationwide, Hispanic or Latina mothers make up nearly half of the coronavirus cases among pregnant women, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention collected from Jan. 22 until last week. Among more than 14,100 pregnant women who tested positive for the novel coronavirus and provided information about race and ethnicity, 6,447 were Latina — the largest group by far. In a study in Philadelphia, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found the rate of virus exposure among Black and Hispanic women to be five times higher than among White and Asian women.

...Research about the impact of the coronavirus on pregnant women continues to be limited. A report from the CDC in June found that infected pregnant women may be more likely than infected nonpregnant women to be treated in an intensive care unit or need a ventilator but are not at higher risk of death. Pregnant women who are Black or Hispanic appear to be disproportionately affected by infection during pregnancy, according to the report.

Tollie Elliott, the chief medical officer at Mary’s Center, said the figures may reflect the actual burden of the disease within the Latino community, which has struggled to access testing.

...The virus has been devastating for Latinos, who are overrepresented in occupations classified as “essential,” including construction, cleaning and caregiving. And Latinos more often reside in crowded apartments and multigenerational homes where the coronavirus easily spreads.

In Montgomery County, a Washington suburb with 1 million people, Hispanic residents accounted for 73 percent of all new infections in June despite representing only 20 percent of the population. In Virginia’s hard-hit Fairfax County, Latino residents make up 17 percent of the population but 59 percent of all coronavirus cases. And in D.C., Latino residents represent 11 percent of the population, but a quarter of all cases.

...Unlike millions of other unemployed people across the country, Ana and Alfredo do not qualify for government assistance, other than the federal Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. They have been relying entirely on help from her sister and a nearby church. Although Ana receives health insurance through the D.C. Healthcare Alliance, she said she worries it may not cover the hundreds of thousands of dollars in bills for her weeks of care in the hospital.

Even before the pandemic, many immigrant families were living in uncertainty and fear under the Trump administration... Earlier this month, a federal appeals court sided with a Trump administration effort to make it harder for immigrants to seek permanent residency in the United States if they have relied on public assistance programs. Immigrant advocates argue that the rule discourages legal immigrants from using any public benefits such as Medicaid, food stamps or housing assistance.
...

Fred99

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#2543144 17-Aug-2020 18:39

debo:

They are testing for the boodys response to an infection. The report I read said it looks for "surging red blood cells". Is that even a thing? I'm also sceptical on anything that does not test for the virus directly.

I'm assuming it's a "reporter error" and what they're looking for is reduced lymphocytes - relative to red blood cells - so a high count of red cells / low count of white cells.

They're probably wasting their time IMO. Makes people feel happier about an out of control pandemic, which has a downside if the method makes people who are unsafe feel safe - then go forth and spread it.

Handle9

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#2543149 17-Aug-2020 18:50

Fred99:

debo:

They are testing for the boodys response to an infection. The report I read said it looks for "surging red blood cells". Is that even a thing? I'm also sceptical on anything that does not test for the virus directly.

I'm assuming it's a "reporter error" and what they're looking for is reduced lymphocytes - relative to red blood cells - so a high count of red cells / low count of white cells.

They're probably wasting their time IMO. Makes people feel happier about an out of control pandemic, which has a downside if the method makes people who are unsafe feel safe - then go forth and spread it.

Lol.

blackjack17

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#2543191 17-Aug-2020 19:29

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12357334

This is some next level american stupid stuff.

Covid 19 coronavirus: Ministry of Education to allow some Auckland Year 12 and 13s to return to school under level 3

A decision late this afternoon by the Government will give principals the option of allowing Year 12 and 13 students back to school early for face-to-face learning during alert level 3.

The Ministry of Education is working through the legal requirements tonight and will tomorrow be able to confirm the date students can return.

Auckland Grammar headmaster Tim O'Connor has been imploring authorities to allow flexibility, especially for students so close to crucial assessments.

On Friday he said 11 more full school days out of the classroom would be expensive, especially for students sitting Cambridge examinations. He didn't want 2020 to be a wasted year for students.

As a teacher at a high decile school this is just so dumb and will destroys the whole idea of a lockdown and gains so very little in educational benefit.

My Principal has already emailed students telling them we are going back Wednesday/Thursday.

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Fred99

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#2543205 17-Aug-2020 19:58

Handle9: Lol

What's funny? Have you got a link to anything scientific to suggest that the test method isn't mainly a waste of time?

kiwikurt

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#2543231 17-Aug-2020 21:09

blackjack17:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12357334

This is some next level american stupid stuff.

Covid 19 coronavirus: Ministry of Education to allow some Auckland Year 12 and 13s to return to school under level 3

A decision late this afternoon by the Government will give principals the option of allowing Year 12 and 13 students back to school early for face-to-face learning during alert level 3.

The Ministry of Education is working through the legal requirements tonight and will tomorrow be able to confirm the date students can return.

Auckland Grammar headmaster Tim O'Connor has been imploring authorities to allow flexibility, especially for students so close to crucial assessments.

On Friday he said 11 more full school days out of the classroom would be expensive, especially for students sitting Cambridge examinations. He didn't want 2020 to be a wasted year for students.

As a teacher at a high decile school this is just so dumb and will destroys the whole idea of a lockdown and gains so very little in educational benefit.

My Principal has already emailed students telling them we are going back Wednesday/Thursday.

It's yet another poor take from Mr O'Connor and it's disappointing that Ministry of Education have caved to his drum beating.

Sadly 2020 could be somewhat of a wasted year for some students, but some of that responsibility will lie with said principal in poor preparation as this pandemic has evolved.

2021 could well be a write off for even more students if we don't get this right.

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