Unless Covid information becomes more vital, I plan to try a less intensive schedule with fewer charts, when I can.

Here’s how to find the C.D.C.’s new pandemic guidelines for your area.

”…Under the agency’s previous criteria, close to 95 percent of U.S. counties were considered high risk. Using the new criteria — new Covid-related hospital admissions, the percentage of hospital beds occupied by Covid patients and new coronavirus cases per 100,000 people — less than 30 percent of the population is in high-risk areas….The CDC’S NEW TOOL (CLICK) allows users to identify their state and then choose their county. That yields a color-coded gauge — green for low risk, yellow for medium and orange for high — along with the relevant guidance. All results offer reminders of the importance of vaccinations and boosters, measures that have kept the Omicron wave from inflicting a far more devastating toll in serious illness, hospitalization and death.

(J. Harris: You will have to specifiy your State and County and you will immediately get your new guide line. Harrison is Yellow at present.  This is about as simple as the message can get, if you have a computer. For cell phones, I’d expect an ap soon, but you can enter: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/covid-by-county.html   on your cell phone and get to the site easily. This site is better than nothing, but  it is overly simplified for the politicans. It does not account for the vaccination levels in various areas, nor the level of medical care available. Notice on the chart above that Smith/Gregg/Harrison, contiguious counties, have different levels of danger. It does probably beats a snowball [ask a cowboy what that means].)

Association of COVID-19 Quarantine Duration and Postquarantine Transmission Risk in 4 University Cohorts (Audio available)

”Question  What is the risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission from individuals leaving test-based quarantines of various durations…In this study, in 301 quarantined, positive-testing university students and staff, 40 (13.3%) first tested positive asymptomatically after day 7 following exposure, 15 (4.9%) after day 10, and 4 (1.4%) after day 14. Individuals in strict quarantine tested positive at a lower rate than those in nonstrict quarantine (10% vs 12%; P = .04)….Our study suggests that a substantial number of people may be getting reexposed during quarantine. A strict shorter quarantine may be as effective as a longer more lax one…”

SUPPER SPREADER WEDDING IN MN IN JULY, 2021 (DELTA)

Transmission of and Infection With COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Attendees of an Indoor Wedding Reception in Minnesota

”…Question  What are the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission among vaccinated and unvaccinated attendees of a large indoor gathering?

”July 2021, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) investigated an outbreak of COVID-19 at a wedding reception with a high percentage of vaccine breakthrough cases…In this cohort study of 75 individuals, nearly half of attendees at an indoor wedding reception who were tested were infected with the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. Unvaccinated attendees had a higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection than vaccinated attendees, secondary transmission from vaccinated attendees to vaccinated and unvaccinated contacts was observed, and the index case was identified as an unvaccinated symptomatic child.This investigation found that outbreaks are possible in highly vaccinated settings. The vaccination rate among respondents (75%) was higher than Minnesota’s statewide vaccination rate (52%)4 at the time of the event….Fully vaccinated attendees had a lower risk of developing symptoms or testing positive, and the only hospitalization was among an unvaccinated adult, supporting previous data showing reduced risk of infection and severe illness among vaccinated individuals…

”Children and those who are unable to be vaccinated should continue to practice masking and social distancing and consider limiting their exposure to large events. Parents of children in age groups eligible for vaccination should consider getting them vaccinated. In addition, the CDC recommends that when community transmission rates are substantial or high, even vaccinated individuals should mask indoors, and some vaccinated individuals may choose to wear a mask at other times, particularly if they have or live with someone who has immunocompromise or underlying conditions. The CDC recommendation for vaccinated individuals to mask while indoors during times of substantial community transmission was not in place at the time of this wedding…

”Vaccination reduces the risk of contracting COVID-19.  Additionally, this investigation found transmission to event employees, showing that employees are at risk from the patrons they serve in indoor gatherings. Businesses that host large events should take these risks into consideration when determining which mitigation measures to put into place.”

(J. Harris: Here we have another wedding from Hell. Don’t go out if you’re sick and don’t drag sick kids out of the house. Period.)

AND LASTLY:

If you can’t think of a word, say, I forgot the English word for it. That way people will think you’re bilingual instead of an idiot

.

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

NYT LATE FRIDAY:

The C.D.C.’s new strategy sets criteria that will allow localities to ease masking and social distancing. 

”…The C.D.C.’s new strategy sets criteria that will allow localities to ease masking and social distancing…a framework intended to move the country to a long-term strategy that allows lives to return to a “new normal.”…will direct counties to consider three measures to assess risk of the virus: new Covid-related hospital admissions over the previous week and the percentage of hospital beds occupied by Covid patients, as well as new coronavirus cases per 100,000 people over the previous week.

(J. Harris: Vaccination rate information would have helped as well. This looks like paperwork that will be ignored, but why not try?)

FROM THE CDC—HERE IT IS:

COVID-19 Community Levels

HARRISON COUNTY IS LISTED AS MEDIUM RISK.

RECOMMENDED INDIVIDUAL AND HOUSEHOLD PRECAUTIONS ACCORDING TO RISK:

FROM HOPKINS

VACCINATION INTERVALS To increase the safety profile of mRNA vaccines, the US CDC is now recommending that certain groups wait longer between their first and second doses. The standard timeline between doses for the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines is 3 and 4 weeks, respectively. Some groups, including men between the ages of 12-39 years old, are now recommended to wait 8 weeks between doses in order to further decrease the risk of myocarditis. Men in this age group appeared to be at a higher relative risk of developing myocarditis following vaccination with an mRNA vaccine, which has prompted further research on ways to mitigate this outcome. Myocarditis associated with vaccination has a low relative risk, around 3.24, compared to the relative risk of COVID-associated myocarditis, around 18.28. Still, new evidence indicates that an 8-week interval between doses can further decrease the risk, which prompted CDC’s change in advice. People not in this group, such as the elderly and immunocompromised, are still recommended to receive their doses on the original 3- and 4-week schedules to prevent severe illness from COVID-19 should they be infected. However, more studies are continuing to evaluate whether a slightly longer period between doses, such as 6 weeks, might result in greater protection for all vaccine-eligible groups.

2. ‘I Don’t Dare Get the Shot’: Virus Ravages Unvaccinated Older Hong Kongers (New York Times)

For two years, Hong Kong had largely avoided a major coronavirus outbreak with tight border controls and strict social distancing measures. Then Omicron triggered an explosion of infections, exposing the city’s failure to prepare its older — and most at risk — residents for the worst. In a matter of weeks, the outbreak quickly overwhelmed Hong Kong’s world-class medical system. Ambulances arrived at emergency units in droves. Hospitals ran out of beds in isolation wards. Patients waited in gurneys on sidewalks and in parking lots, given emergency blankets for warmth during the coldest and wettest time of the year. Hong Kong’s early success in keeping the pandemic at bay was the starting point of a complacency that has now had deadly consequences. Officials have moved too slowly to prepare for a broader outbreak, and did too little to address misinformation around vaccines, social workers and experts say. For many of the city’s one million residents who are 70 or older, the risk of getting sick had long seemed so low that they avoided getting inoculated.

From BECKERS edit:

Cases decline in Kentucky, but hospitalizations and the positivity rate remain high.

(J. Harris: A lament for KY whose overall vaccination rate is ONLY 56%. What must people think of Harrison County with our 41% rate?)

FROM THE LANCET editorial

Waning effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines

”…The importance of this study is that it had a longer follow-up period than most studies, it examined several vaccines and different schedules, and it captured a national population in its entirety…..The ecological reality of new variants and perhaps an expanding enzootic viral reservoir demonstrate the need for vaccines that are protective against a broader spectrum of potential variants.12 SARS-CoV-2 is unlikely to be eliminated soon, if ever, and as long as it continues to circulate, it remains a threat to human health, societies, and economies. It is urgent that we develop coronavirus vaccines that are more broadly protective, with durable protection against both infection and disease…The evidence from Nordström and colleagues’ study1 suggests lower effectiveness for older individuals and for men. The latter finding seems to be unique to this study and merits replication in other countries…

The importance of this study is that it had a longer follow-up period than most studies, it examined several vaccines and different schedules, and it captured a national population in its entirety. The study manifests the true meaning of real-world vaccine effectiveness and its findings are integral to our understanding of waning vaccine protection. This study also demonstrates the expanding power of biomedical research in the era of digitised health information platforms….”

(J. Harris: This editorial examination of the effectiveness of Covid Vaccines does NOT include information after a 3rd booster, ie 3rd Jab. Of course, new vaccines will need to be developed as Variants emerge. see below article)

FROM THE CDC:

Effectiveness of a Third Dose of mRNA Vaccines Against COVID-19–Associated Emergency Department and Urgent Care Encounters and Hospitalizations Among Adults During Periods of Delta and Omicron Variant Predominance — VISION Network, 10 States, August 2021–January 2022

”…These findings underscore the importance of receiving a third dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine to prevent both moderately severe and severe COVID-19, especially while the Omicron variant is the predominant circulating variant and when the effectiveness of 2 doses of mRNA vaccines is significantly reduced against this variant. All unvaccinated persons should get vaccinated as soon as possible. All adults who have received mRNA vaccines during their primary COVID-19 vaccination series should receive a third dose when eligible, and eligible persons should stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations…”

LASTLY:

.

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

FROM BECKERS (Very readable)

BA.2 VARIANT UPDATE–SPREADING

”… global prevalence of the BA.2 omicron subvariant is rising, according to the report. So far, the strain has been detected in 85 countries and is now dominant in 18. “This trend is most pronounced in the Southeast Asia region, followed by the Eastern Mediterranean, African, Western Pacific and European regions,” the WHO said….”

(J. Harris: Denmark is full of this variant — and is close to Russia. When the Russian counts go up again, it likely will be BA.2. Sometimes they don’t count or report Covid Cases in Russia.)

FROM HOPKINS 2/24/22

RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE Russia began a military invasion of neighboring Ukraine this morning, destroying more than 70 military targets through land, sea, and air assaults. The invasion represents the largest attack by one state against another in Europe since World War II. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has played no role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the incursion likely will impact virus transmission, testing, surveillance, and treatment for the foreseeable future. The current surge of COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant appears to have peaked in both Ukraine and Russia, but the numbers of new cases in both countries remain at record-high levels, and Ukrainian authorities have warned that, despite a 99% vaccination rate among its army, transmission is occurring on the Russian battlefront. The fighting is forcing people to travel west, crowding trains and roads in an effort to reach smaller towns and villages on the European Union border or cross the border into neighboring countries. Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and Romania are preparing for an influx of refugees. Amid the pandemic, the Ukraine crisis indicates that balance-of-power politics have returned, confirms that pandemics can threaten military power, and reminds us that war has innumerable impacts on human health.

RUSSIAN CASES LAST 30 DAYS:

UKRAINE PAST MONTH COVID STATISTICS:

England begins living with the virus

”…Basically, everything has been lifted. A lot of things had been open already — restaurants, pubs, movie theaters, you name it — but now the final restrictions are also gone. That includes mask requirements, even on London’s public transportation, and legal isolation requirements, even if you have the virus….[no]access to free rapid tests, which we get through the National Health Service, but those won’t be free anymore after April 1…Health officials are extremely wary, and N.H.S. leaders have also said they’re against the end of the free testing. Something else to keep in mind is that the lifting of all restrictions doesn’t protect vulnerable people. They have warned that politicians shouldn’t say the pandemic is over, because it isn’t — Covid is still among us, and while cases have been dropping dramatically, tens of thousands of people around the country still test positive every day…The N.H.S. is also dealing with another crisis: The pandemic has worsened delays and backlogs. Millions of procedures have been delayed, including cancer screenings and essential care…”

Another casualty of Russia’s invasion: Ukraine’s ability to contain the coronavirus.

”…They’re quite vulnerable, and as people huddle together, either sheltering or evacuating in crowded buses, trains and cars, maybe in hotels and refugee camps, it’s going to cause a reversal of the progress,…They can’t maintain distance and don’t have access to masks….Many people are heading to smaller towns and villages, or crossing the border into Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania, and the flow of refugees will likely affect those countries’ pandemic situations, too….Ukraine is reporting an average of about 26,000 new cases a day, or 63 new cases per 100,000 people, according to the Our World in Data project at the University of Oxford. Only about one-third of Ukraine’s 44 million people are fully inoculated against the coronavirus, though Ukrainian officials said this month that the army had a 99 percent vaccination rate…”

The White House releases a plan to help people who are especially vulnerable to Covid-19.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEASED

Kids today don’t know how easy they have it. When I was young, I had to walk 9 feet through shag carpet to change the TV channel

All of us could take a lesson from the weather.  It pays no attention to criticism.

.

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

HOPKINS CITED ARTICLES:

1. Wastewater-based Detection of an Influenza Outbreak (MedRxiv) Traditional influenza surveillance informs control strategies but can lag behind outbreak onset and undercount cases, while wastewater surveillance is effective for monitoring near real-time dynamics of outbreaks but has not been attempted for influenza. We quantified Influenza A virus RNA in wastewater during an active outbreak. RNA concentrations were strongly associated with reported clinical cases and reflected the outbreak pattern and magnitude, suggesting this approach could aid in early detection.  

2. The C.D.C. Isn’t Publishing Large Portions of the Covid Data It Collects (New York Times) For more than a year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has collected data on hospitalizations for Covid-19 in the United States and broken it down by age, race and vaccination status. But it has not made most of the information public. Two full years into the pandemic, the agency leading the country’s response to the public health emergency has published only a tiny fraction of the data it has collected, several people familiar with the data said…..MORE (HOPKINS): US CDC DATA According to reporting by The New York Times, the US CDC is sharing only a small portion of the data it collects on COVID-19, 2 full years into the pandemic. The data could help state and local officials better understand how and when to use specific mitigation measures, what populations are most at risk, who needs booster doses, and where outbreaks might occur or new variants emerge. CDC representatives gave various reasons why the agency has been slow to release some information, including outdated systems incapable of handling large amounts of data, fear that the information might be misinterpreted, and concerns over some data representing only a sampling of the US population. A string of necessary bureaucratic approvals also adds to the delays. Several epidemiologists and scientists said gaps in data have the potential to erode trust in public health and science and countered that the release of detailed data analyses and effective communication of that information can help bolster public trust and provide a better understanding of the pandemic.

FROM HOPKINS RE 4TH JAB

FOURTH VACCINE DOSE Questions about the necessity of a second SARS-CoV-2 vaccine booster, or fourth dose, arose shortly after announcements regarding the importance of an initial booster. Several new studies attempting to shine a light on the durability of vaccine-mediated immunity provide evidence that a 3-dose regimen of mRNA-based vaccines—possibly only 2 doses—may be able to protect most people against severe COVID-19 disease for months or even years. Evidence for possibly lengthy protection from vaccination includes an increase in neutralizing antibody diversity, T cells that can recognize the Omicron variant, and germinal center activation for up to 15 weeks post-vaccination. Leading immunologists have stated that fourth or fifth doses of the vaccine might lead to diminishing returns for the majority of the population when compared to 3 doses. However, a fourth vaccine dose may still be necessary for certain populations, including older and immunocompromised individuals. 

Several nations have begun offering fourth vaccine doses to specific populations or openly discussing that possibility. Many health officials in the US have agreed that it is too early to officially recommend a fourth vaccine dose, but the US FDA is continually examining emerging data to determine if and when another booster may be necessary. If a fourth dose does appear to be warranted, for all age groups or only older adults, experts say it likely would be recommended in the fall to coincide with annual flu shots and the rise of respiratory virus transmission. Additional considerations include whether the vaccine should be reformulated for novel variants. Other nations are moving forward with plans to provide fourth doses to certain populations, including the UK, Italy, South Korea, Sweden, and Israel. While fourth doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine may be necessary for certain populations, it is critical to ensure that populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are not left behind. Vaccine equity must be addressed now so the world can be prepared for future pathogens with pandemic potential. 

FROM NYT:

A new Covid vaccine shows 100 percent efficacy against severe disease and hospitalizations, its makers say.

”…The new vaccine had an efficacy of 75 percent against moderate-to-severe disease. It showed 58 percent efficacy against symptomatic disease in its Phase 3 clinical trial. Although that number is lower than was observed for the mRNA vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna in their initial trials, it is “in line with expected vaccine effectiveness in today’s environment dominated by variants of concern,”….Used as a booster dose after one of the other available coronavirus vaccines, the Sanofi-GSK shot increased antibody levels by 18- to 30-fold. The companies intend to submit the vaccine for authorization to regulatory authorities in the United States and Europe, they said on Wednesday…In laboratory studies, two doses of the Sanofi-GSK vaccine stimulated the production of more neutralizing antibodies than an approved mRNA vaccine, according to the companies. The data have not yet been published. The vaccine was safe and well-tolerated by adults of all ages, the companies said...The best target for Covid vaccines is a protein called spike that covers the surface of the virus like a crown. While the mRNA vaccines contain the genetic instructions for making the protein, the Sanofi-GSK vaccine uses a slightly modified version of the [SPIKE] protein itself to stimulate an immune response..This is a commonly used approach for vaccines, and so may convince some people who have been hesitant to adopt the newer mRNA technology. Protein-based vaccines are also relatively inexpensive to manufacture and may not require the ultracold storage needed for the mRNA vaccines. Those features make them more likely candidates for rollout in African nations where vaccine coverage is still very low.

…The pharmaceutical company Novavax last month applied to the Food and Drug Administration for authorization of a similar protein-based vaccine.

(J. Harris: New Covid Vaccines are being tried all over the world. The US got a head start and also is helping to finance other vaccine programs throughout the world. These new protein vaccines might make a good “chaser” vaccine to kick up antibody production in older previously vaccinated individuals.)

Population Immunity and Covid-19 Severity with Omicron Variant in South Africa

”…the results of our survey showed widespread underlying SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity across the province (73.1%), including a prevalence at the subdistrict level of up to 85.8%, before the onset of the omicron-dominant wave. This high seroprevalence was primarily induced by previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, as evidenced by the 68.4% seroprevalence among participants who had not received a Covid-19 vaccine. The methods used for selecting the random sample of households in the survey, with a distribution proportionate to subdistrict population sizes, ensured that the sample was representative of the general population of Gauteng…We think that the decoupling of the incidence of Covid-19 cases from the incidences of hospitalization and death during the omicron-dominant wave in South Africa heralds a turning point in the Covid-19 pandemic, if the primary goal is protection against severe disease and death rather than prevention of infection. The 70% vaccine effectiveness against severe disease with BNT162b2 [PFIZER] in South Africa31 might well be due to the hybrid cell-mediated immunity induced by vaccination and natural infection. Whether the same protection against severe Covid-19 due to the omicron variant will be seen in countries in which immunity is mainly from vaccination remains to be determined…”

(J. Harris: My interpretation of this NEJM article is that in S. Africa, which was given mRNA vaccine late, the combination of prior infection and good vaccines conferred considerable protection against sever Covid infections (mostly Delta) and “perhaps” made Omicron less lethal. So, folks with prior Covid infections PLUS continued vaccinations should be well protected against sever Covid.)

Do masks really harm kids? Here’s what the science says.

(J. Harris: Good read for parents and grandparents.)

AND LASTLY:

.

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

FROM HOPKINS CITED:

1. Risk of Second Allergic Reaction to SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (JAMA Internal Medicine) In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 22 studies including 1366 patients revaccinated under the supervision of an allergist, there was a low incidence (0.16%) of immediate severe allergic reactions associated with receiving a second dose of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine among individuals who had an immediate allergic reaction to their first dose. There were no deaths. This study suggests that there is a low risk of a severe immediate allergic reaction associated with a second SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine dose among persons who had an immediate allergic reaction to their first dose.

2. A COVID Pill from Merck Showed More Promise in Reducing the Risk of Hospitalization in a Recent Study (New York Times) The antiviral pill molnupiravir reduced the risk of Covid-19 hospitalization by 65 percent in a new study by Indian researchers that offered stronger results than previous research about the drug’s effectiveness. The study, led by a researcher at the Chennai Antiviral Research and Treatment Clinical Research Site, split 1,218 Indian adults infected with the coronavirus and experiencing mild symptoms into comparably sized groups. Only 1.5 percent of the group that received the pill required hospitalization, compared with 4.3 percent of the group that didn’t receive the pill.

3. EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION OF BA.2 VARIANT

BA.2 OMICRON SUBVARIANT The BA.2 subvariant of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant of concern (VOC) is increasing in prevalence, but questions remain regarding whether it results in more severe disease. The Omicron VOC spans multiple subvariants, including the main B.1.1.529 lineage and the BA.1 and BA.2 sublineages. When Omicron emerged in the US, the rapid increase in prevalence was predominantly due to the B.1.1.529 and BA.1.1 lineages, which combined to account for nearly 99% of US cases the week of January 29. Since that time, the BA.2 lineage prevalence has increased from an estimated 0.8% to 3.8% of US cases, approximately doubling each of the past 2 weeks. The increase in prevalence indicates that BA.2 is more transmissible than the other Omicron lineages, possibly 30% more. Notably, genomic surveillance for the BA.2 lineage is difficult, because it does not result in the S-gene target failure (SGTF) in PCR-based assays, which has been used to track other VOCs—including Omicron—without requiring genomic sequencing. The BA.2 lineage has not yet taken off in the US, but the next several weeks will provide important information regarding the potential for a second Omicron surge.

Research is ongoing to better characterize protection against the BA.2 subvariant from vaccination, booster doses, and prior infection. Like the original Omicron variant, BA.2 is less susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines than previous VOCs, but booster doses can increase the vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 disease to 74%. The BA.2 lineage also appears to evade antibodies generated in response to prior infections with earlier strains, including the Alpha and Delta VOCs. There is some evidence that BA.2 is able to reinfect individuals who were previously infected with the BA.1 lineage, although the combination of prior infection and vaccination appears to provide moderate protection. Researchers in Denmark recently conducted a study to evaluate reinfection with the BA.2 lineage. Out of a sample of 187 reinfection cases (within 20-60 days), 47 were the result of BA.2 infection following infection with the BA.1 lineage. Conversely, a recent study by the UK government found “no detected sequence-confirmed BA.2 reinfection following a BA.1 infection at any interval.”

The data on disease severity for the BA.2 lineage are mixed. Some countries where BA.2 has become more prominent are exhibiting declining trends in daily COVID-19 mortality, such as the UK, whereas Denmark is exhibiting an increasing trend. Through the use of animal models, researchers have identified more extensive damage to lung tissue in hamsters infected with the BA.2 lineage compared to BA.1, but this may not necessarily hold true for humans. A study in South Africa found similar disease severity among patients infected with the BA.1 and BA.1 subvariants, and US CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky indicated that “there is no evidence that the BA.2 lineage is more severe than the BA.1 lineage.” Evidence also indicates that the BA.2 subvariant exhibits strong resistance to many monoclonal antibody treatments, including sotrovimab, which is currently being used to treat patients infected with the Omicron variant. The lack of an effective treatment option could impact disease severity and mortality.

From Beckers: BA.2 VARIANTS PER STATE

NYT THIS AM:

South Korea expands its immunization efforts as daily cases soar to over 170,000.

”…The country, which had been a pandemic success from the start, is now grappling with one of the world’s worst outbreaks. South Korea recorded 171,452 new cases on Tuesday — a jump of nearly 72,000 from the day before — its highest figure by far since early 2020…..the government is expecting 270,000 cases a day by March….Confronting the more contagious but less virulent Omicron variant, South Korea has moved away from its rigorous contact tracing system and has expanded its immunization campaign….“Considering the characteristics of Omicron,” Park Hyang, a senior health official, said at a news briefing on Tuesday, “it is more important to stably manage the medical system’s capacity and minimize severe cases and deaths rather than the number of confirmed cases.”

(J. Harris: So S. Korea whose successful and tightly managed Covid campaign for 2 years, has been recently breached and beaten by a Omega Variant (s). Fortunately, their vaccination rate remains high and their deaths are low. Their compliant population are lartely beign treated as outpatients and largely at home. The authorities are attempting to keep their hospital system from being overwhelmed by Covid. They previously managed with vaccinations, quarintines, masks, mandates, and they tested and tracked and treated successfully only now to be savaged by another very contagious, sneaky variant. God only knows what is happening in N. Korea, I suspect those survivors will not be happy when things cool off and Covid wans.

HARRISON COUNTY CASES AND DEATHS OVER APP. THE SAME TIME AS S. KOREA FROM NYT:

COVID 0, WINTER GAMES WINNER!

”…Let’s pause for a moment to appreciate this achievement. All 13,600 Olympics-related visitors were tested at the airport when they landed in China. An additional 1.7 million tests were administered to athletes and other residents of the Beijing fortress known as the “closed loop” as the Games went on. A total of 437 infections were detected over a four-week period, though by the final weekend, all tests were coming back negative…“It was one of the safest places on the planet, if not the safest place on the planet,” said Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee…Olympics 1, coronavirus 0.

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

QUASI APOLOGY: 

Some of you may have noticed that I printed the same chart twice yesterday. Did this represent sloppy proofreading or unnecessary haste? 

NO. It was for those readers with double vision. One day soon, I’ll have no charts should might make my blind readers more comfortable. 

J. Harris

FROM BECKERS:

1. FORCAST FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS

(J. Harris: No BA.2 mention.)

2. Pharmacists challenge low pay, a penny to $10, to fill COVID-19 treatments

FROM HOPKINS :

1. How Long Covid Exhausts the Body from the NYT, a “must read.”

2. More Contagious Version of Omicron Spreads in U.S., Fueling Worries (NPR) As the omicron surge continues to decline in the U.S., infectious disease experts are keeping a close eye on an even more contagious version of the variant that could once again foil the nation’s hopes of getting back to normal. The virus, known as BA.2, is a strain of the highly contagious omicron variant that appears to spread even more easily — about 30% more easily. Because BA.2 quickly overtook the original omicron in South Africa and other countries and has even caused a second omicron surge in Denmark, researchers have been bracing for the same thing to happen in the U.S.

(J. Harris: I guess this makes my angst about BA.2 officially allowable.)

AN ANIMAL/COVID ARTICLE FROM THE NYT:

The Coronavirus Menagerie

”Experts say there is no need to panic, and emphasize that animals are not to blame. “Really, humans are infecting the animals, and now animals are sick and some of them are dying…” 

(J. Harris: I can’t summarize this article. If interested, it should be read.)

Got a Covid Booster? You Probably Won’t Need Another for a Long Time

”…the recent studies suggest that in most people, the immunity gained from infection or vaccination will hold up for a long while. Even if mutations in new variants change some of the viral regions that T cells recognize, there would still be enough others to maintain a reasonably strong immune response,…

One big unknown is how slowly the T cells may decline, and whether two doses of vaccine can create a long-lasting response, or if instead people would need three — as some experts have suggested — to cement immune memory…”

(J. Harris: This article is reassuring for those who have had 3 jabs.)

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688

FROM BECKERS: BAD NEWS REGARDING BA.2 VARIANT

Omicron subvariant should be a separate variant of concern, researchers say

”Five things to know:

1. Researchers found BA.2’s reproduction number — or the number of cases directly caused by an infected individual throughout his or her infectious period — was 1.4 times higher than that of BA.1, the original omicron strain.

2. Similar to BA.1, the omicron subvariant appears to thwart vaccine-induced immunity, researchers said. However, COVID-19 vaccine boosters were found to reduce the risk of reinfection by about 74 percent, according to CNN.

3. Cell culture experiments found the subvariant replicated in nasal cells faster than BA.1 and was better at causing cells to stick together in large clumps that eventually become factories to produce more copies of the virus.

4. In hamster studies, subjects infected with BA.2 got sicker and had worse lung function than those injected with BA.1. While the findings suggest the subvariant may cause more severe illness than BA.1, more clinical research is needed to better understand severity, researchers said.

5. The findings highlight the BA.2’s potential threat to global health and the importance of more closely monitoring the subvariant, researchers said.

“Based on our findings, we propose that BA.2 should be recognized as a unique variant of concern, and this SARS-CoV-2 variant should be monitored in depth,” researchers said.

Virological characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 BA.2 variant

Abstract

Soon after the emergence and global spread of a new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Omicron lineage, BA.1 (ref1, 2), another Omicron lineage, BA.2, has initiated outcompeting BA.1. Statistical analysis shows that the effective reproduction number of BA.2 is 1.4-fold higher than that of BA.1. Neutralisation experiments show that the vaccine-induced humoral immunity fails to function against BA.2 like BA.1, and notably, the antigenicity of BA.2 is different from BA.1. Cell culture experiments show that BA.2 is more replicative in human nasal epithelial cells and more fusogenic than BA.1. Furthermore, infection experiments using hamsters show that BA.2 is more pathogenic than BA.1. Our multiscale investigations suggest that the risk of BA.2 for global health is potentially higher than that of BA.1.

(J. Harris: The above abstract is from a “Pre Print” of an article, but the article has not yet been subjected to extensive review as are most published medical articles. The BA.2 Variant is going to be nasty, and it is likely to give us a visit. It has demolished all the previously reasonably effective efforts of South Korea to protect their population.

From BECKERS:

J. Harris: Hopefully, our generously endowed educational area, including the TEAGUE SCHOOL OF NURSING  located in downtown Marshall at The Grand and part of ETBU will help ease the nursing shortage and give our working nurses a chance to catch their breath and clear their heads. It sounds as if more programs to train Nursing Aids, Laboratory Techs, and the like are needed as well. Much of this type of training needs to start at the High School level. 

**********

ABOUT THE CAKES: Since many, many of my (female)  readers have remarked about the beautiful cakes, I’m going to show some more. My Norwegian Housekeeper asks her grandchildren what kind of birthday cake they want  (contents and theme) and then she produces them — for several years.

She has four children herself, all with difficult Norwegian names that I can’t spell or pronounce. They are all grown and gone and most of the new cakes were cooked for their children. 

AND FINALLY, A NOTE  FROM MY SHYSTER LAWYER:

***********************************

GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK.  CLICK ON “COMMENT” TO TELL US WHAT YOU THINK or use one of the alternative methods for providing feedback.

Click here to submit feedback.  Let us know what you think.

click here to CLOSE THIS PAGE

—————————————————————–

Click here to go to the iExposed.us youtube channel

Click here to go to the iExposed.us website

—————————————————————–

iExposed Us 

P.O. Box 721

Scottsville Texas

75688