Corona Virus Update

But just shows how fast you could administer it if you wanted to!

 

My contact with the info might be slewed by our friends, many of whom are medical professionals (My wife was a neuro radiographer for about 28 years)
Many elderly people succumb to the virus every year, but you have to understand that they would have died of something. As your body start failing (Kidney/ heart/ liver function) deteriorate, your immune system fails alongside. In the end a virus or bacteria will finish you off and the most vulnerable area to these infections is the respiratory tract . That's why so many deaths are put down to pneumonia.
The average shortening of life from Covid is less than one year, this points out more than anything the age groups effected.

We have the same situation here. For years it has been practice to blame whatever virus or bacteria was present when an elderly patient dies. Instead of explaining to relatives the complexity of multiple organ weaknesses. If you tell a relative grandads heart is only functioning at 30% they immediately ask what can be done. You can give drugs that help, but they then put strain on other failing organs including the blood itself, so you give drugs for that and these drugs put further strain on the heart etc etc in a spiral to the point where you withdraw treatment.
At that point it is easier to point to the infection the patient has, especially as the infection is most likely a contributing factor.
So these figures have always been skewed, BUT. That does not mean Covid is not new or more dangerous than Influenza (Which until we had a vaccine was itself very dangerous)

 

Oh I see. Well yes we could have allowed more infection passing and developed herd immunity, in the past that would have been the only choice. The cost of such a method can be seen clearly in the Spanish flu epidemic. Both in lives and effect on economies it is far more expensive than a lock down and a developing a vaccine.
You also have another problem with Covid viruses in that if you only get it mildly you can pass it around but you do not build long term immunity. In this way the virus gains time to adapt and attack those that have no immunity, those being the very old and the very young.

 

Glad you included the last paragraph.(few negatives are confusing)

 

Indeed, that is very important to understand. Particularly if you consider that the virus could easily adapt to attack that other very vulnerable group, the very young.
When people see their children dying so horribly, then they take it seriously.

 

Yep, mass deaths of old people seem less terrible somehow.

 

Well it is less terrible.
Someone who has enjoyed 80 years of life, had a family, kids, travelled, made a garden or whatever. Has had a life well lived.
Doesn't mean we don't miss them or feel sad they are gone, but we can console ourselves that they had that life.

I think its weird how nowadays we don't seem to be able to accept at all that people get old and die. To the point where we keep them alive even beyond what they themselves want.
My dad spent the last year of his life scared and confused in a hospital bed in the family dining room. He was 92 with Alzheimer's.
It would have been kinder for everyone if the doctor had given him a couple of tablets and let him slip away.

 

Do not forget that this virus does not ''only'' kill the elderly.
It also has long term serious medical consequences for people of all ages with or without previous conditions.

 

Agreed, though in pure numbers it is a disease of the elderly. 94% of those who have died were over 70 and 75% over 80.
The other 6% covers everyone else including those in extremely vulnerable groups and those with existing illness.
Long covid is still an unknown, particularly as it is currently defined as those who have ANY symptoms related to Covid 12 weeks after getting it. This would mean many diseases would need the prefix 'long'
When I had viral meningitis it took me 6 months to recover fully and not be tired by 2pm each day.

I still emphasise Covid is serious and death rates would be much higher if we simply allowed it to run its course.

 

My father was a horrible man and a bully, but to see him reduced to a frightened child was still not nice.

I think its time we seriously looked at the right to die. Medicine has the ability to keep us alive almost against our own will now.
People say you can just withdraw treatment or refuse it, but in many cases this would mean a painful and degrading death.

Agree 100% My mother is similar to yours.

I think the right to say when your ready to go. A living will.

 

Yes, I agree it’s a certain demographic dying and why. But I can’t say it out loud because it’s not politically correct here. At least not for someone like me who has criticized people like Fauci or defended Trump when he was correct.

I’ve always been clear when addressing the C19/influenza topic my intention is not to diminish the danger of Covid. But I am adamant we don’t misrepresent influenza to make a Covid look worse than it is. And that is exactly what’s been done here in the States. If you are interested in the truth, here’s a detailed discussion on the subject. It continues through the thread but starts here:

http://www.politicalforum.com/index.php?posts/1072137735/

If we run the numbers, Covid is about 2-2.5 times more deadly than the flu, not the “at least 6 times more deadly“ claimed by the “experts“.

 

There are still places that are temporarily closed. It gets me to thinking when they will re-open. I won't be surprised it baseball stadiums don't fill to full capacities this season or many churches do the same. The vaccinations may take several months to get around this year. Trump won't be around to influence us that we're in a fantasyland of wishful thinking.

 

I’m not advocating for natural herd immunity. I really wish the term hadn’t been politicized and bastardized. Nobody even knows what the term means anymore and just introducing the term in conversation leads to angst. I’m simply using the term in discussion of why waves exist and why they are similar in different populations.

It’s pretty well established mild cases do build long term immunity.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.16.20232967v1.full

Early studies that only looked at waning first waves of antibodies support the notion of short term or non existent immunity in mild cases. When we started analyzing B and T cell memory we’ve only found evidence mild cases do actually develop protective immunity. It’s not reported of course widely in the media, but the science is clear.

 

I hope by next year We won't have to fear COVID-19 like we did last year and January of this year. I pray that we'll be all right by next year at this time.

 

Yeah you're right about that. The more you vaccinate, the better and We'll be better off that way.

 

Ah Ok, I have no idea.

I stand corrected, I had read differently.

 

'There may be a USA variant': White House task force report warns of other possible virus variant in U.S.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/heal...e-virus-variant-n1253566?cid=eml_nbn_20210108


This of course just compounds the issue.

 

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Friday the state will start scheduling COVID-19 vaccinations for the next group of people on Monday. That includes first responders, education workers and public transit workers. People 75 and older and public safety workers, will also be eligible to start making appointments for vaccinations.

I hope these vaccinations work this time and next time. I hope Los Angeles get their vaccinations as well. They need it badly.

 

[ We've lost too many people to COVID 19 and it need to stop.

 

That is the understatement of the year ,Monsieur Franks.

 

Well, I don't what else I can say about it. It's true that we've lost too many people and you have to ask yourself how many more are we to lose and since there is a vaccine in use there is that chance that it may slow down and when it stops is another matter.

 

In the Los Angeles area, Hospitals may still be near capacity and medical staffs and going to have to determine to decide who lives and who dies. Those are difficult decisions to make.

 

I think the whole management of this pandemic will change and improve as soon as Biden takes over. He is making this and the economy a priority. also don't think the population has been as careful as they should have been..... Heck........ the insurgents of trump were told not to wear masks. When one has that number of people ignoring the precautions........ one can expect a lot of cases and deaths. The situation becomes a virus free for all.

 

I just hope something can be done. If Biden can do it, More power to him.