Coronavirus (Covid-19) informational thread

[I7guy]

Not feeling well this evening and a bit worried that I have COVID. I ran a few miles this afternoon and felt chilled at the end and very tired so I went under the blankets and warmed up for an hour. I was at the dentist yesterday for a procedure, ran, lifted and played tennis so pretty tired last night. I have the feeling that I caught something because my average resting heartrate is about 15 beats higher than normal.

No real COVID symptoms (I looked them up) though I have some muscle aches but those are in specific parts of my body that I worked out yesterday.

No fever, and a tiny headache.

I should probably try to figure out how to get tested. I mentioned it to my daughter and she said that there was a really bad cold going around.

I only got five hours of sleep last night so it's also possible that it's exhaustion.

For those who have had it, what's the onset like?

A few months ago I was in close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID. Although I felt fine, after we found out my family literally pushed me out to the door to at least get a rapid test. The test was negative and I continued to feel fine. You never know.

 

[44267547]

A few months ago I was in close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID. Although I felt fine, after we found out my family literally pushed me out to the door to at least get a rapid test. The test was negative and I continued to feel fine. You never know.

That’s interesting, because rapid tests are actually only available in my area during ER visits, pre-surgery and at home care. Otherwise, we still have to opt for ‘standardized testing’ just like everybody else, unless you apply to one of those three categories above.

 

[pshufd]

That’s interesting, because rapid tests are actually only available in my area during ER visits, pre-surgery and at home care. Otherwise, we still have to opt for ‘standardized testing’ just like everybody else, unless you apply to one of those three categories above.

Pharmacies are supposed to stock them but the pharmacies in our area are completely out of them. It appears that you can have them shipped to your home in 3-5 days but I assume that most people want the results sooner than that. The one that the pharmacies sell at 2/$25 is Binax and everything else costs a lot more.

The top entry on Amazon is simplicity by Assurance Scientific Laboratories and it's $87/test.

I'd guess that most people use Minute Clinics to get tested using the nasal swab method.

My local clinic doesn't do them anymore. Their nearest facility that does them is 50 miles away.

We had a real problem with testing for a while after the second wave when a lot of places stopped doing testing. It seems like we are better than that state but it isn't as easy and convenient when we had a real crisis.

 

[Gregg2]

I'd guess that most people use Minute Clinics to get tested using the nasal swab method.

My local clinic doesn't do them anymore. Their nearest facility that does them is 50 miles away.

We had a real problem with testing for a while after the second wave when a lot of places stopped doing testing. It seems like we are better than that state but it isn't as easy and convenient when we had a real crisis.

We had a drive-through testing site at the baseball stadium, but that became a problem once the season started. Now that baseball is done here, someone had an inspired idea to use a former drive-through auto emissions facility. Since we went to car dealers providing the testing ten years ago or more, those facilities have been closed down.

I have never gotten a COVID test. A drive-through would only work for me if there was minimal waiting time, as my vehicle did not come with a toilet in it.

 

[pshufd]

We had a drive-through testing site at the baseball stadium, but that became a problem once the season started. Now that baseball is done here, someone had an inspired idea to use a former drive-through auto emissions facility. Since we went to car dealers providing the testing ten years ago or more, those facilities have been closed down.

I have never gotten a COVID test. A drive-through would only work for me if there was minimal waiting time, as my vehicle did not come with a toilet in it.

Most people don't want to go through the hassle of getting an appointment and potentially having to wait in a line of cars. And that's why the Rapid Tests are sold out. We do not have mass vaccination or testing sites anymore. I don't think that we've had mass testing sites for quite some time. My clinic, located in another city, had vaccinations and testing - they had a huge parking lot and a building with all of their PPE and other things and cars drove in and took care of it. But their website indicates that they don't do that anymore.

I ran in their parking lot for about 45 minutes one time and watched the operations.

 

[SactoGuy18]

Like I said a long time ago, here's a good suggestion to make yourself less vulnerable to viruses: take enough Vitamins B6, C, D, E and K and supplemental zinc to boost your immunity system. No you don't need massive supplement amounts, but something more like a daily vitamin pill, something like a Centrum or One-A-Day tablet, or better yet, eat a proper diet. If I remember correctly, a study of COVID patients show a good fraction have some serious vitamin deficiencies.

 

[Cave Man]

Like I said a long time ago, here's a good suggestion to make yourself less vulnerable to viruses: take enough Vitamins B6, C, D, E and K and supplemental zinc to boost your immunity system. No you don't need massive supplement amounts, but something more like a daily vitamin pill, something like a Centrum or One-A-Day tablet, or better yet, eat a proper diet. If I remember correctly, a study of COVID patients show a good fraction have some serious vitamin deficiencies.

Can you point to the peer-reviewed scientific literature that shows that taking "enough" of these supplements will change the outcome of COVID? Prefer to see randomized, double-blinded clinical trial, please.

 

[Macky-Mac]

Pharmacies are supposed to stock them but the pharmacies in our area are completely out of them. It appears that you can have them shipped to your home in 3-5 days but I assume that most people want the results sooner than that. The one that the pharmacies sell at 2/$25 is Binax and everything else costs a lot more.

The top entry on Amazon is simplicity by Assurance Scientific Laboratories and it's $87/test.

I'd guess that most people use Minute Clinics to get tested using the nasal swab method.

My local clinic doesn't do them anymore. Their nearest facility that does them is 50 miles away.

We had a real problem with testing for a while after the second wave when a lot of places stopped doing testing. It seems like we are better than that state but it isn't as easy and convenient when we had a real crisis.

We still have walk-up testing sites where I am in Los Angeles so it continues to be relatively easy to get tested

 

[pshufd]

Can you point to the peer-reviewed scientific literature that shows that taking "enough" of these supplements will change the outcome of COVID? Prefer to see randomized, double-blinded clinical trial, please.

There’s a fair amount of literature on D and I saw a trial but it’s ongoing. I couldn’t find anything that I would trust while looking on my phone.

I do take D and several other things but I got vaccinated too. The existing evidence on vaccines is overwhelming to me.

 

[prog99]

That’s interesting, because rapid tests are actually only available in my area during ER visits, pre-surgery and at home care. Otherwise, we still have to opt for ‘standardized testing’ just like everybody else, unless you apply to one of those three categories above.

Interesting, in the uk they are free. You can get them posted to you or pick up from a pharmacy.

 

[pshufd]

Giving people a different COVID-19 booster than the vaccine series that they originally received is safe and generates an immune response that is stronger, according to a preprint study conducted by the National Institutes of Health. (At this time, only BioNTech BNTX, +2.31% and Pfizer Inc.'s PFE, -1.03% COVID-19 booster has been authorized for people who were previously vaccinated with that vaccine series.) The preprint, which was published Wednesday in advance of a public presentation set for Friday afternoon, evaluates all three authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S. in 458 participants as part of a "mix-and-match" clinical trial. With the exception of the people who were exclusively vaccinated and boosted with Johnson & Johnson's JNJ, +0.96% shots, all participants reported efficacy rates of at least 90.7%. "These data strongly suggest that homologous and heterologous booster vaccine will increase protective efficacy against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection," the authors wrote. There are, however, some limitations to the research. The study is not randomized, and it also only assessed data available 29 days after the participants received their boosters.

-- Marketwatch.com

I wouldn't mind a Moderna booster. Not sure I can get it as I don't think that it's approved yet.

 

[pshufd]

One of my tennis partners' wife tested positive for COVID. She works in a medical field. She had a fever of 99 degrees, a slight runny nose and a slight cough. She also lost taste a few days later. Her workplace required the testing as it's protocol. So her husband called me this evening and said that we'd have to cancel for tomorrow unless I felt comfortable playing with someone in close contact with someone with COVID. The thing is that he probably shouldn't even go into the tennis club to play if he's under quarantine. So we agreed that he'd call me next week about it.

They are both vaccinated but she got vaccinated really early as medical personnel and she hasn't apparently got her booster (not sure which vaccine she got). My tennis partner was vaccinated four months ago and my guess is that he won't get it. He was tested over the weekend and was negative and was tested yesterday and waiting for results. She had to wait for three hours at a minute-clinic type place to get tested.

She wouldn't not have known that she was sick if she hadn't tested - that is her case is very mild. The couple is in their 50s but both healthy and fit. His workplace requires testing three times a week to work in the office - this is whether you are vaccinated or not. They have their own PCR machine on-site which I thought was cool.

 

[SactoGuy18]

There’s a fair amount of literature on D and I saw a trial but it’s ongoing. I couldn’t find anything that I would trust while looking on my phone.

I do take D and several other things but I got vaccinated too. The existing evidence on vaccines is overwhelming to me.

I believe there is peer-reviewed research showing that deficiencies in Vitamin D can contribute to several wintertime ailments--interestingly, one of them is seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

 

[pshufd]

I believe there is peer-reviewed research showing that deficiencies in Vitamin D can contribute to several wintertime ailments--interestingly, one of them is seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Cancer too.

 

[44267547]

Interesting, in the uk they are free. You can get them posted to you or pick up from a pharmacy.

The cheapest rapid test here, is $49.99. it’s interesting that the UK doesn’t charge for rapid tests, must be some type of government funding I assume that covers those costs.

 

[poorcody]

CVS sells "BinaxNOW" home COVID tests for $25 for a double-pack here locally (Northeast US). They keep them behind the pharmacy counter because I think they will only sell one at a time. Many pharamacies are out of stock, but one of my local CVS's had maybe a dozen available the other day.

Biden administration is putting $1 Billion into increasing access to home-testing over the next couple of months.

I had a cold last week and it is one of those situations where you try to figure out if you have COVID or not. The home tests are really nice for that.

 

[Clix Pix]

The cheapest rapid test here, is $49.99. it’s interesting that the UK doesn’t charge for rapid tests, must be some type of government funding I assume that covers those costs.

I guess you've not heard of the UK's National Health Service (NHS), which covers pretty much ALL of their medical expenses? Definitely something like COVID-19 tests, whether administered in a clinic or other medical facility or by the consumer at either home or workplace, yes, an important tool during a worldwide pandemic, well, sure in this situation of course the costs are covered.

That said, the citizens of the UK do pay for this through various taxes and such, but when they go to a doctor for a routine exam or a thorough exploration and resolution of some particular medical/health situation that they're facing, they are covered -- a different system from how things work in the US. People in the US can sometimes go bankrupt with overwhelming medical bills during a serious health crisis. That is apparently not the case in the UK.

 

[pshufd]

The cheapest rapid test here, is $49.99. it’s interesting that the UK doesn’t charge for rapid tests, must be some type of government funding I assume that covers those costs.

UK has been commended for a high level of testing. Are you required to submit results with the tests?

 

[pshufd]

There's a nasty stomach bug going around in Boston. I read about it in the Boston Herald this morning. It might be Norovirus. There are no respiratory symptoms. But it can lay you out for a week.

Regular seasonal illnesses are returning and the question is: do you test on every sniffle or fever?

 

[BoxerGT2.5]

There's a nasty stomach bug going around in Boston. I read about it in the Boston Herald this morning. It might be Norovirus. There are no respiratory symptoms. But it can lay you out for a week.

Regular seasonal illnesses are returning and the question is: do you test on every sniffle or fever?

Yes, you're going to have to.

 

[poorcody]

Latest data from Israel's booster program just released: 18- to 22-times increase in protection from severe disease for people 40+:

Study:

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.10.07.21264626v1.full.pdf

 

[pshufd]

Yes, you're going to have to.

The number of cases in my state have broken out. They were in a range between 3,500 and 4,000 for quite some time and are now at 4,600. It's hard to figure out where the new cases are coming from by the way they are getting reported though. Two areas are Manchester and Claremont. The former is probably our largest city (80,000). The latter is a very small town at the border with Vermont. There are two state testing sites there. They would open up two more. The reasoning is that people will be more likely to get tested if they don't have to pay for it; which makes quite reasonable sense to me. The costs of testing are covered by Federal grants.

This still leaves a lot of areas of the state uncovered by free testing sites. Hopefully the state can contract with private testing companies (usually pharmacies) to solve that problem.

Our active case range is about half of the peak that started rising August 2020 and just kept going up through the holidays and then went down with the vaccine. Our vaccine rate is what I'd consider mediocre. Our hospitals are managing for now. It's quite a stark contrast to our neightbor, Massachusetts with high vaccination rates and a great new-cases-per-day chart.

 

[bradl]

I heard this morning from NPR that Montana is in a world of hurt right now... They not only are one of the 2 states with the lowest vaccination rates, but they are now down to rationing out ventilators based on need...

And to make that rationing worse, they are not only basing it on COVID vs. non-COVID illnesses, but also on severity of COVID. So if you have it, are in a hospital, and are having trouble breathing, the case of COVID from the patient down the hall from you may be worse than yours, so they would get the ventilator before you if that particular hospital has all of theirs used.

Ugh.

BL.

 

[pshufd]

I heard this morning from NPR that Montana is in a world of hurt right now... They not only are one of the 2 states with the lowest vaccination rates, but they are now down to rationing out ventilators based on need...

And to make that rationing worse, they are not only basing it on COVID vs. non-COVID illnesses, but also on severity of COVID. So if you have it, are in a hospital, and are having trouble breathing, the case of COVID from the patient down the hall from you may be worse than yours, so they would get the ventilator before you if that particular hospital has all of theirs used.

Ugh.

BL.

There are plenty of states with vents going unused - can't they just borrow some of them?

 

[44267547]

I heard this morning from NPR that Montana is in a world of hurt right now... They not only are one of the 2 states with the lowest vaccination rates, but they are now down to rationing out ventilators based on need...

And to make that rationing worse, they are not only basing it on COVID vs. non-COVID illnesses, but also on severity of COVID. So if you have it, are in a hospital, and are having trouble breathing, the case of COVID from the patient down the hall from you may be worse than yours, so they would get the ventilator before you if that particular hospital has all of theirs used.

Ugh.

BL.

My wife and I were actually planning flying out to Montana at a stay-in-cabin just as a fall get-away trip for four or five days, and decided it was best to stay away, [given that it’s a fairly spread out state], but that doesn’t matter, because they clearly are in a state of emergency, which they have critically high counties that are overwhelmed with case-load.

The whole ‘I live in rural counties and deep in the north, therefore I don’t need a vaccine’ myth again has been debunked many times over. But that mindset continues to be part of the problem in this country.