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Corona virus

I had pneumonia as a T1 diabetic. Thought it was just a cough and it went on for three months when I was finally diagnosed. And although I was in a bad way, I made a full recovery.
 
@Copernicus Let's wait and see, shall we?
I am sure that we are all hoping that the numbers of infected cases falls, rather than rises, and that the death rate is much lower than the 3.4% revised figure that the WHO has published. We can certainly all hope - and taking this seriously, particularly with hand washing and behaving responsibly, can help with that.

You may find these links interesting.
They show a very clear pattern of infection and escalation, in country after country. Most are following the same pattern, and here in the UK we are seeing increases of between 50 and 70 cases a day (variable) over the last few days.
Therefore, if we increase by 50 a day, for 6 days, our new cases will double from the 300 odd yesterday, to 600 odd in a week.
Of course it isn't an exact calculation, since there are delays while people incubate the virus, or don't get tested because they are mild cases.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-51235105

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

Edited to add, there were 73 new cases in the UK today, bringing the new fig up to 456.
All I can do is ask people to take this seriously, even if it is only for others’ sakes.
 
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Let's not forget the risks of infection & complications amounting from regarding other bugs going about.
If contracted, the more vulnerable members of our society are still at risk from that too..

In the midst of the news on COVID 19 a few nights ago. There was a breif article on low paid care workers & sick pay..?
 

Probably not - it's an example of what might happen if the virus spreads unchecked and the whole population is exposed to it. In Italy right now they have over 10,000 cases and 630 deaths which means that their morbidity rate (at 6% of the people with symptoms) is much higher than the data published by China or anywhere else so far.

Although the number of infections isn't doubling every day the Italians have still experienced exponential growth which is what would be expected without controls. They therefore felt the need to take extreme measures to slow it down. The rate of spread of the infection has not yet taken off in the UK and the health advisors are predicting a peak in around 2 weeks from now.

Any comparison with the flu virus has to be taken in the context that we have a vaccine for the flu and yet people still die. No such vaccine exists for Covid-19 and now that there are reportedly 2 strains circulating we'll probably need 2 vaccines.
 
There has now been a 24 hour period during which no new cases have occurred in Wuhan and the Chinese epidemic seems to have peaked and declined.
Using a percentage to estimate 600 000 possible deaths in the UK is simplistic, very misleading and fear-inducing. This does not take account of susceptibility amongst the population. It would appear that teenagers and children have almost no susceptibility whereas the elderly and those with weakened immune systems are more likely to be severely affected. I am cautiously confident that increasing knowledge and public health measures will slow the rate of infection and that more of the vulnerable will be protected.
 
Sidney0942 said:
I had pneumonia as a T1 diabetic. Thought it was just a cough and it went on for three months when I was finally diagnosed. And although I was in a bad way, I made a full recovery.
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I recovered from pneumonia also septis too, 20 months ago, I was in ICU and critically ill, took me a while to recover, but I made it and enjoying life.
 
Dr Snoddy said:
Could we please stop calling this a flu. Influenza viruses and coronaviruses are not the same thing even if they cause some similar symptoms.
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II concur with you, it is not Influenza !
 
Robinredbreast said:
I recovered from pneumonia also septis too, 20 months ago, I was in ICU and critically ill, took me a while to recover, but I made it and enjoying life.
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It's the number - or lack of - ICU beds that really concerns the authorities. Italy is overwhelmed and their health service has better resources than the UK
 

There is a school of thought that rates - and the death rate in particular - in Italy are so high at least in part because of their population demographic:

https://www.livescience.com/why-italy-coronavirus-deaths-so-high.html
 
Just to clarify. A coronavirus is just a classification of a family of viruses, like rhinovirus or retrovirus. This particular strain is brand new (“novel”), so nobody has been exposed to it, and as a result nobody has immunity, either naturally or via a vaccine. Yet.

As a T1 with an overexcitable immune system (it throws up new food allergies every so often just for sh... and giggles) and asthma - who works with sick people, I’m slightly concerned. Not ******** myself (my recent norovirus took care of that ) but mildly concerned. I’m happily vaccinated against anything I might reasonably come into contact with as a student paramedic, and I’m out on the road on placement at the moment, so may well come into contact with it. Who knows. I did have a “flu” with exactly the symptoms described at the end of January, so maybe I’ve already had it? We have students from all over the world at uni, and I was on campus that month.

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Circuspony said:
It's the number - or lack of - ICU beds that really concerns the authorities. Italy is overwhelmed and their health service has better resources than the UK
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ICU and then on to HDU are not large area's, so, finger's crossed the UK have thought of this and will implement the proper procedures to tackle the situation if it worsens.
 
Lynz84 said:
Anyone else a bit frightened of this?
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Not at all.
But I feel sorry for Africa, when it hits. Maybe the US, when they start shooting each other too.
 
Sosgez said:
Not at all.
But I feel sorry for Africa, when it hits. Maybe the US, when they start shooting each other too.
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Glad you're not bothered, but we're discussing the concerns of type ones on this thread, who by definition have issues with their immune systems.
 
LooperCat said:
Glad you're not bothered, but we're discussing the concerns of type ones on this thread, who by definition have issues with their immune systems.
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Hi,

Hope your back up to speed after your recent brush with NV.

By definition. All I have is a non insulin producing pancreas as a result of a little misunderstanding with my immune system 43 years ago..

I'd be just as concerned with the other members of the demographic included in the at risk mortality, as you would with the flu virus.. (I know COVID 19 is not a flu.)

The elderly.
Heart & respiratory
Cancer

From what I can gather, COVID is particularly nasty in the sense the immune system can go haywire, thus causing issue with healthy tissue.?


I think we're looking at 9 months to a year for a vaccine yet?

I'll stick my neck out & suggest, if you had contracted covid back in January?
We may well not be focusing on the likes of cruise liner passengers disembarking right now.

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My immune system is definitely wonky, as it creates new reactions to things for entertainment value, it seems. The immunology consultant says it’s “interesting”, which is almost never a good thing in a medical conversation! And unfortunately the reaction I get to the things I’m allergic to is asthma. I’ve noticed my breathing to be a lot more effort since I had that “flu”. No idea what it was, there’s a million and one viruses that cause symptoms like that. But I’ve certainly been in fairly confined spaces with people from all over the world, it’s not uncommon for students to get sick at the beginning of term as we share our germs. Still, be interesting to see how it all develops.
 

Hi,

Yep, I have to admit, since I changed job & either stopped working in schools & random members of the gen public.
I've noticed a lot less occurrences of some lurgey bug or another..

Oddly enough,
I tend to keep my eye on the job market from time to time. & I had a notification on a position that involves spraying anti-bacterial agents at several locations in my area.. Lol, "gloves will be provided." (I kid ye not.)

Reasonable hourly rate too..!
 
@LooperCat I definitely don't have asthma, they've tested me a few times. But in the past when I have gotten more severe respiratory bugs they always thought I had asthma. They've concluded I have an asthma type reaction to when I'm sick.
 
Lynz84 said:
Anyone else a bit frightened of this?
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I must say. I haven't been out (normal socialising, gym etc.) for almost one month now. I have also cancelled medical appointments because of it (in terms of picking up bugs, apart from a cruise ship and air-plane, I can't think of a worse place to go than a doctor's surgery).

I'm concerned, not only because my own immune system is compromised, but I could catch it, not necessarily die, yet pass it on to an elderly relative that I currently help to look after.

But it is a ball ache. I mean, my fitness has gone down the pan . . . so something will have to give soon. As I can't stay in forever can I?
 
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