CORONA Main Coronavirus thread

[Zoner]

BREAKING! COVID-19 News: China Bans All Private Companies And Also Researchers From Genomic Sequencing Of New SARS-CoV-2 Variants - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: China is going all the way out to conceal the catastrophic health crisis that is unfolding in its country while the WHO is literally powerless to intervene. China has announced that it will stop all dissemination of daily COVID-19 statistics with effect from today...

www.thailandmedical.news

(fair use applies)


COVID-19 News: China Bans All Private Companies And Also Researchers From Genomic Sequencing Of New SARS-CoV-2 Variants
Thailand Medical News
Dec 26 2022

China is going all the way out to conceal the catastrophic health crisis that is unfolding in its country while the WHO is literally powerless to intervene.

China has announced that it will stop all dissemination of daily COVID-19 statistics with effect from today.

China to stop publishing daily COVID figures of cases, deaths

The decision by the NHC to scrap the daily virus count comes as COVID cases surge across multiple Chinese cities.

www.aljazeera.com

A week ago, China also narrowed the criteria by which COVID-19 fatalities were counted, a move that many experts say would suppress the number of fatalities attributable to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

China changes definition of Covid deaths as cases surge

No new fatalities reported this week, despite numerous reports of overloaded hospitals and crematoriums

www.theguardian.com

In a latest move that is worrying health experts around the world, it was reported by Japanese media that China has banned all private companies and also researchers from conducting any genomic surveillance or sequencing any new possible SARS-CoV-2 variants.

中国、新型コロナのゲノム解析禁止　感染爆発で変異株の情報統制か | 毎日新聞

　新型コロナウイルスの感染爆発が起きている中国で、中国政府が11月下旬、中国内に拠点を置く民間の受託解析企業に対して新型コロナウイルスのゲノム配列の解析を当分の間、行わないよう通知していたことが関係者の証言で明らかになった。中国政府は変異株の動向に関わる情報を厳格に管理することで、中国内で新たな変異

mainichi.jp

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1606852355328454657

View: https://twitter.com/ToshiAkima/status/1606852355328454657


Numerous other Chinese researchers have also confirmed the ban and it is not known if the Chinese Academy of Sciences at Beijing or the Pasteur Institute in Shanghai would still be doing any genomic surveillance on possible emerging new SARS-CoV-2 variants. But our contacts at both establishments have confirmed that they are no longer allowed to share any such data with us or any other COVID-19 News media or even researchers elsewhere.

With China having a population of more than 1.4 billion people, a substantial percentage of these have immunocompromised conditions and along with the fact that a majority of the population has received sub-standard vaccines and also many are not bolstered, the current kinetics shows that China is a perfect fertile ground for the emergence of more worrisome SARS-CoV-2 variants and also sub-lineages.

In fact, current hospitalization trends in China are showing that most probably, more pathogenic and virulent SARS-CoV-2 variants and sub-lineages have already emerged and are the reasons why there is a high volume of hospitalizations and also disease severity being witnessed.

Already it is being reported that daily COVID-19 infections are rising at an exponential phase in the country and that there are more that 250 million Chinese already infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus in the last few weeks.

Leaked notes from Chinese health officials estimate 250 million Covid-19 infections in December: reports | CNN

Almost 250 million people in China may have caught Covid-19 in the first 20 days of December, according to an internal estimate from the nation's top health officials, Bloomberg News and the Financial Times reported Friday.

edition.cnn.com

China's Zhejiang has 1 mln daily COVID cases, expected to double

Despite a record surge of cases nationwide, China reported no COVID deaths on the mainland for the five days through Saturday.

www.reuters.com

Online reports by concerned citizens are painting a very bleak picture and also shows that hospitals are overwhelmed.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607068524379516928

View: https://twitter.com/whyyoutouzhele/status/1607068524379516928


Some experts are saying that the same possible new variants that are driving disease severity in Japan could also be at play in China.

BREAKING! COVID-19 News: Researchers Concerned About New BA.5.2.1 With Mutations In The ORF9B In Japan May Be Driving Disease Severity And Deaths! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: While many ignorant twitter ‘COVID-19 experts” are still praising Japan and claiming that the country had managed its COVID-19 issues well, many are unaware as the mainstream media has not covered how bad things are in Japan over the last three weeks and how things are unfolding...

www.thailandmedical.news

BREAKING! COVID-19 News: Is The New BF.5 Variant With ORF1A:I2873V Mutation Driving COVID-19 Deaths In Japan? Urgent Research Warranted! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: Unknown to many as literally no mainstream media is reporting about it, daily COVID-19 deaths are increasing in an alarming rate in Japan over the last two weeks with average daily COVID-19 deaths hovering between 220 to 240 according to official reported figures. In reality, the...

www.thailandmedical.news

When one was to analyze the kinetics of the COVID-19 outbreak in December of 2019, where there were fewer Chinese then who had contracted the disease and it was largely centered around Wuhan, the spread of the original Wuhan wildtype strain grew very fast across the world in a matter of weeks and later lead to the debut of various concerning variants that cause surges in various countries and wreaked social and economic havoc in many countries.

With the current kinetics of the COVID-19 crisis in China, with more than 250 million Chinese are already exposed to the virus and many variants and sub-lineages at play, the world is expected to be really impacted by the COVID-19 crisis in 2023. The only difference this time is that with the way that the virus has been evolving, we currently have no monoclonal therapeutics that can longer work and also all the US FDA approved antivirals are simply a laugh!

COVID-19 News: U.S. FDA Halts Usage Of Bebtelovimab To Treat COVID-19 As Drug Is Not Able To Neutralize New SARS-CoV-2 Variants And Sub-Lineages! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: The U.S. FDA issued an announcement in the last 24 hours stating that Bebtelovimab is not currently authorized in any U.S. region to treat COVID-19. According to the announcement, the predominant variants in circulation that includes the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 variants ad...

www.thailandmedical.news

COVID-19 Drugs: University Of Oxford Study Shows That Molnupiravir Does Not Reduce Hospitalization Or Deaths In Vaccinated Adults With COVID-19! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 Drugs: A new study led by researchers from University of Oxford has found that Molnupiravir that is being promoted by many charlatans and dubious health experts and authorities, does not reduce hospitalization or risk of mortality in vaccinated adults who have contracted COVID-19...

www.thailandmedical.news

BREAKING COVID-19 News: Researchers Warn That Molnupiravir Is Driving Rapid Evolution Of SARS-CoV-2 Variants And Causing Mutations! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: When Thailand Medical News in September 2021 warned about the dangers of the US FDA approved drug Molnupiravir to treat COVID-19, our news coverage was not taken seriously as most Westerners always think that only the media in their own countries that is funded by crooked...

www.thailandmedical.news

BREAKING! Japanese Study Finds U.S. FDA Approved And Promoted COVID-19 Drug Remdesivir Induces Cardiomyocyte Dysfunction And Is Cardiotoxic! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 Drugs: A new study by Japanese researchers from Tohoku University, Kyushu University, Okayama University and the National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki-Japan has alarmingly found that the U.S. FDA approved and heavily promoted drug for COVID-19 ie Remdesivir activates the...

www.thailandmedical.news

Pharma News: Nirmatrelvir (A Key Component Of Paxlovid) Blunts Development Of Antiviral Adaptive Immune Responses In SARS-CoV-2 Infected Mice! - Thailand Medical News

Pharma News: A new study by Italian researchers has shockingly found that Nirmatrelvir which is a key component of the drug Paxlovid that is being peddled by American and British medical ‘experts’ to treat COVID-19 actually blunts the development of antiviral adaptive immune responses in mice...

www.thailandmedical.news

Some politicians and governments are calling for a total ban of Chinese travelers into their countries as these Chinese will once again become human vectors to help spread more concerning SARS-CoV-2 variants or sub-lineages that are emerging in their home countries. The same is also being asked to prevent others from entering China and helping spread the virus upon return to their home countries.

COVID: German politician urges halt to China flights – DW – 12/23/2022

CDU lawmaker Jürgen Hardt warned that China's COVID surge "threatened the whole world with a new wave of infections." Beijing is accused of playing down the number of new cases, weeks after relaxing its draconian curbs.

www.dw.com

It is also interesting to note that while many so called “experts’ and stupid health authorities insisted that the Omicron variants are mild and that people should learn to live with it, the situation in Japan, Norway and China and also elsewhere is showing otherwise.

Covid-19’s Spread in China Might Tell Us How Deadly Omicron Really Is

The country is meeting the Omicron variant with less exposure to the virus and lower vaccination rates among the elderly.

www.wsj.com

BREAKING! COVID-19 News: Researchers Concerned About New BA.5.2.1 With Mutations In The ORF9B In Japan May Be Driving Disease Severity And Deaths! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: While many ignorant twitter ‘COVID-19 experts” are still praising Japan and claiming that the country had managed its COVID-19 issues well, many are unaware as the mainstream media has not covered how bad things are in Japan over the last three weeks and how things are unfolding...

www.thailandmedical.news

Funeral homes sounding the alarm – Massive increase in deaths

It’s so bad that they are running out of storage space.

petersweden.substack.com

COVID-19 News: Japanese Pediatricians Warn New SARS-CoV-2 Variants In Circulation Are Causing Increased Disease Severity In Children Including Cardiac Arrest! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: Japanese researchers are warning that the current SARS-CoV-2 variants and sub-lineages circulating in the country are causing more disease severity in children with many even going through cardiac arrest! Besides disease severity and cardiac issues, many are also acute...

www.thailandmedical.news

COVID-19 News: British Health Analytics Company, Airfinity Says More Than 5,000 People Dying Daily In China From COVID-19! No Data On UK Deaths Though! - Thailand Medical News

COVID-19 News: Reuters, the news agency with close ties with Pfizer has released a news coverage that a UK based Life Sciences Information And Analytics Company, Airfinity has claimed that based on their modelling platforms and analysis, more than 5,000 people are dying daily from COVID-19 in...

www.thailandmedical.news

We should not forget such individuals in 2023 that have been downplaying the seriousness of the Omicron variants and also the long-term health issues after exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and should find ways to vote them out of power or to ousts them.

Real investigative journalists that are not linked to the Western mainstream media or American tech companies that are under the payroll of the World Economic Forum (WEF) should also really investigate and report on the true COVID-19 scenarios and excess deaths that are occurring in western countries like the United Kingdom, The United States, Germany, France and also Australia.

“It is also interesting to note that while many so called “experts’ and stupid health authorities insisted that the Omicron variants are mild and that people should learn to live with it, the situation in Japan, Norway and China and also elsewhere is showing otherwise.”

Wow

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

“It is also interesting to note that while many so called “experts’ and stupid health authorities insisted that the Omicron variants are mild and that people should learn to live with it, the situation in Japan, Norway and China and also elsewhere is showing otherwise.”

Wow

Yeah, he can be pretty snarky. This article had a lot of citations so I posted it despite the snarkiness at the end.

I'm not sure what's going on in Japan and China. Omicron is basically mild, but I don't know if that's due to MRNA vaccines (which China doesn't have - Japan used Astrazeneca, a dna based vaxx like J&J also not mrna); or that there is a Geert variant emerging; or what. Also not familiar what's going on in Norway! hmm. But in general I disagree with that last statement of his. It has been mild up til now (for the most part).

 

[Zoner]

Yeah, he can be pretty snarky. This article had a lot of citations so I posted it despite the snarkiness at the end.

I'm not sure what's going on in Japan and China. Omicron is basically mild, but I don't know if that's due to MRNA vaccines (which China doesn't have - Japan used Astrazeneca, a dna based vaxx like J&J also not mrna); or that there is a Geert variant emerging; or what. Also not familiar what's going on in Norway! hmm. But in general I disagree with that last statement of his. It has been mild up til now (for the most part).

You’re finding a lot of good information and posting it here, thank you. Yet it’s difficult to figure out the science of it all and to understand how omicron could be so deadly if that’s what it is in China.

The next 30 days is going to push the envelope all over the world. Buckle up

 

[Profit of Doom]

Bird flu in humans, any idea how we should treat it? I would guess like a regular flu.

https://covid19criticalcare.com/treatment-protocols/flu-rsv-treatment/

 

[psychgirl]

I’m going to put this year because I believe it’s connected to Covid and there’s evidence that it’s now in the United States.

This man calls it strep covid for Covid strep but there’s a large outbreak of it in the UK.
Click on read the full conversation on Twitter link

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607137205054763010

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607137205054763010?s=46&t=nal5J23kEyBMHwoDxpXLCg

I’ve followed this man for a long time. So does Helen, if you read her posts

He’s dramatic, but usually nails it wayyy before anyone else does. He’s always ahead of the investigative curve.

 

[psychgirl]

You’re finding a lot of good information and posting it here, thank you. Yet it’s difficult to figure out the science of it all and to understand how omicron could be so deadly if that’s what it is in China.

The next 30 days is going to push the envelope all over the world. Buckle up

This is what I’m afraid of.
Sigh….and here I thought, or HOPED….Covid was calming down despite Geert’s warnings

 

[Zoner]

This is what I’m afraid of.
Sigh….and here I thought, or HOPED….Covid was calming down despite Geert’s warnings

People all around me are getting Covid, but no one is dying.
I have to do a funeral tomorrow and some won't be there because of Covid.
I think I have Vaxaphobia. Every time someone dies I wonder if the vaccine was responsible in some way.

 

[Zoner]

I’ve followed this man for a long time. So does Helen, if you read her posts

He’s dramatic, but usually nails it wayyy before anyone else does. He’s always ahead of the investigative curve.

I saw Helen posting his tweets that made me look. I follow him now on twitter to see what he's saying.

 

[Tristan]

China's COVID-19 surge raises odds of new coronavirus mutant

Could the COVID-19 surge in China unleash a new coronavirus mutant on the world? Scientists don’t know but worry that might happen.

apnews.com

(fair use applies)


China’s COVID-19 surge raises odds of new coronavirus mutant
By LAURA UNGAR and ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL
Dec 25, 2022

Could the COVID-19 surge in China unleash a new coronavirus mutant on the world?

Scientists don’t know but worry that might happen. It could be similar to omicron variants circulating there now. It could be a combination of strains. Or something entirely different, they say.

“China has a population that is very large and there’s limited immunity. And that seems to be the setting in which we may see an explosion of a new variant,” said Dr. Stuart Campbell Ray, an infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins University.

Every new infection offers a chance for the coronavirus to mutate, and the virus is spreading rapidly in China. The country of 1.4 billion has largely abandoned its “zero COVID” policy. Though overall reported vaccination rates are high, booster levels are lower, especially among older people. Domestic vaccines have proven less effective against serious infection than Western-made messenger RNA versions. Many were given more than a year ago, meaning immunity has waned.

The result? Fertile ground for the virus to change.

“When we’ve seen big waves of infection, it’s often followed by new variants being generated,” Ray said.

About three years ago, the original version of the coronavirus spread from China to the rest of the world and was eventually replaced by the delta variant, then omicron and its descendants, which continue plaguing the world today.

Dr. Shan-Lu Liu, who studies viruses at Ohio State University, said many existing omicron variants have been detected in China, including BF.7, which is extremely adept at evading immunity and is believed to be driving the current surge.

Experts said a partially immune population like China’s puts particular pressure on the virus to change. Ray compared the virus to a boxer that “learns to evade the skills that you have and adapt to get around those.”

One big unknown is whether a new variant will cause more severe disease. Experts say there’s no inherent biological reason the virus has to become milder over time.

“Much of the mildness we’ve experienced over the past six to 12 months in many parts of the world has been due to accumulated immunity either through vaccination or infection, not because the virus has changed” in severity, Ray said.

In China, most people have never been exposed to the coronavirus. China’s vaccines rely on an older technology producing fewer antibodies than messenger RNA vaccines.

Given those realities, Dr. Gagandeep Kang, who studies viruses at the Christian Medical College in Vellore, India, said it remains to be seen if the virus will follow the same pattern of evolution in China as it has in the rest of the world after vaccines came out. “Or,” she asked, “will the pattern of evolution be completely different?”

Recently, the World Health Organization expressed concern about reports of severe disease in China. Around the cities of Baoding and Langfang outside Beijing, hospitals have run out of intensive care beds and staff as severe cases surge.

China’s plan to track the virus centers around three city hospitals in each province, where samples will be collected from walk-in patients who are very sick and all those who die every week, Xu Wenbo of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said at a briefing Tuesday.

He said 50 of the 130 omicron versions detected in China had resulted in outbreaks. The country is creating a national genetic database “to monitor in real time” how different strains were evolving and the potential implications for public health, he said.

At this point, however, there’s limited information about genetic viral sequencing coming out of China, said Jeremy Luban, a virologist at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

“We don’t know all of what’s going on,” Luban said. But clearly, “the pandemic is not over.”

HD -

I sincerely appreciate the effort you're putting into maintaining the flow of information regarding this abomination.

This is still a very important thread...

However, don't forget to take care of yourself, too, k?

(that includes sleep.)

 

[Zoner]

Not sure how to confim this report.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607539537055473667

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607539537055473667?s=46&t=3TQk6WpoFS6z6RGbQggO2Q

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607508562233950209

 

[Zoner]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607554635111497728

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607554635111497728?s=46&t=k0eIqm0xmue6-oQHzz2POw

 

[Zoner]

Not sure how to confim this report.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607539537055473667

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607539537055473667?s=46&t=3TQk6WpoFS6z6RGbQggO2Q

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607547020876578816

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607547020876578816?s=46&t=k0eIqm0xmue6-oQHzz2POw

 

[John Deere Girl]

Reading the recent posts reminds me of December 2019.

 

[Zoner]

Reading the recent posts reminds me of December 2019.

Yep

 

[northern watch]

ABC News Executive Producer Dax Tejera Dies at 37​

By Naveen Athrappully
The Epoch Times
December 26, 2022 Updated: December 26, 2022

Dax Tejera, an executive producer (EP) at ABC News, has died from cardiac arrest on Dec. 23, just a few weeks ahead of his 38th birthday.

“We have bad news to report, a friend and colleague here at ABC Dax Tejera died suddenly last night. Dax was the executive producer of ‘This Week with George Stephanopoulos.’ A statement ABC News President Kim Goodwin said ‘DAX is energy, passion, and love for that show, shined every Sunday morning.’ This week co-anchor Jonathan Karl sharing that ‘DAX adores his family and he loved his work. His passing has left us shocked and hurt.’ Our thoughts are with his wife Veronica, their two young daughters, and their entire family. Dax will be deeply missed here by all of us at ABC News,” ABC News announced in a video statement.

Goodwin revealed that Tejera died of a heart attack, according to a note from ABC News President Kim Goodwin obtained by The Hollywood Reporter.

The note was sent to network staff on Saturday.

“On this Christmas Eve, hug your loved ones a little tighter. And please lean on each another,” Goodwin said, while promising to share more details in the coming days. Tejera joined ABC News in 2017 as a senior producer in the Washington Bureau where he remote-anchored broadcasts from across America.

During this period, he covered major events like the summit between former President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, and the meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore.

Tejera became an executive producer of “The Week” in February 2020, with the program climbing to the number one spot in Sunday shows among adults aged 25 to 54 under his leadership.

Prior to joining ABC, Tejera had worked with MSNBC, NBC, and HBO. He is survived by his wife Veronica and two young daughters, Ella aged 5 months, and Sofia aged 2 years.

(L-R) Peter Alexander, Cecilia Vega, Ricardo Jimenez, and Dax Tejera attend the CAA Kickoff Party for the White House Correspondents Dinner weekend, at Dovetail at the Viceroy, in Washington on April 29, 2022. (Leigh Vogel/Getty Images)

Tributes​

Jose Diaz Balart, an anchor at MSNBC, called Tejera a “force” of enthusiasm, passion, and intelligence as well as a “true” public servant. “I was privileged to have known and worked with him,” he said in a Dec. 25 Twitter post.

S. E. Cupp, an author who has worked with CNN, called Tejera’s demise the “worst kind of news” while characterizing him as one of the “kindest and brightest” people. “Keeping his family and @abcnews family in our thoughts,” she said in a Twitter post.

NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik called Tejera’s death as a “terrible blow” for the network, pointing out that he had “much promise” ahead of him.

“Dax Tejera was not only the brightest—most compassionate—executive producer I’ve ever worked with, he was also a dear friend. On this Christmas Day, my thoughts are with his wife, Veronica and his two baby daughters,” ABC news correspondent John Quinones said in a Twitter post, calling his death a “heartbreaking day.”

ABC News Executive Producer Dax Tejera Dies at 37

www.theepochtimes.com

 

[Zoner]

Is this the Geert variant?

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607508562233950209

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607508562233950209?s=46&t=33mLebHxuXI-m5bzv2d4cA

Click on read replies blue link

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607508929562685440

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607508929562685440?s=46&t=MIT0pSgWaSgFrh0to-LY1A

Click on and read the Twitter thread.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607538741337276416

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607538741337276416?s=46&t=_ujzKTL0v5FuB0IMSpiNDQ

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607547020876578816

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607547020876578816?s=46&t=k0eIqm0xmue6-oQHzz2POw

OMG. This is horrible. Geert said to watch for reports coming from different areas of the world. It wouldn't just be from one place. The only thing that is comforting me tonight about this is this video from Dr. Campbell - he seems to not be worried about China, he thinks it's the mild omicron they are dealing with and the deaths will be low. (a NK situation is the way I understand what he's saying - he didn 't mention NK, it just came to my mind listening to him).

First 6 minutes are about China, the rest is about Moderna factories; I didn't watch that part.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AH3AFYVn3T8
Massive new Moderna factories and China R about 20
Dr. John Campbell
Dec 24, 2022
13 min 11 sec


HIS NOTES UNDER THE VIDEO (I spaced them out to be easier read)

Sun Yang, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/...

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/...

Closed-door meeting
Infections, Tuesday, 37 million
205 million so far (18% of the population)
Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, 50% infected so far
Thursday, cases, + 4,000
Saturday, cases + 4,103
Deaths, + 8
(no attempt to collate cases)
Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME)
(University of Washington, Seattle)

IHME | COVID-19 Projections

Explore forecasts of COVID-19 cases, deaths, and hospital resource use.

covid19.healthdata.org

Deaths by April 1st = 293,127
Population 1,412,600,000
Infection fatality rate = 0.000207

From China
Lots of people have colds
Chengdu
Monday the 5th of December 2022, local government loosened all covid restrictions
By the 12th, almost everyone I know has covid
Severe stigma associated with the virus
About 80% have symptoms
20% asymptomatic

Symptoms
Headache (with brain fog)
Lack of energy/fatigue
Muscle pain
Body pains
(Seem universal)

Also
Dry throat
Slight cough
Runny nose (usually light)
Nausea
Insomnia
Diarrhoea
Increased appetite in some

Very little testing going on
Few government testing centres
Many determined to know, long queues
People still think the virus is very dangerous
Getting negative results (despite being symptomatic)
Avoid panic
Avoid shutdowns
Promote natural immunity

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

THE FIRST ARTICLE REFERRED TO IN DR. CAMPBELL'S VIDEO:

China estimates 250 million people caught COVID-19 since end of 'zero-COVID' policy: report

(fair use applies)

China estimates 250 million people caught COVID-19 since end of 'zero-COVID' policy: report
Peter Aitken - Fox News
2 days ago

Chinese officials estimated that some 250 million people in the country have caught COVID-19 in the past three weeks.

Sun Yang, a deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, presented the figures during a closed-door meeting of high-level officials, according to the Financial Times. The figure, which accounts for 18% of the population, includes 37 million people who were infected on Tuesday alone.

Sun reported that the rate of infection continues to rise and that more than half the population of Beijing and Sichuan have already been infected, two people familiar with the matter said.

Beijing abruptly dropped its "zero-COVID" policy, which mandated lockdowns and widespread testing when even just a few cases had been detected. Many had deemed the policies too restrictive and potentially contributing to the deaths of at least 10 people in a high-rise apartment building fire.

The deaths prompted nationwide protests and a demand for the government to end the policy, which Beijing agreed to do – but the sudden change and lack of preparation, including inadequate vaccination levels, led to a surge in the infection rate.

Washington and the World Health Organization have pushed Beijing for greater transparency regarding case numbers, disease severity and other health numbers. Official reports of Wednesday’s meeting provided few details about what top officials discussed.

China also moved to narrow the definition of what qualifies as a COVID-related death, which will reduce the public death tally. Officials reported only eight such deaths since Dec. 1.

Hospitals in Baoding and Langfang have been forced to turn away ambulances and ill patients seeking treatment, while health administrators have been required to treat patients in over-capacity intensive care units on benches or the floor, officials said.

And crematoriums have had to turn people away as workers struggle to keep up with the spike in deaths, an employee told the Associated Press.

"There’s been so many people dying," said Zhao Yongsheng, a funeral worker, who estimated that his shop burned between 20 and 30 bodies a day. "They work day and night, but they can’t burn them all."

A Reuters witness saw a line of about 40 hearses waiting to enter a parking lot outside a crematorium to carry away 20 coffins. Staff wore hazmat suits and smoke rose from multiple furnaces, but it remains unconfirmed – though likely – that the deaths resulted from COVID-19.

Some residents have reported waiting days to cremate relatives or needing to pay steep fees to secure a "speedy arrangement."

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

THE SECOND ARTICLE REFERRED TO IN DR. CAMPBELL'S VIDEO

China’s Covid surge sees ‘37 million new cases in single day’ as hospitals struggle

(fair use applies)


China’s Covid surge sees ‘37 million new cases in single day’ as hospitals struggle
Alastair Jamieson
3 days ago

As many as 250 million people in China have been infected with Covid this month, according to reports based on leaked official estimates, as the country’s health system struggles with a surge in cases since restrictions were lifted.

The figure – about 18 per cent of the entire population – includes 37 million who were infected on Tuesday alone, according to Sun Yang, a deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, whose estimates were leaked and reported in the Financial Times, Bloomberg and elsewhere.

The country’s National Health Commission did not comment on the reports.

China began dismantling its strict Covid controls this month, becoming the last major country to do so.

But the loosening of measures has seen a dramatic rise in cases as citizens leave factories and apartment blocks and travel for the first time in months.

As workers increasingly fall ill, more disruption to the economy and supply chains is expected in the short term before the economy bounces back later next year.

The nation of 1.4 billion people officially reported fewer than 4,000 new symptomatic Covid cases nationwide on Thursday, and no new deaths – but authorities recently narrowed the criteria for figures, prompting criticism from many disease experts.

Experts at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle and Hong Kong University have forecast between one and two million deaths in China in 2023.

Worries over the impact of China’s Covid surge pushed stock markets in China, Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia lower.

Daily infection rates in China are likely to be more than a million, with deaths at more than 5,000 a day – a stark contrast from official numbers – British health data firm Airfinity said this week.

A Shanghai hospital has estimated half of the commercial hub’s 25 million people would get infected by the end of next week. Experts say the country could face more than a million Covid deaths next year.

Meanwhile, cities continue to ease rules. Shanghai said people who had tested positive will be allowed to end home isolation after seven days if their symptoms significantly abate or end, without mentioning the need to undertake more tests.

The guidance from earlier this month had said they could end home isolation after testing negative on antigen and PCR tests.

China’s abrupt change in policy has left its fragile health system significantly unprepared, with hospitals scrambling for beds and blood, pharmacies for drugs and authorities racing to build clinics.

More than a dozen global health experts, epidemiologists, residents and political analysts interviewed by Reuters identified the failure to vaccinate the elderly and communicate an exit strategy to the public, as well as excessive focus on eliminating the virus, as causes of the strain on China’s medical infrastructure.

A drive to vaccinate the elderly that began three weeks ago has yet to bear fruit. China’s overall vaccination rate is above 90 per cent but the rate for adults who have had booster shots drops to 57.9 per cent, and to 42.3 per cent for people aged 80 and older, according to government data.

China has nine domestically-developed Covid vaccinations approved for use, all seen as less effective than Western-made vaccines that use the new mRNA technology.

A shipment of 11,500 BioNTech mRNA vaccines for German nationals in China has arrived at the German embassy in Beijing.

The World Health Organisation has received no data from China on new Covid hospitalisations since Beijing lifted its zero-Covid policy. The WHO has said gaps in data might be due to Chinese authorities simply struggling to tally cases.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

China to reopen borders and drop Covid quarantine from January 8

Local authorities will be stripped of the power to shut down entire communities from early next month, health sources say.

www.scmp.com

(fair use applies)

China to reopen borders, drop Covid quarantine from January 8
Local authorities will be stripped of the power to shut down entire communities from early next month
The decision is the last step in the country’s pivot to living with the virus
William Zheng
Published: 7:40pm, 26 Dec, 2022 | Updated: 3:12am, 27 Dec, 2022


China will reopen borders and abandon quarantine after it downgrades its treatment of Covid-19 on January 8.

The decision is the country’s last step in shedding three years of zero-Covid and pivoting to living with the virus.

Covid-19 has been managed as a top category A infectious disease since 2020, putting it on par with bubonic plague and cholera. When the declaration was made to do so, authorities said it would be administered according to the Frontier Health and Quarantine Law.

Under Chinese laws, authorities must impose the toughest restrictions such as quarantine and isolation of the infected and their close contacts, and citywide lockdowns to contain those diseases.

At the border, the infected must be isolated and those who might be infected quarantined, depending on the incubation period.

But three sources from provincial health authorities and hospitals in Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangsu said they were notified by the National Health Commission on Sunday, asking them to prepare for the downgrade to category B management from January 8.

That category means Covid-19 only requires “necessary treatment and measures to curb the spread”.

The Post understands from various sources that strict control measures including compulsory quarantine for travellers coming to China will also be removed after the downgrade, since it is no longer a compulsory requirement in the category B management.

There are signs that China has been preparing for the pivot, with PCR testing no longer mandatory and Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan, who has been in charge of the Covid-19 response, urging lower level authorities to focus on treatment instead of infections.

The National Health Commission also stopped announcing daily Covid-19 cases on Sunday, and passed the baton to a disease control agency, a practice more in line with management of lower level infectious diseases.

Authorities will also no longer refer to Covid-19 as a form of pneumonia.

According to a senior hospital administrator in Xiamen in the southeastern province of Fujian, the NHC said Covid-19 would be known officially as a “novel coronavirus infection” instead of the present “novel coronavirus pneumonia”.

“The name change is subtle but important,” the administrator said.

“I think it is official recognition of the clear changes in the symptoms of infection with the Omicron variant, which is less deadly. It does not always trigger pneumonia-like symptoms.”

While Covid-19 has always been a category B infectious disease in China – a class that also includes HIV, viral hepatitis and H7N9 bird flu – authorities have managed it as category A, empowering local governments to impose strong measures such as lockdowns, isolation and quarantine.

It also allows them to enlist law enforcement to aid with disease controls.

Confirming the new directive from Beijing, a health official from the southern province of Guangdong said it would help Guangdong prepare to reopen its border with neighbouring Hong Kong.

“It sets the direction going forward on China’s Covid-19 control, which is more flexible and less disruptive to people’s lives,” he said.

Body bags fill corridors at Chongqing funeral parlour as China battles Covid surge

Top Hong Kong officials met on Christmas Day to discuss details of a plan to fully reopen the city’s border with mainland China, the first stages of which could be implemented as soon as the start of next month, sources said.

A health official from Jiangsu province in the country’s east also said the new directive was “good news” as local governments were concerned that Beijing might change tack again in the face of the huge wave of Covid infections.

Cases have surged since China largely dismantled its zero-tolerance policy towards the coronavirus in recent weeks, inducing nationwide shortages of test kits and medication.

“With these instructions in black and white from the central government, we can proceed firmly towards opening and restoration of normal life, without worrying about reversal of Covid-19 policies,” the Jiangsu official said.

The health sector has been expecting the Covid downgrade since the U-turn on coronavirus controls.

In an online lecture series hosted by the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on December 14, Gao Fu, former head of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said China’s overall direction in Covid-19 management was to downgrade it to “a category B disease with category B control”.

Less than a week later, Sun Dongdong, a Peking University law school professor and an expert in public health law, suggested that upper respiratory tract infections from Omicron could be lowered to category C, a classification that includes influenza and mumps.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

China will drop COVID-19 restrictions and quarantines for visitors starting in January

China has had strict COVID-19 restrictions longer than many countries, but the latest news shows how it continues to ease policies.

news.yahoo.com

(fair use applies)


China will drop COVID restrictions and quarantines for visitors starting in January
Juliana Kaplan - Business Insider
Mon, December 26, 2022, 3:44 PM EST

In this article:

• Visitors to China will no longer be subject to strict COVID restrictions starting January 8.
• China is ending quarantine requirements for visitors, and will begin managing COVID as a Class B disease.
• The announcement comes after China eased domestic measures, even as cases skyrocketed.

Travelers to China will soon not have to quarantine and abide by previous COVID measures, according to China's National Health Commission.

The updated guidance comes after rare protests roiled the country over a strict domestic "zero-COVID" policy, which China ultimately moved to ease in early December. Now, visitors will also no longer have to abide by previous COVID restrictions.

Previously, travelers had been subject to mandatory quarantines as long as 10 days, although the latest policies required a five-day hotel quarantine and then three days of home isolation, according to CNN. Now, starting January 8, none of that will be required — although visitors will still have to show a negative PCR test result from 48 hours before travel, but will not need to submit it ahead of time.

China is also reclassifying COVID and managing it as Class B, instead of Class A, disease. China will instead focus on increasing vaccination among vulnerable populations, epidemic education, and investing in medicine, among other measures.

Part of that is easing restrictions for visitors to China — and, according to NHC, "the outbound travel of Chinese citizens will be resumed in an orderly manner."

It marks another turning point in the globe's response to the pandemic. China had clung to tight restrictions longer than many areas, battering the economy and angering citizens. But easing restrictions has also led to an explosion in cases, with the government no longer making daily reports on cases. According to the Financial Times, officials in China estimated that 250 million people were infected in just the first 20 days of December — amounting to 18% of the population.

At the same time, the NHC is no longer counting asymptomatic cases, saying that it's impossible to do so. As of December 19, there were 116,634 confirmed cases in China, according to the World Health Organization, with 28,493 new cases in the prior 24 hours.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

China races to vaccinate elderly, but many are reluctant

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese authorities are going door to door and paying people older than 60 to get vaccinated against COVID-19. But even as cases surge , 64-year-old Li Liansheng said his friends are alarmed by stories of fevers, blood clots and other side effects.

apnews.com

(fair use applies)


China races to vaccinate elderly, but many are reluctant
By JOE McDONALD
December 27, 2022

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese authorities are going door to door and paying people older than 60 to get vaccinated against COVID-19. But even as cases surge, 64-year-old Li Liansheng said his friends are alarmed by stories of fevers, blood clots and other side effects.

“When people hear about such incidents, they may not be willing to take the vaccines,” said Li, who had been vaccinated before he caught COVID-19. A few days after his 10-day bout with the virus, Li is nursing a sore throat and cough. He said it was like a “normal cold” with a mild fever.

China has joined other countries in treating cases instead of trying to stamp out virus transmission by dropping or easing rules on testing, quarantines and movement as it tries to reverse an economic slump. But the shift has flooded hospitals with feverish, wheezing patients.

The National Health Commission announced a campaign Nov. 29 to raise the vaccination rate among older Chinese, which health experts say is crucial to avoiding a health care crisis. It’s also the biggest hurdle before the ruling Communist Party can lift the last of the world’s most stringent antivirus restrictions.

China kept case numbers low for two years with a “zero-COVID” strategy that isolated cities and confined millions of people to their homes. Now, as it backs off that approach, it is facing the widespread outbreaks that other countries have already gone through.

The health commission has recorded only six COVID-19 fatalities this month, bringing the country’s official toll to 5,241. That is despite multiple reports by families of relatives dying.

China only counts deaths from pneumonia or respiratory failure in its official COVID-19 toll, a health official said last week. That unusually narrow definition excludes many deaths other countries would attribute to COVID-19.

Experts have forecast 1 to 2 million deaths in China through the end of 2023.

Li, who was exercising at the leafy grounds of central Beijing’s Temple of Heaven, said he is considering getting a second booster due to the publicity campaign: “As long as we know the vaccine won’t cause big side effects, we should take it.”

Neighborhood committees that form the lowest level of government have been ordered to find everyone 65 and older and keep track of their health. They are doing what state media call the “ideological work” of lobbying residents to persuade elderly relatives to get vaccinated.

In Beijing, the Chinese capital, the Liulidun neighborhood is promising people over 60 up to 500 yuan ($70) to get a two-dose vaccination course and one booster.

The National Health Commission announced Dec. 23 the number of people being vaccinated daily had more than doubled to 3.5 million nationwide. But that still is a small fraction of the tens of millions of shots that were being administered every day in early 2021.

Older people are put off by potential side effects of Chinese-made vaccines, for which the government hasn’t announced results of testing on people in their 60s and older.

Li said a 55-year-old friend suffered fevers and blood clots after being vaccinated. He said they can’t be sure the shot was to blame, but his friend is reluctant to get another.

“It’s also said the virus keeps mutating,” Li said. “How do we know if the vaccines we take are useful?”

Some are reluctant because they have diabetes, heart problems and other health complications, despite warnings from experts that it is even more urgent for them to be vaccinated because the risks of COVID-19 are more serious than potential vaccine side effects in almost everyone.

A 76-year-old man taking his daily walk around the Temple of Heaven with the aid of a stick said he wants to be vaccinated but has diabetes and high blood pressure. The man, who would give only his surname, Fu, said he wears masks and tries to avoid crowds.

Older people also felt little urgency because low case numbers before the latest surge meant few faced risk of infection. That earlier lack of infections, however, left China with few people who have developed antibodies against the virus.

“Now, the families and relatives of the elderly people should make it clear to them that an infection can cause serious illness and even death,” said Jiang Shibo of the Fudan University medical school in Shanghai.

More than 90% of people in China have been vaccinated but only about two-thirds of those over 80, according to the National Health Commission. According to its 2020 census, China has 191 million people aged 65 and over — a group that, on its own, would be the eighth most populous country, ahead of Bangladesh.

“Coverage rates for people aged over 80 still need to be improved,” the Shanghai news outlet The Paper said. “The elderly are at high risk.”

Du Ming’s son arranged to have the 100-year-old vaccinated, according to his caretaker, Li Zhuqing, who was pushing a face-mask-clad Du through a park in a wheelchair. Li agreed with that approach because none of the family members have been infected, which means they’d be more likely to bring the disease home to Du if they were exposed.

Health officials declined requests by reporters to visit vaccination centers. Two who briefly entered centers were ordered to leave when employees found out who they were.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

Hey , at least the bankers and investors are happy.......

Shares gain in Asia after China relaxes more COVID rules

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced Tuesday in Asia after China announced it would relax more of its pandemic restrictions despite widespread outbreaks of COVID-19 that are straining its medical systems and disrupting business.

apnews.com

(fair use applies)


Shares gain in Asia after China relaxes more COVID rules
By ELAINE KURTENBACH
December 27, 2022

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced Tuesday in Asia after China announced it would relax more of its pandemic restrictions despite widespread outbreaks of COVID-19 that are straining its medical systems and disrupting business.

China’s National Health Commission said Monday that passengers arriving from abroad will no longer have to observe a quarantine, starting Jan. 8. They will still need a negative virus test within 48 hours of their departure and to wear masks on their flights.

But it was the latest step toward dropping once-strict virus-control measures that have severely limited travel to and from the world’s No. 2 economy.

China has joined other countries in treating cases instead of trying to stamp out infections, dropping or easing rules on testing, quarantines and movement as it tries to reverse an economic slump. But the shift has flooded hospitals with feverish, wheezing patients, and authorities are going door to door and paying people older than 60 to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

The Shanghai Composite index jumped 0.8% to 3,089.39. Hong Kong’s markets were closed for a holiday, as were those in Australia.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 added 0.3% to 26,476.27 and the Kospi in Seoul also gained 0.3%, to 2,323.52.

In Bangkok, the SET index rose 0.6%, while the Sensex in Mumbai surged 1.2%.

Markets in the U.S. and Europe were closed Monday for holidays and Asian markets were mostly higher.

On Friday, the S&P 500 closed 0.6% higher. It is down 19.3% for the year, just on the cusp of a bear market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq edged 0.2% higher. The Russell 2000 index picked up 0.4%.

Solid U.S. consumer spending and a strong jobs market have kept the economy growing, but they also raise the risk that the Federal Reserve will need to persist in raising interest rates and keeping them high to crush inflation.

After last week’s updates, the last big reports of the year, investors will be watching for corporate earnings that may provide insights into how the economy is faring.

The pace of price increases has eased, but the Fed has said it will keep raising interest rates to tame inflation. Its key overnight rate is at its highest level in 15 years, after beginning the year at a record low of near zero. The key lending rate, the federal funds rate, stands at a range of 4.25% to 4.5%, and Fed policymakers have forecast it will reach a range of 5% to 5.25% by the end of 2023 and not be cut before 2024.

The higher rates bring the risk the economy could stall and slip into a recession in 2023. They also have been weighing heavily on prices for stocks and other investments.

In other trading Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 31 cents to $79.87 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It gained $2.07 to $79.56 before markets closed for the long Christmas weekend holiday.

Brent crude oil, the pricing basis for international trading, also added 31 cents to $84.81 per barrel.

In currency dealings, the U.S. dollar rose to 132.96 Japanese yen from 132.89 yen late Monday. The euro rose to $1.0647 from $1.0638.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

3 Common Long COVID Symptoms, Low-Cost Remedies Recommended by Doctors

www.theepochtimes.com

(fair use applies)


3 Common Long COVID Symptoms, Low-Cost Remedies Recommended by Doctors
George Citroner
Dec 26 2022

Nearly three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, experts are trying to understand the lingering symptoms of what is commonly called long COVID, who is most at risk, and how the symptoms can best be treated.

A cross-sectional study of over 16,000 individuals found 15 percent of U.S. adults with a prior positive COVID-19 infection reported current symptoms of long COVID.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one in 13 U.S. adults experience symptoms lasting three or more months after first contracting COVID-19.

These symptoms, also called post-COVID Conditions (PCCs), are most often seen in patients over 65 years old with pre-existing medical conditions.

“This may be the result of worsening of one or more known conditions, but also may stem from altered immune responses,” Dr. Richard Becker of the Division of Cardiovascular Health and Disease at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, told The Epoch Times.

Research from earlier this year confirmed that even after a mild infection, people can experience significant disturbances in their immune responses lasting months.

Becker emphasized that PCCs are equally likely to occur in patients with COVID-19 whether they were hospitalized or stayed home.

“In our experience treating over 500 patients with PCC,” said Becker, who also runs the UC Davis Health Post-COVID-19 Clinic, “The most common symptoms [of PCC] are fatigue, post-exercise exhaustion, shortness of breath, and chest pain.”

Studies also show that brain fog and loss of taste or smell are also commonly seen among these patients.

Becker’s initial treatment approach includes carefully selected tests to evaluate the heart, lungs, muscles, and joints. A diagnosis pertaining to one or more of these is followed by targeted treatment based on teaching patients physical and mental ways to ease symptoms.

“We have found that a COVID-recovery rehabilitation program with a focus on the mechanics of breathing, paced activity, and guidance to avoid excess physical, mental, or emotional stress can be beneficial,” said Becker.

Post-Viral Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

A review of COVID-19 cohort studies finds persistent fatigue was reported by up to 33 percent of patients from 16 to 20 weeks post-symptom onset.

“Although deaths, heart damage, and strokes can be the most devastating persistent sequelae of COVID, the major issue is the post-viral chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia,” said Jacob Teitelbaum, M.D., a board-certified internist and nationally known expert in the fields of chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, sleep, and pain.

Signs of post-viral chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) include fatigue, combined with brain fog or pain that lasts more than three months after the initial infection.

“It is suspected that a significant portion of people who dropped out of the workforce in the ‘Great Resignation’ had milder cases of post-COVID CFS,” said Teitelbaum.

Chronic fatigue syndrome can severely affect our quality of life. “In the 10 percent of COVID cases that have more severe post-viral fatigue, it can be totally crippling,” he explained. “Even leaving people bed and housebound.”

There are currently no particular treatment options for post-COVID chronic fatigue syndrome, although research to find effective methods is ongoing.

However, Teitelbaum believes chronic fatigue syndrome after COVID is treatable, and research he co-authored found that a commonly available root extract could help.

Previous studies have found that a unique Panax ginseng root extract called Korean red ginseng, often resulted in improvement for people living with chronic fatigue syndrome.

Teitelbaum’s research showed that 60 percent of people with post-viral chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia improved by simply taking Korean red ginseng.

Improvements in this group were a 67 percent average increase in energy, 44 percent average increase in overall well-being, 48 percent average improvement in mental clarity, 46 percent average improvement in sleep, 33 percent average decrease in pain, and a 72 percent average increase in stamina.

Ginseng is considered safe to use for most people but is contraindicated for pregnant women due to a lack of information about its effect on the fetus.

“Our research has shown that post-viral chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia are very treatable,” he said. “The problem is that there is no expensive medication needed, so no one pays for the doctors to get the information.”

Shortness of Breath

Up to 12 percent of people will experience shortness of breath (dyspnea) after COVID.

“Shortness of breath is very common post-COVID, but usually not dangerous,” said Teitelbaum. “Mostly it’s simply scary.”

You can use a pulse oximeter when you’re experiencing shortness of breath to tell whether it’s a lung or heart problem (due to low oxygen levels)—or just a sensation of breathlessness.

An article in Harvard Health found strong, scientific evidence that there are many supplements that can help us heal after COVID.

According to Teitelbaum, if it’s a heart problem, there is a mix of nutrients that increase cardiac efficiency and can “markedly” improve cardiac function and stamina. These nutrients include a high-dose B-complex with magnesium, D-Ribose, coenzyme Q10, and other herbs and nutrients, as he recommends on his website.

Lung and other inflammation resulting from COVID may be helped with curcumin, Boswellia (frankincense), and glutathione.

“All of these supplements are relatively low cost,” Teitelbaum reiterates. “And therefore doctors don’t hear about them.”

As with any supplement, some people may not react well when using these remedies and may experience stomach discomfort using Boswellia and high doses of curcumin. Long-term use of glutathione has been linked to lower zinc levels.

Brain Fog

Nearly one-third of post-COVID patients will experience cognitive impairment called “brain fog,” (1, 2) that can seriously impair memory and executive functioning. However, there are currently no FDA-approved treatments for this condition.

In November, researchers from Yale Medical School published a case study showing guanfacine (used for treating blood pressure) and the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC) reduced the cognitive deficits (brain fog) associated with long COVID in eight out of 12 patients. According to the study authors, both substances may work together to reduce inflammation in the brain and spinal cord.

They noted one patient who stopped taking guanfacine due to an episode of low blood pressure and reported their brain fog returned. The condition was resolved when they resumed taking the drug.

“The finding that one patient’s cognitive abilities worsened when guanfacine treatment was suspended, and improved with guanfacine reinstatement, supports a therapeutic role for this compound,” the authors wrote.

“These drugs are affordable and widely available,” said Arman Fesharaki-Zadeh, M.D., Ph.D., a behavioral neurologist and neuropsychiatrist at Yale Medicine, “You don’t need to wait to be part of a research trial. You can ask your physician.”

They also emphasized that placebo-controlled trials are needed to better understand how these drugs work to treat brain fog.

Based on the studies of these low-cost, doctor-recommended remedies, there is help at hand—and hope for those suffering the long-term, sometimes debilitating effects of long COVID. Remember to consult your doctor for possible contraindications to any medications you may be taking before trying any new remedies.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

Breakthrough! Receptor “Decoy” Drug Neutralizes COVID-19 Virus Including Omicron and Other Variants

Investigational drug works differently than antibody drugs which are losing effectiveness against the COVID-19 virus. Scientists have developed a drug that potently neutralizes SARS-CoV-2, the COVID-19 coronavirus, and is equally effective against the Omicron variant and every other tested varian

scitechdaily.com

(fair use applies)


Breakthrough! Receptor “Decoy” Drug Neutralizes COVID-19 Virus Including Omicron and Other Variants
By Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
December 26, 2022

Investigational drug works differently than antibody drugs which are losing effectiveness against the COVID-19 virus.

Scientists have developed a drug that potently neutralizes SARS-CoV-2, the COVID-19 coronavirus, and is equally effective against the Omicron variant and every other tested variant. The drug is designed in such a way that natural selection to maintain infectiousness of the virus should also maintain the drug’s activity against future variants.

The investigational drug was developed by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. As described in a report published on December 7 in the journal Science Advances, the drug is not an antibody, but a related molecule known as an ACE2 receptor decoy. Unlike antibodies, the ACE2 decoy is far more difficult for the SARS-CoV-2 virus to evade because mutations in the virus that would enable it to avoid the drug would also reduce the virus’s ability to infect cells. The Dana-Farber scientists found a way to make this type of drug neutralize coronaviruses more potently in animals infected with COVID-19 and to make it safe to give to patients.

This report comes at a time when antibody drugs used to treat COVID-19 have lost their effectiveness because the viral spike protein has mutated to escape being targeted by the antibodies.

The researchers, led by first author James Torchia, MD, PhD, and senior author Gordon Freeman, PhD, identified features that make ACE2 decoys especially potent and long-lasting. For example, they found that when they included a piece of the ACE2 protein called the collectrin-like domain, it made the drug stick more tightly to the virus and have a longer life in the body. Their experiments showed that ACE2 decoys have potent activity against the COVID-19 virus because they trigger an irreversible change in the structure of the virus — they “pop” the top off the viral spike protein so it can’t bind to the cell-surface ACE2 receptor and infect cells.

The SARS-CoV-2 virus is covered with projections called spike proteins that enable the virus to infect cells. The spike protein binds to the ACE2 receptor on the cell surface and then refolds, driving the spike into the cell, enabling the virus to enter. ACE2 decoys lure the virus to bind to the decoy instead of the cell, “popping” the spike and inactivating the virus before it can enter cells. This explains the drug’s surprising potency: not only does it function as a competitive inhibitor, but it permanently inactivates the virus. Since binding to ACE2 is required for infection, variants can change but they must continue to bind to ACE2, making the drug persistently active against all variants.

The researchers say that, in addition to treating antibody-resistant variants of SARS-CoV-2, the drug described in this study could be useful to treat new coronaviruses that might emerge in the future to infect humans. This is because many coronaviruses in nature poised to enter the human population also utilize ACE2 to infect cells.

While the drug, called DF-COV-01, has not yet been tested in humans, manufacturing development is nearly complete and preclinical studies needed for regulatory approval are underway, with the goal of advancing the drug to clinical trials.

“Optimized ACE2 decoys neutralize antibody-resistant SARS-CoV-2 variants through functional receptor mimicry and treat infection in vivo” by James A. Torchia, Alexander H. Tavares, Laura S. Carstensen, Da-Yuan Chen, Jessie Huang, Tianshu Xiao, Sonia Mukherjee, Patrick M. Reeves, Hua Tu, Ann E. Sluder, Bing Chen, Darrell N. Kotton, Richard A. Bowen, Mohsan Saeed, Mark C. Poznansky and Gordon J. Freeman, 7 December 2022, Science Advances.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abq6527

This work was supported by a Department of Defense CDMRP Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program Technology/Therapeutic Development Award. Additional support was provided by a National Instititutes of Health grant, an Evergrande MassCPR award, and a grant from COVID-19 FastGrants.

The work was performed by a collaborative team including scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital Vaccine and Immunotherapy Center, Boston University Aram V. Chobanian & Edward Avedisian School of Medicine, the National Emerging Infectious Disease Laboratory at Boston University, Colorado State University, and Boston Children’s Hospital.

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

Is this the Geert variant?

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607508562233950209

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607508562233950209?s=46&t=33mLebHxuXI-m5bzv2d4cA

Click on read replies blue link

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607508929562685440

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607508929562685440?s=46&t=MIT0pSgWaSgFrh0to-LY1A

Click on and read the Twitter thread.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607538741337276416

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607538741337276416?s=46&t=_ujzKTL0v5FuB0IMSpiNDQ

Horrifying. Absolutely horrifying.

I am praying that as bad as these cases are, the people survive them and can heal from them completely when they do.

We really need to hear from Geert....

HD

 

[Heliobas Disciple]

HD -

I sincerely appreciate the effort you're putting into maintaining the flow of information regarding this abomination.

This is still a very important thread...

However, don't forget to take care of yourself, too, k?

(that includes sleep.)

OK. Will do. Thank you for worrying

I'm a night owl, I get my sleep during the mornings!

HD

 

[Zoner]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607044820681527298

View: https://twitter.com/redvoicenews/status/1607044820681527298?s=20&t=-fSN-1ZEPua052WBLU-_Yw

 

[Zoner]

Horrifying. Absolutely horrifying.

I am praying that as bad as these cases are, the people survive them and can heal from them completely when they do.

We really need to hear from Geert....

HD

I'm praying. Glad you are on top of this HD. Yes, we need to hear from Geert.

 

[psychgirl]

Geert said the new variant would target the lungs and lower respiratory tract. I never forgot reading that because it scared me.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607537271833591808

View: https://twitter.com/EnemyInAState/status/1607537271833591808

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607538741337276416

View: https://twitter.com/EnemyInAState/status/1607538741337276416

 

[naegling62]

As far as Turnbull goes... I don't know.

 

[naegling62]

 

[Zoner]

As far as Turnbull goes... I don't know.View attachment 387293

I hope you’re right but I just can’t believe the reports that come from the institutions of medicine big Pharma and government.

 

[psychgirl]

I hope you’re right but I just can’t believe the reports that come from the institutions of medicine big Pharma and government.

True. And he is getting a lot of his information from actual citizens reporting on their illness, too, sooo.
Just read his retweets.

Idk. Guess we’ll know soon enough.
Unfortunately

 

[naegling62]

Lots of stories at Christmas dinner about folks that were vaccinated and are continually catching covid over and over. One in law (vax), in his early 20's has blood clots and is on blood thinners. One(vax) couldn't come because he caught covid. Some of the stories of vaxxed co-workers re-catching covid up to 5 times, and these were not my daughter's co-workers stories.

 

[Zoner]

Lots of stories at Christmas dinner about folks that were vaccinated and are continually catching covid over and over. One in law (vax), in his early 20's has blood clots and is on blood thinners. One(vax) couldn't come because he caught covid. Some of the stories of vaxxed co-workers re-catching covid up to 5 times, and these were not my daughter's co-workers stories.

So sad and it’s happening in our area as well. Thankfully it’s the mild form of Covid.
I dread when a more lethal strain arrives.

Right now we have a major heads up to buy whatever we need to buy and prepare before the herd arrives.

 

[Tristan]

China will drop COVID-19 restrictions and quarantines for visitors starting in January

China has had strict COVID-19 restrictions longer than many countries, but the latest news shows how it continues to ease policies.

news.yahoo.com

(fair use applies)


China will drop COVID restrictions and quarantines for visitors starting in January
Juliana Kaplan - Business Insider
Mon, December 26, 2022, 3:44 PM EST

In this article:

• Visitors to China will no longer be subject to strict COVID restrictions starting January 8.
• China is ending quarantine requirements for visitors, and will begin managing COVID as a Class B disease.
• The announcement comes after China eased domestic measures, even as cases skyrocketed.

Travelers to China will soon not have to quarantine and abide by previous COVID measures, according to China's National Health Commission.

The updated guidance comes after rare protests roiled the country over a strict domestic "zero-COVID" policy, which China ultimately moved to ease in early December. Now, visitors will also no longer have to abide by previous COVID restrictions.

Previously, travelers had been subject to mandatory quarantines as long as 10 days, although the latest policies required a five-day hotel quarantine and then three days of home isolation, according to CNN. Now, starting January 8, none of that will be required — although visitors will still have to show a negative PCR test result from 48 hours before travel, but will not need to submit it ahead of time.

China is also reclassifying COVID and managing it as Class B, instead of Class A, disease. China will instead focus on increasing vaccination among vulnerable populations, epidemic education, and investing in medicine, among other measures.

Part of that is easing restrictions for visitors to China — and, according to NHC, "the outbound travel of Chinese citizens will be resumed in an orderly manner."

It marks another turning point in the globe's response to the pandemic. China had clung to tight restrictions longer than many areas, battering the economy and angering citizens. But easing restrictions has also led to an explosion in cases, with the government no longer making daily reports on cases. According to the Financial Times, officials in China estimated that 250 million people were infected in just the first 20 days of December — amounting to 18% of the population.

At the same time, the NHC is no longer counting asymptomatic cases, saying that it's impossible to do so. As of December 19, there were 116,634 confirmed cases in China, according to the World Health Organization, with 28,493 new cases in the prior 24 hours.

So be prepared for China-Virus 2.0 to slam the world by end of January at the latest...

 

[Zoner]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1607704207204978688

View: https://twitter.com/enemyinastate/status/1607704207204978688?s=46&t=sZsYCkMNNp4nLZ0kqITT8w

 

[Profit of Doom]

China to reopen borders and drop Covid quarantine from January 8

Local authorities will be stripped of the power to shut down entire communities from early next month, health sources say.

www.scmp.com

(fair use applies)

China to reopen borders, drop Covid quarantine from January 8
Local authorities will be stripped of the power to shut down entire communities from early next month
The decision is the last step in the country’s pivot to living with the virus
William Zheng
Published: 7:40pm, 26 Dec, 2022 | Updated: 3:12am, 27 Dec, 2022


China will reopen borders and abandon quarantine after it downgrades its treatment of Covid-19 on January 8.

The decision is the country’s last step in shedding three years of zero-Covid and pivoting to living with the virus.

Covid-19 has been managed as a top category A infectious disease since 2020, putting it on par with bubonic plague and cholera. When the declaration was made to do so, authorities said it would be administered according to the Frontier Health and Quarantine Law.

Under Chinese laws, authorities must impose the toughest restrictions such as quarantine and isolation of the infected and their close contacts, and citywide lockdowns to contain those diseases.

At the border, the infected must be isolated and those who might be infected quarantined, depending on the incubation period.

But three sources from provincial health authorities and hospitals in Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangsu said they were notified by the National Health Commission on Sunday, asking them to prepare for the downgrade to category B management from January 8.

That category means Covid-19 only requires “necessary treatment and measures to curb the spread”.

The Post understands from various sources that strict control measures including compulsory quarantine for travellers coming to China will also be removed after the downgrade, since it is no longer a compulsory requirement in the category B management.

There are signs that China has been preparing for the pivot, with PCR testing no longer mandatory and Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan, who has been in charge of the Covid-19 response, urging lower level authorities to focus on treatment instead of infections.

The National Health Commission also stopped announcing daily Covid-19 cases on Sunday, and passed the baton to a disease control agency, a practice more in line with management of lower level infectious diseases.

Authorities will also no longer refer to Covid-19 as a form of pneumonia.

According to a senior hospital administrator in Xiamen in the southeastern province of Fujian, the NHC said Covid-19 would be known officially as a “novel coronavirus infection” instead of the present “novel coronavirus pneumonia”.

“The name change is subtle but important,” the administrator said.

“I think it is official recognition of the clear changes in the symptoms of infection with the Omicron variant, which is less deadly. It does not always trigger pneumonia-like symptoms.”

While Covid-19 has always been a category B infectious disease in China – a class that also includes HIV, viral hepatitis and H7N9 bird flu – authorities have managed it as category A, empowering local governments to impose strong measures such as lockdowns, isolation and quarantine.

It also allows them to enlist law enforcement to aid with disease controls.

Confirming the new directive from Beijing, a health official from the southern province of Guangdong said it would help Guangdong prepare to reopen its border with neighbouring Hong Kong.

“It sets the direction going forward on China’s Covid-19 control, which is more flexible and less disruptive to people’s lives,” he said.

Body bags fill corridors at Chongqing funeral parlour as China battles Covid surge

Top Hong Kong officials met on Christmas Day to discuss details of a plan to fully reopen the city’s border with mainland China, the first stages of which could be implemented as soon as the start of next month, sources said.

A health official from Jiangsu province in the country’s east also said the new directive was “good news” as local governments were concerned that Beijing might change tack again in the face of the huge wave of Covid infections.

Cases have surged since China largely dismantled its zero-tolerance policy towards the coronavirus in recent weeks, inducing nationwide shortages of test kits and medication.

“With these instructions in black and white from the central government, we can proceed firmly towards opening and restoration of normal life, without worrying about reversal of Covid-19 policies,” the Jiangsu official said.

The health sector has been expecting the Covid downgrade since the U-turn on coronavirus controls.

In an online lecture series hosted by the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on December 14, Gao Fu, former head of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said China’s overall direction in Covid-19 management was to downgrade it to “a category B disease with category B control”.

Less than a week later, Sun Dongdong, a Peking University law school professor and an expert in public health law, suggested that upper respiratory tract infections from Omicron could be lowered to category C, a classification that includes influenza and mumps.

Why isn’t China using early treatment?

 

[John Deere Girl]

Lots of stories at Christmas dinner about folks that were vaccinated and are continually catching covid over and over. One in law (vax), in his early 20's has blood clots and is on blood thinners. One(vax) couldn't come because he caught covid. Some of the stories of vaxxed co-workers re-catching covid up to 5 times, and these were not my daughter's co-workers stories.

Our oldest and her husband are double vaxxed. They get sick a lot now. They think the vax is a scam now and won't get the boosters. My FIL is vaxxed and boosted. He is on antibiotics all the time and is on the hospital with the flu and CHF. He never had heart issues before.