Travel Risk

COVID-19 Overwhelms Border ICUs

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COVID-19 Overwhelms Border ICUs

El Centro Regional Medical Center was so overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients it had to divert some to health care facilities in San Diego, National City and elsewhere. There have been more than 2,025 confirmed cases in Imperial County, which has the highest COVID-19 hospitalization rate in the state, said Andrea Bowers, special projects coordinator for the county health department.

“We know that our community has family on both sides of the border, so we’re relating the uptick to Mother’s Day weekend,” said Suzanne Martinez, assistant chief nursing officer at the medical center. “That means more risk as people travel back and forth over the border.”

Mothers’ Day weekend.

Hmm…then there’s Memorial Day weekend.

Followed by protests (not a political statement, just an observation of large crowds).

We are doomed.

 

Party in the Ozarks! (or how to spread a deadly virus)

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I tried so very hard not to post anything about Covid-19 this week.

But this is just too good not to share.

Most of us have already witnessed the viral picture of the party in the Ozarks.  I guess wearing a mask is too hard for some.

Sub Project #1 went to the zoo today.  Wear a mask?  Not a problem.

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House Hunters International (Pandemic Version) – Mexico

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Citation: California Border Hospitals Hit by Surge in COVID-19 Cases From Mexico – Medscape – May 20, 2020.

Here’s the link:

California Border Hospitals Hit by Surge in COVID-19 Cases From Mexico

Here’s an excerpt:

Imperial County has registered fewer than 800 known coronavirus infections and just 15 deaths to date. Baja California, by comparison, has reported 3,458 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 134 deaths.  Two main medical centers in Baja’s state capital – Mexicali Hospital General and IMSS Regional Hospital 30 – are both “saturated” by the outbreak, Mario Cervantes, head of relief services for the Red Cross of Mexicali, told Reuters.  Some arriving ambulances have had to wait hours to deliver new patients, while others were turned away altogether, he said.  Baja health department officials said neither Mexicali hospital had exhausted its bed space, but Dr. Rafael Abril, president of the Mexicali College of Surgeons, told local news in April that half the IMSS hospital’s doctors were infected with COVID-19, which could lead to staffing shortages.

Rooms for Rent – Airbnb Crashes

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“No one anticipated that a global pandemic would require the country to shelter in place, upend the economy,” said Airbnb spokesman Nick Papas. “This is temporary: Travel will bounce back and Airbnb hosts—the vast majority of whom have just one listing—will continue to welcome guests and generate income.”

It’s not just the big hotel chains that are hurting.  For more insight read the full article at nakedcapitalism.com which contains absolute gems like the quote below.

It takes a lot of gall or a lot of ignorance to peddle a line like that.

My vote is IGNORANCE.

It will be a long time before travelers return to flying petri dishes and spend time in a rented room in someone else’s house.

COVID-19 – Oklahoma 03.19.20

/ SupremeCmdr / 3 Comments

I’ve spent most of my life learning about what kills people.  Hey, it’s a job and I love it.

The numbers in Oklahoma are blessedly small.  Too small for statistical significance but there are some interesting aspects to these numbers.  The 2 out of state positives are professional basketball players.  We shouldn’t expect a huge increase from out of state since Oklahoma is not exactly a vacation tourist type destination and no one is traveling much nowadays.   The first positives were in Tulsa county.  That number hasn’t really moved much but Oklahoma county numbers have,  a clear indicator of community spread.

The most disturbing numbers are the positives ages 18-64.  This is not Wuhan.  This is not Italy.  This is not Iran.  This is not Spain.  This is Oklahoma.

Stay safe and act accordingly to your specific locale.

COVID-19 Oklahoma Test Results
Positive (In-State) 29
Positive (Out-of-State) 2
Negative 378
PUIs Pending Results 110

COVID-19 Cases by County
County COVID-19 Cases by County*
Canadian 2
Cleveland 4
Jackson 1
Kay 2
Oklahoma 14
Payne 1
Tulsa 4
Pawnee 1
Total 29

COVID-19 Cases by Age Grouping
Age Group, Years COVID-19 Cases*
00-04 1
05-17 0
18-49 13
50-64 10
65+ 5
Total 29
Age Range 0-75 yrs

COVID-19 Cases by Gender
COVID-19 Cases by Gender
Female 13
Male 16
Total 29

Data Source: Acute Disease Service, Oklahoma State Department of Health.
*As of 2020-03-18 at 07:00 AM.

A Message From Italy On Coronavirus and COVID-19 — The Skeptical Cardiologist

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Last month the skeptical cardiologist asked Nicola Triglione, a native of Southern Italy who completed his cardiology fellowship in Milan to give us his perspective on the US and Italian health care systems. Since Italy is now at the European epicenter of the COVID-19 epidemic and second only to China in number of cases and deaths,…

via A Message From Italy On Coronavirus and COVID-19 — The Skeptical Cardiologist

COVID-19 – Coronavirus Deep Dive

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What were the demographics of the forty-one admitted 2019-nCoV patients included in this study?

  • Most were men (30/41 patients; 73%)

  • Median age = 49 years

  • 13/41 patients (32%) had underlying disease (e.g. diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, COPD, cancer)

What kind of symptoms did the forty-one admitted 2019-nCoV patients included in this study have?

  • Fever (40/41 patients; 98%)

  • Cough (31/41 patients; 76%)

  • Myalgia or Fatigue (18/41 patients; 44%)

  • These three symptoms were the major ones. There were patients who had sputum production, headache, hemoptysis, and diarrhea; however, these symptoms were less common.

  • Dyspnea occurred in 55% later in the course, with mean time to onset of dyspnea at 8 days.

Here’s a nice short summary of a recent study published in Lancet.  The balance of the source article can be found at emDOCs.net

And if you want to maintain your sanity regarding this emerging infectious disease threat avoid social media. 

Social media, for all its many ills and its few redeeming qualities, identifies idiots.

Can we turn serious for a minute? Are you on social media, talking to people that you don’t know about things that you know nothing about? If so, what are you doing? There’s a great big wonderful wide world out there. Why not trying exploring it? Talk to people. See things. Read stuff that is longer than 14 words.

Berry Tramel: Garth Brooks’ Barry Sanders jersey brings out the idiots, thinking he was endorsing Bernie Sanders

 

 

Singapore develops antibody test to detect novel coronavirus infection — Science Chronicle

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Unlike the currently used molecular test that uses oral swab samples, the antibody test developed by Duke-NUS Medical School has several advantages — it can detect past infection in people who have now recovered, it relies on blood samples, and can identify asymptomatic cases. Using an antibody test developed by the Duke-NUS Medical School that […]

via Singapore develops antibody test to detect novel coronavirus infection — Science Chronicle

COVID-19: China once again changes case definition in Hubei province — Science Chronicle

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On February 20, China once again changed the case definition in Hubei province. All clinically confirmed cases will now be classified under suspected cases. Only molecular test positives will be labelled as confirmed. On February 12, the number of new COVID-19 cases reported from mainland China witnessed the biggest increase for a given day when […]

via COVID-19: China once again changes case definition in Hubei province — Science Chronicle

Hmm…