Results of the Phase-2 trial of the Oxford vaccine show that the vaccine is safe across age groups — younger (18-55 years age) and older adults (over 56 years age). In fact, older adults better tolerated the vaccine than younger adults, the results show. The vaccine also induced T cell immune responses and neutralising antibodies […]
Oxford vaccine found safe and immunogenic even in older adults — Science Chronicle
Ashton Glover Gatewood, 31, a member of the Choctaw Nation and descendent of both the Chickasaw and Cherokee Nations, has long lamented the glaring lack of Native American physicians. So she decided to become one.
Gatewood is a student in the inaugural class of the first tribally affiliated medical school in the United States, the Oklahoma State University (OSU) College of Osteopathic Medicine at the Cherokee Nation. The school opened this fall on Cherokee land in Tahlequah, the capital of the Cherokee Nation’s 14-county reservation in the rolling hills of rural Oklahoma, about an hour east of Tulsa.
First-of-Its-Kind Med School Makes History — https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/941187?src=rss#vp_1
I’ll have to ask Project #1 on my Project List if he will be teaching any classes at the new medical school.
Lesions could be angiokeratomas, petechiae, purpura, melanosis, and nevi, for example. Seborrheic keratoses can mimic melanoma. “If it looks odd, don’t be afraid to biopsy it,” said Mauskar, assistant professor of dermatology and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
Low Threshold to Biopsy Atypical Lesions May ID Vulvar Melanoma Early, Experts Say — https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/941157?src=rss
I first became aware of melanoma down there back in June of this year. See Vulvar Melanoma Is Increasing in Older Women
So remember, if it looks odd get it biopsied.
Until now, there had been only one confirmed case of Chapare virus, an Ebola-like illness that turned up in the rural Bolivian province of Chapare in 2004 and then disappeared. But in 2019, at least five more people caught the bug, according to research now made public. The virus spread from person to person through bodily fluids in a region near Bolivia’s capital city of La Paz, killing three people. There are no active outbreaks of Chapare in 2020, and even in the event of further outbreaks the virus would be unlikely to cause a pandemic, according to virus experts.
There are reasons to be concerned about the news, however. Three of the five confirmed patients from the 2019 outbreak were health care workers, according to a CDC statement; a “young medical resident,” an ambulance medic and a gastroenterologist all contracted Chapare after contact with bodily fluids from infected patients. Two of them died.
Deadly hemorrhagic fever in Bolivia can spread between people — https://www.livescience.com/chapare-virus-human-transmission.htm
In my next life I want to come back as an Infectious Disease specialist.
The 30,000-person trial included 11,000 volunteers from communities of color, making up 37% of the total study population. It also included more than 7,000 volunteers over the age of 65 and more than 5,000 people under 65 who have high-risk medical conditions that put them at high risk of suffering from a severe infection, should they contract Covid, things like diabetes, severe obesity and heart disease.
Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine is strongly effective, early look at data show – https://www.statnews.com/2020/11/16/modernas-covid-19-vaccine-is-strongly-effective-early-look-at-data-show/?utm_campaign=rss
The mRNA-1273 vaccine can be shipped and stored for up to 6 months at –20° C (about –4° F), a temperature maintained in most home or medical freezers, according to Moderna. The company expects that after the product thaws, it will remain stable at standard refrigerator temperatures of 2° to 8° C (36° to 46° F) for up to 30 days within the 6-month shelf life.
Because the mRNA-1273 vaccine is stable at these refrigerator temperatures, it can be stored at most physicians’ offices, pharmacies, and hospitals, the company notes. In contrast, the similar Pfizer BTN162b2 vaccine ― early results for which showed a 90% efficacy rate, as reported by Medscape Medical News ― requires shipment and storage at “deep freeze” conditions of –70° C or –80° C, which is more challenging from a logistic point of view.
Moderna’s mRNA-1273 can be kept at room temperature for up to 12 hours after removal from a refrigerator for patient administration. The vaccine will not require dilution prior to use.
Moderna: Interim Data Show 94.5% Efficacy for COVID-19 Vaccine, Will Seek FDA EUA — https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/941023?src=rss
Game changer!
Immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 might last for years, according to a study posted on the preprint server bioRxiv.
Some 185 adults who recovered from COVID-19 (most had mildly symptomatic disease) provided blood samples for analysis. The majority provided a single sample, but roughly 20% provided multiple samples over several months.
The researchers found that levels of spike-specific memory B cells (which make antibodies as needed) increased with time — and were higher at 4–6 months than at earlier time points in most participants who gave multiple samples. In addition, SARS-CoV-2 spike IgG titers were generally stable, showing only modest declines at 6–8 months.
COVID-19: Study Suggests Durable Immune Response After SARS-CoV-2 Infection — https://www.jwatch.org/fw117245/2020/11/17/covid-19-study-suggests-durable-immune-response-after
I hope these findings are replicated in other studies.
Deaths due to measles increased 50% from 2016 to 2019, according to recent data from the World Health Organization and CDC that were highlighted in MMWR. In 2019, over 200,000 people died from the disease.
Measles Deaths Surge Worldwide — https://www.jwatch.org/fw117234/2020/11/15/measles-deaths-surge-worldwide
Measles is entirely preventable. And please don’t quote me the U.S. fatality statistics for measles. I am aware the U.S. numbers are very low. Don’t use this as a reason not to vaccinate your children.
An earlier article by Prof. Javanbakht.
Tribalism has been an inherent part of human history, and is closely linked with fear. There has always been competition between groups of humans in different ways and with different faces, from brutal wartime nationalism to a strong loyalty to a football team. Evidence from cultural neuroscience shows that our brains even respond differently at an unconscious level simply to the view of faces from other races or cultures.
At a tribal level, people are more emotional and consequently less logical: Fans of both teams pray for their team to win, hoping God will take sides in a game. On the other hand, we regress to tribalism when afraid. This is an evolutionary advantage that would lead to the group cohesion and help us fight the other tribes to survive.
Tribalism is the biological loophole that many politicians have banked on for a long time: tapping into our fears and tribal instincts. Abuse of fear has killed in many faces: extreme nationalism, Nazism, the Ku Klux Klan and religious tribalism have all led to heartless killing of millions.
How our brains can be manipulated to tribalism — https://theconversation.com/trump-the-politics-of-fear-and-racism-how-our-brains-can-be-manipulated-to-tribalism-139811
Executive Summary
Those of us old enough to know what life was like before social media may remember how exciting Facebook was at its inception. Imagine, the ability to connect with old friends we had not seen for decades! Then, Facebook was a virtual dynamic conversation. This brilliant idea, to connect to others with shared experiences and interests, was strengthened with the advent of Twitter, Instagram and apps.
Things did not remain that simple. These platforms have morphed into Frankenstein’s monsters, filled with so-called friends we’ve never met, slanted news stories, celebrity gossip, self-aggrandizement and ads.
The Matrix is already here: Social media promised to connect us, but left us isolated, scared and tribal — https://theconversation.com/the-matrix-is-already-here-social-media-promised-to-connect-us-but-left-us-isolated-scared-and-tribal-148799
I’ve written about the dangers of social media many times:
More Social Media Use Linked to More Depression and Anxiety in Teens
Quit Social Media – Dr. Cal Newport
The Pleasures of Life without Social Media
The Potential Harm of Social Media
I’ve bulleted the highlights of the Matrix article but the entire article is well worth reading. What truth?
Be safe this year in whatever form of holiday celebrating you choose to do.
The holidays are upon us, which means a spike in gatherings of people who do not otherwise see one another. Such get-togethers, especially if they are multi-generational, can spark more outbreaks. I take no joy in saying this, but all of this means that any gathering outside one’s existing quarantine pod should be avoided for now—especially if it is indoors. Think of it as a postponement and plan to hold it later. Better a late Christmas than an early medical catastrophe. Pods should not expand unless absolutely necessary. Order takeout instead of dining indoors. Make game night virtual. Shop in bulk, so you can do fewer trips to the store. It’s not the right time for wedding receptions or birthday parties.
Young people present one of the biggest challenges. Many colleges are ending school and sending students home, for what could be a country-wide super-spreader event. That age group—young adults—is especially dangerous; while they can get infected, they are less likely to get very sick, so they don’t stay put the way sick people would. That means they pose a great risk to their more vulnerable parents and other older relatives as they go about their lives. Ideally, colleges should offer the students already on campus the option to stay in the dorms over winter break, and those who live in off-campus housing should consider staying put. If they do go home, the students should quarantine for the recommended two weeks to the greatest degree possible.
It’s Time to Hunker Down — https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/11/lock-yourself-down-now/617106/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AtlanticFood+%28The+Atlantic+-+Health%29
Meanwhile in Tulsa County Oklahoma…
and Garfield County Colorado…
Meanwhile back at the ranch…
What will Thanksgiving look like this year? We asked a turkey farmer. Read https://www.vox.com/the-goods/21561288/thanksgiving-dinner-2020-turkey-farmer-pandemic-smaller-birds for some insight into…turkeys.
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