Younger Brazilians Die From Covid – Coronavirus Fact vs. Fiction

by

More younger Brazilians now seem to be getting seriously ill and dying from Covid-19, doctors say, amid a nationwide rise in daily deaths and cases also pushing up the global number.

Nearly a dozen IC doctors and nurses in multiple hospitals in Brazil since mid-January say their IC beds are filled with more young people than ever.

“We also have healthy patients between the ages of 30 and 50, and that’s the profile for most patients,” says Dr. Pedro Archer, a 33-year-old doctor in intensive care at a public hospital in Rio de Janeiro. . “That’s the big differentiator in this latest wave.”

The question is: why? Little data is available to explain this, but experts are looking to see if the P1 variant, first discovered in Brazil, infects more young people and makes them sicker. A recent study shows it can be up to 2.2 times more contagious. Experts also point to an increase in the number of parties around the New Year and then the Carnival holiday.

“The death of a person in their thirties is very, very painful,” said Dr. Maria Dolores da Silva, a 42-year veteran in intensive care in São Paulo. “They have their whole life ahead of them and Covid will take it.”

YOU ASKED. WE ANSWER.

Q. Many parents are vaccinated, but their children are not yet able to do so. Can grandparents come by if the children have not been vaccinated?

A. Getting parents vaccinated is very important. It reduces their own risk of illness, as well as their chance of transmitting coronavirus to others, including their children, says Dr. Leana Wen. It also makes visits from other family members safer.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have said that fully vaccinated people can visit another family in which not everyone has been vaccinated, as long as those who have not yet been vaccinated are not themselves at high risk of serious illness from Covid-19. That means it’s fine for grandparents to visit their children and grandchildren, stay with them, eat indoors with them, cuddle them, and not wear masks. Read here for more tips from Dr. Wen.
Send your questions hereAre you a health professional fighting Covid-19? Send us a message on WhatsApp about the challenges you are facing: + 1347-322-0415.

WHAT IS IMPORTANT TODAY

AstraZeneca is reviewing the efficacy data

Drug giant AstraZeneca has updated its data on how well its coronavirus vaccine works and says it is 76% effective in preventing symptomatic Covid-19, after the independent US Data and Safety Monitoring Board said the company used outdated clinical trial results.
The revision is minor – less than 79% – and for those over 65, the company has revised its data upwards from 80% to 85%. It keeps its shot and is 100% effective in preventing serious illness and hospitalization. The data debacle is the latest of many missteps that have cast doubt on AstraZeneca’s management, writes Julia Horowitz.

Vaccinationalism must be at the center of the EU summit

European Union leaders will meet today at a virtual summit to work out plans to control vaccine exports, in an ongoing discussion with the UK over dose delivery, particularly from the AstraZeneca shot.

The EU is struggling to get enough doses to roll out effective vaccination programs, but other countries, including the US and the UK, have also largely kept the doses made in their country to themselves. US President Joe Biden is expected to call in to the meeting at the invitation of the EU.

India has temporarily halted all major exports of AstraZeneca footage captured by the Serum Institute of India (SII) to meet domestic demand, Reuters reported Thursday, citing sources. SII manufactured AstraZeneca vaccines for much of the developing world. CNN has reached out to SII and the State Department for comment, but has received no response.

Boris Johnson’s latest blunder could threaten vaccine rollout in Britain

The British Prime Minister has made frantic efforts to reconsider his remarks that the successful introduction of vaccines in his country was “because of capitalism, because of greed, my friends.”

The timing of these comments – in a private conversation with Conservative Party backbenchers on Tuesday – could be troubling to the prime minister. The leaders of the European Commission are trying to unite the 27 member states of the EU by viewing the UK as the bad guy and getting stricter with the export controls of vaccines that will affect the country, writes Luke McGee.

India detects new ‘double mutant’ variant

It is unclear how many infections in India have been linked to this newly discovered variety, or whether the species is even more dangerous. However, the Department of Health said such variants typically increase infectivity and may “confer immune escape,” meaning people may be less able to fight the infection.

A “double mutant” variant is a strain that carries two mutations. India made the discovery as infections proliferate there, raising fears of a second wave.

ON OUR RADAR

Funeral directors lower the coffin of a person who died of Covid-19 at Glen Forest Cemetery in Harare, Zimbabwe on January 14, 2021.
  • The second wave of Covid-19 hit Africa much harder than the first, new analysis shows.
  • British TV host Kate Garraway talks about her husband’s harrowing, years of ordeal with Covid-19, which has left him hospitalized since March.
  • The Covid-19 pandemic has changed our sense of mortality. “That vague inevitability that I assumed would happen in the distant future hit me like an anvil in an old cartoon,” writes Allison Hope.
  • Dr. Loretto Hospital’s Anosh Ahmed resigned after a discovery that the hospital was improperly dispensing the Covid-19 vaccine at Trump Tower in downtown Chicago.
  • Seven in 10 people hospitalized for Covid-19 still have not fully recovered five months after discharge, a study found.

BEST ADVICE

If you ate more and gained weight during the pandemic, you’re not alone. Recent research has shown that some people gained an average of more than 1.5 pounds per month during the Covid-19 lockdowns in March and April.

So what should you do about it? “Be sure to take a break,” says Lisa Drayer, a CNN contributor to health and nutrition, adding that it’s only natural to reach for comfort foods during times of stress. But Drayer recommends some small changes that can make a big difference: Eat small and frequent meals, add protein to your plate, and walk for at least 30 minutes a day. Read here for more tips from Drayer.

TODAY’S PODCAST

“Health experts say over and over again: What you do when you get there is the problem, no matter … the mode you travel in.” – CNN Correspondent Pete Muntean

As more and more people in the US get their vaccinations, some are making travel plans and airports are seeing greater crowds. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent, speaks with Muntean, who is responsible for aviation and transportation, about the latest guidelines on travel restrictions and how to safely travel on vacation. Listen now.

Source