Colds, Flu, RSV Used To Be Predictable On The Calendar. Covid Upended That
Doctors say they are now seeing adenovirus, rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, influenza, parainfluenza, and more at unusual times of the year. Health precautions taken during the height of the pandemic, as well as eliminating those precautions now, are likely to blame. “All of these decisions have consequences,” said one infection-control expert.
The Washington Post:
Covid Is Making Flu And Other Common Viruses Act In Unfamiliar Ways
More than two years into the coronavirus pandemic, familiar viruses are acting in unfamiliar ways. Respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV, typically limits its suffocating assaults to the winter months. Rhinovirus, cause of the common cold, rarely sends people to the hospital. And the flu, which seemed to be making a comeback in December after being a no-show the year before, disappeared again in January once the omicron variant of the coronavirus took hold. Now flu is back, but without one common lineage known as Yamagata, which hasn’t been spotted since early 2020. It could have gone extinct or may be lying in wait to attack our unsuspecting immune systems, researchers said. (Stead Sellers, 6/13)
In other news about covid —
CNN:
CDC Adds 3 Places To 'High' Risk List, Including Mexico And UAE
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday placed three new destinations in its "high" risk category for Covid-19, including a North American travel behemoth. In April, the CDC overhauled its ratings system for assessing Covid-19 risk for travelers. (Brown and Hunter, 6/13)
AP:
West Virginia Surpasses 7,000 Coronavirus Deaths
West Virginia has surpassed 7,000 coronavirus deaths as Gov. Jim Justice urged residents Monday to stay current on their COVID-19 vaccinations. According to the Department of Health and Human Resources’ website, 7,001 people have died in the state over the past two years since the pandemic started. (6/13)
The Oregonian:
Coronavirus In Oregon: Cases Up 8%, Universal Masking Now Recommended In Three Counties
Oregon health officials reported 10,606 new coronavirus cases last week, up 8% from the previous week. The rise in identified coronavirus cases ended two weeks of reported declines, underscoring how little is known about the true number of infections in Oregon and nationally. (Zarkhin, 6/13)
The CT Mirror:
Wastewater Samples Show COVID Levels Falling In New Haven Area
The latest wave of COVID-19, driven by the contagious BA.2 and BA.2.12.1 subvariants, is showing signs of retreating, with falling levels of the disease being detected in wastewater. Yale University researchers collecting samples from a New Haven water treatment facility found substantially fewer incidences of the virus in recent samples than were recorded a month ago. As of June 6, there were about 30 cases per 100,000 people in the New Haven area detected, down from about 60 cases per 100,000 people in mid-May. (Carlesso, 6/14)
AP:
Massachusetts To Distribute 2 Million COVID-19 Tests
Massachusetts is distributing another 2 million COVID-19 free testing kits this week, state health officials said Monday. The tests will be sent to the 264 municipalities across the state that requested them, and officials in those cities and towns will then determine how to distribute them among residents. (6/13)
Also —
San Francisco Chronicle:
If You Never Tested Positive For COVID After Exposure And Symptoms, What Does That Mean?
As the latest COVID surge continues to keep cases high across California, some people — especially if they’ve been repeatedly exposed to the coronavirus or even had symptoms — may be wondering: Why have I still not tested positive? While experts continue to try to understand what, if any, genetic factors protect people from ever getting COVID, the question of why some people never seem to test positive, even if they are fairly sure they were infected, is a bit less of a mystery, though still not entirely clear. (Echeverria, 6/13)
The New York Times:
How Covid Did Away With The Sick Day
Working while sick is an American pastime — one that a vicious pandemic, which sickened millions, somehow didn’t disrupt. Over 100 other countries guarantee some form of paid sick leave. In the United States, a survey of 3,600 hourly workers this spring found that two-thirds of those who had been sick with Covid or other illnesses went to work while sick, according to the Shift Project at Harvard, a research project on work scheduling. Many of them cited fear of getting in trouble with their managers, or financial pressures. Some 33 million Americans don’t have paid sick leave. Low-income workers are far less likely to be able to take time off when they’re sick; just over half of people in the bottom quarter of wages get paid sick leave, compared to 94 percent in the top quarter. (Goldberg, 6/13)
