[Aravind_M92]

With the government trying to make up money is announcing lockdown eases over and again. But do remember COVID cases haven’t gone to zero yet. Vaccination may give protection against severity but never from acquiring the disease. Let me breakdown the immunity mount by the body
Say you were immunised and body produces about 10000 copies of Antibodies which over time is reduced unless exposed over again, and the body holds a memory of the antibody for a certain period until the body is exposed, where the memory to produce the particular antibody is triggered and copies are produced.
Given a scenario where for eg the body has 1000 copies and the exposure is for 10000 virus particles. Thus a trigger is set off and the copies are produced. But remember, the virus too replicates. But in this case, the viral replication is quite rapid and by the time the body responds, the virus may have already completed the life cycle causing intractable damage. This is just a possible scenario to explain deaths or severe conditions in completely vaccinated persons. So yes, vaccine protects but only if the viral load is low. Not if the load is high.
As a doctor seeing people on streets denying to wear a mask really boils me up. Also I’m seeing few leisure travelogues on teambhp forum as well. Even though, if our members take the utmost precautions, the same cannot be expected from the service caterers. It’s like saying I drive safely but what if someone on the highway causes a screw up. Trust me health care workers barely have had any leisure since 2020. And 2021 too is halfway through. We have lost our colleagues only because someone is quite confident that they’ve been vaccinated and/or won’t contract the disease. I hope people do understand and take all the precautions they’ve been following since 2020. Little lapses result in huge and significant losses.
Also for the government you are one of its citizen but to your family you are the only one. The government considers the overall pro and wouldn’t consider ‘few’ deaths. Now that new variants have come up, the delta plus and lambda ones, which are neither detectable on PCR nor trigger the immunity response would result in significant damage. And trust me this virus is quite different. It’s as if it’s learning the evasive manoeuvres and changing itself making the goal to wipe out as many as possible. Also the new variants replicate much rapidly and cause severe disease much faster.
So remember to mask up, avoid getting into crowded places , get vaccinated, wash hands, eat healthy and stay at home unless absolutely required. Us Front line workers are tired, demotivated and totally depressed with all the deaths happening around. Please excuse me if I’m being harsh but this needs to be out.

[mooza]

Originally Posted by Aravind_M92

...As a doctor seeing people on streets denying to wear a mask really boils me up...

Thanks for the alerting post


On the same note, I really do wish that videos like the ones below go viral (instead of the virus), and are compulsorily played on repeat mode in prominent screens in all the malls and crowded public places.

This can help in increasing and maintaining awareness on the use of masks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNeYfUTA11s

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Aravind_M92

... this virus is quite different. It’s as if it’s learning the evasive manoeuvres and changing itself making the goal to wipe out as many as possible...

We have heard the past wisdom about viruses becoming milder as they mutate so that they can infect more people rather than kill too many of their hosts, because dead people don't spread disease. We have heard this, but I'm wondering if the virus has heard it. It seems likely that it is not going to behave that way. Or if it does, that it will do so over a time scale that is of no comfort to us just now.

Don't want to get political, and this is certainly not about any party, or even government or country, but it seems that politicians feel they can treat covid numbers like, eg, inflation figures. Like, inflation falls from 5.56% to 5.55% and they are patting themselves on the back all over the media. Sure, third-wave covid numbers have fallen more significantly than that, but numbers of sufferers are still significant. And, without enforced lockdown, masking, distancing, etc discipline is simply non-existent.

In Britain, which has good vaccination coverage so far, and politicians to lift restrictions very soon, it seems that a considerable number actually don't want them to be lifted.

[PearlJam]

Originally Posted by Aravind_M92

Now that new variants have come up, the delta plus and lambda ones, which are neither detectable on PCR nor trigger the immunity response would result in significant damage.

Could you please point to any articles/papers on this, for our benefit. Thanks!

[AZT]

Good article on why Sputnik hasn't received regulatory approval in the EU

European efforts to assess Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine stymied by data gaps

https://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSKBN2EJ0ET

[Aravind_M92]

Originally Posted by PearlJam

Could you please point to any articles/papers on this, for our benefit. Thanks!

I’m sorry. There are no proper documentation on Delta plus cases. The points on Delta plus are from discussions with my seniors and colleagues. Till date about 50 cases of Delta plus have been identified in India. Will post links if documentation are available

[poloman]

Looks like Kumbh and Elections happening in Indonesia now..! Cases going through the roof.

Countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam which got spared in first wave all got affected now. Every country will get affected in proportion to their population. USA, India, Indonesia, Brazil all are proving this true.
At least now hope people will stop playing politics or compare one country over another. There is no magic bullet with anyone. Discipline, covid appropriate behavior and to some extent vaccines are the only way out.

[DigitalOne]

Originally Posted by poloman

Looks like Kumbh and Elections happening in Indonesia now..! Cases going through the roof.

Countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam which got spared in first wave all got affected now. Every country will get affected in proportion to their population. USA, India, Indonesia, Brazil all are proving this true.
At least now hope people will stop playing politics or compare one country over another. There is no magic bullet with anyone. Discipline, covid appropriate behavior and to some extent vaccines are the only way out.

All these countries had 3-4 months of advance notice of the Delta variant. Yet this is the reality. Rightly said, that there is no magic bullet.

Meanwhile Israel has started administering third so-called "booster" shot of Pfizer vaccine.

Source : Reuters

[am1m]

https://www.thequint.com/news/webqoo...seen-in-manali

"Image From December 2020 Passed Off as Recent Crowd Seen in Manali"

(But who cares about facts like exact dates, most news sources just want to publish images that will go viral and allow most of us to virtue signal and blame other people! )

[V.Narayan]

India's Covid deaths 10 times higher than reported: Study

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...w/84579022.cms

India's 'official' death toll of ~414,000 is third after Brazil & USA. Experts have been casting doubts on India's death statistics blaming the poor health infrastructure and reporting systems rather than deliberate misinformation by the various Governments at the Centre and the States. India's 'official' death rate per million was less than half the world average and several times below comparable countries such as Brazil. While this study, quoted above, estimates the toll at between 3.4 to 4.7 million I personally think (in my own uneducated way) that this is an estimate much too much on the higher side. In comparison France's Research Institute for Development had estimated India's toll at 2.2 million. The USA based Institute for Health Metrics & Evaluation has estimated our toll at 1.25 million. Even with the lowest figure we are 3X higher than the 'official' Govt figure. 1.25 million. Even at this lowest figure it stands out as the single biggest health tragedy to face the nation in its life as an independent republic.

I've put down the data above. Each reader can draw his/her own conclusions on the depth of the toll and the degree of misrepresentation.

[msdivy]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

India's Covid deaths 10 times higher than reported: Study

NYT on May 25, 2021, claimed India could have had 70 Cr infections in the worst-case scenario during the 2nd wave - Just How Big Could India’s True Covid Toll Be?. I agree the worst-case infections happened. Deaths, can't estimate now. Maybe we need a census.

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

I've put down the data above. Each reader can draw his/her own conclusions on the depth of the toll and the degree of misrepresentation.

Now everybody has realized that Indians are NOT superhumans after all, when it comes to disease resistance. And everybody has realized that our country's hot weather has no effect on the virus. And the theory that developed countries are aging and hence might have higher death count/million does not float either. Because developing countries have terrible healthcare facilities, and that should cancel out the age factor of the population.

What this means is deaths per million in India/Bangladesh/Pakistan/Africa should be more or less the same as Europe/America.

Average covid deaths per million population in Europe/America - 1500 to 2100
Published covid deaths per million population in South Asia/Africa - 100 to 300
Conclusion: Actual Covid deaths in South Asia/Africa countries is between 7 to 15 times the "published" deaths.

Covid deaths per million population data is available at:
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

[v1p3r]

I'm just really glad that no one in our country died due to a lack of oxygen.

/s

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by msdivy

Maybe we need a census.

I wonder why the census exercise has not been started yet? Covid? Or will 2021 be the first year in over a century when we wont have a census.

[Gansan]

Originally Posted by v1p3r

I'm just really glad that no one in our country died due to a lack of oxygen.

/s

It happened during the height of the second wave. Even in Chennai, in some of the ambulances and other vehicles waiting in long lines outside hospitals, waiting for a bed to become vacant. In a few cases the oxygen ran out and the patient died,the instances were even reported in the TV news. What does the centre mean, "no states reported any deaths due to lack of Oxygen"? Do they conveniently take everything states report on face value?