The Road goes ever on and on ... Day 475 (975)

A study published in JAMA Network Open reports that half of patients are still experiencing at least one post-COVID symptom two years after the acute infection. Hospitalization during the infection made no difference. The study looked at almost 700 patients who were infected during the first wave. Of those patients, 59.7 percent of the ones who had been hospitalized and 67.5 percent of those who had not still had at least one symptom two years later. The most prevalent symptoms were fatigue (44.7 percent of hospitalized patients; 47.7 percent of non-hospitalized patients), pain including headache (35.8 hospitalized; 29.9 percent not), and memory loss (20 percent hospitalized; 15.9 percent not). In other words, the severity of a COVID infection did not appear to be a risk factor for the development of long COVID symptoms. One drawback of the study is that there were no non-infected control subjects. There was also no control for vaccination status, though there was no vaccine available during the first wave. Symptoms were self-reported via a telephone interview. 

In Guangzhou, China, crowds broke down street barriers in a protest against the zero COVID policy. The deputy head of the district admitted, "We have also realized many of our shortcomings." In a similar protest, signs were hung on highway overpasses in Beijing during the Party Conference in October. "Say no to COVID test, yes to food. No to lockdown, yes to freedom."

The triple threat of viruses is growing. There are hints that RSV may be peaking, but that may not mean anything. It normally peaks in January, and it is not clear what effect the coming holidays might have. Flu arrived earlier and is rising more steeply than in previous years including non-pandemic ones. There is a lot of regional variability; Virginia, my home, is in the highest level. Results from South America, where flu season is ending, suggest that this year's influenza vaccine is a winner in terms of the strains of flu out there. Unfortunately, only 28 percent of Americans have gotten flu shots this year, 10 percentage points lower than was usual before the pandemic. Finally, there are over 300 COVID variants circulating; not one is dominating on a global level. Having three viruses so active at the same time may put an undue strain on hospitals. It also raises the probability of co-infections, including one person's having all three simultaneously. Masks, anyone?