[Health] The Infectious Diseases Thread

[GreenGoo]

Interesting. I'll take a look, thanks!

[Smoove_B]

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/expert ... FCEBU6F2A/

so... dog covid?

The mystery expands:

Very little is known about the illness, but veterinarians say it usually starts with a cough that might last for weeks, then progresses to pneumonia (visible on X-rays) and severe respiratory distress. The disease generally does not appear to respond to antibiotics, and in acute cases of pneumonia, poor outcomes are seen in as little as 24 to 36 hours, according to the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association, which has received more than 200 reports of potential cases.

“We don’t know what’s causing it, and we can’t say definitively how it’s being transmitted,” said Lindsey Ganzer, a veterinarian who owns the North Springs Veterinary Referral Center in Colorado. “We just don’t know enough right now.”

...

“We found no known viruses, bacteria or fungus that were known pathogens,” said David Needle, the researcher, who works as the pathology section chief at the New Hampshire Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Even more intriguing, a colleague who examined the samples found that, “in 21 of 30 initial animals we sequenced, there was this kind of funky little bacteria,” Needle said.

The team has found evidence of the same bacteria in sickly dogs around New England but has only recently started to collect samples from other parts of the United States. There is currently no evidence that humans or other animal species can catch the illness from the dogs.

“We’re not sure what has happened in New England is what’s happening in the rest of the country,” Needle said. “… But in three weeks, we will know so much more.”

First I'm seeing this:

“I would strongly recommend that people avoid boarding facilities, doggy day care, anything that’s going to be a high volume of dogs in a space,” Ganzer said. “I know it’s going to be hard with the holidays coming up, but trying to find somebody that will come to your house and take care of your dog is a better option.”

[Isgrimnur]

Bioweapon developed by the dogsitting cabal.

[Smoove_B]

Now is not the time to panic, however, now *is* the time to dial up surveillance as an undiagnosed pneumonia is causing problems in China:

With the outbreak of pneumonia in China, children's hospitals in Beijing, Liaoning and other places were overwhelmed with sick children, and schools and classes were on the verge of suspension. Parents questioned whether the authorities were covering up the epidemic.

In the early morning, Beijing Children's Hospital was still overcrowded with parents and children whose children had pneumonia and came to seek treatment. Mr. [W], a Beijing citizen: "Many, many are hospitalized. They don't cough and have no symptoms. They just have a high temperature (fever) and many develop pulmonary nodules."

The situation in Liaoning Province is also serious. The lobby of Dalian Children's Hospital is full of sick children receiving intravenous drips. There are also queues of patients at the traditional Chinese medicine hospitals and the central hospitals. A staff member of Dalian Central Hospital said: "Patients have to wait in line for 2 hours, and we are all in the emergency department and there are no general outpatient clinics."

Some school classes have even been canceled completely. Not only are all students sick, but teachers are also infected with pneumonia. ...

[Smoove_B]

Word on the street is that it's possibly mycoplasma (link to a 2022 study covering 2015-2020) causing the current increase in infections:

MP is one of the important contributors to the pneumonia epidemic in autumn and winter in Beijing.

What has changed and why mycoplasma are causing more cases is certainly something to explore.

[Isgrimnur]

[LordMortis]

My medical is finally on the first phase of kicking. Off to do a walk in for a chest X Ray tomorrow to find out if I really really have TB. Here's to hoping it's covered properly without too much hassle. Then to wait for results and to make sure everyone in the food chain to look at it and send me a bill knows my insurance has changed. Then to figure out if I need to see an ID specialist and what that means. The internet says I might be on a year's antibiotics. And we all know if you read it on the Internet it must be true.

[stessier]

My medical is finally on the first phase of kicking. Off to do a walk in for a chest X Ray tomorrow to find out if I really really have TB. Here's to hoping it's covered properly without too much hassle. Then to wait for results and to make sure everyone in the food chain to look at it and send me a bill knows my insurance has changed. Then to figure out if I need to see an ID specialist and what that means. The internet says I might be on a year's antibiotics. And we all know if you read it on the Internet it must be true.

A year might be the minimum - it can take 27 months for the hard cases. Not sure if you know who John Green is (Author, Youtuber, probably at this point a TB expert), but he has some interesting youtube videos on the subject if you have time.

[LordMortis]

Once I hear back about my XRay results, I may just have to look in to it.

[stessier]

Once I hear back about my XRay results, I may just have to look in to it.

To be clear, most of it is the social medical health aspects around the disease - how unequal access to healthcare leads to very poor results in much of the world. But there are some statistics thrown in as well.

[LordMortis]

Once I hear back about my XRay results, I may just have to look in to it.

To be clear, most of it is the social medical health aspects around the disease - how unequal access to healthcare leads to very poor results in much of the world. But there are some statistics thrown in as well.

That will make me feel so much better after sitting on a diagnosis a month after a blood draw. But yeah, I read that when I was reading about TB this past month while sitting at home, only venturing out grocery shop. Thank goodness most of the stigma of masking is gone these past few years.

[Max Peck]

At one point my plan B for trolling anti-maskers was to print "Relax, it's just TB" on my mask.

[Smoove_B]

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/expert ... FCEBU6F2A/

so... dog covid?

The mystery expands:

Not sure if this explains all the cases, but it does seem strange:

A mysterious dog illness spreading across the United States is being treated with Paxlovid, the drug to treat COVID-19, by a Cass County veterinarian.

Cash, the bulldog, was struggling to breathe when his owner, Ryan Knowles, brought him to Lyman Veterinary Clinic. In mere hours, Cash's condition progressed, worrying Knowles' family if their beloved pet would survive.

Cash was diagnosed with the mysterious dog illness spreading across the United States. There is no known treatment for the disease that is resistant to antibiotics.

...

Days later, Cash made a recovery. Imaging showed inflammation in his lungs was subsiding, and Knowles said his dog just seemed more himself.

Since Cash's recovery, Swain prescribed the drug to other dogs with severe cases of the illness. Cash's recovery may have been coincidental, but Swain intends to keep testing his theory.

I guess it won't be surprising if the variant "soup" that's been circulating for 3+ years at this point has somehow figured out how to make an easier jump from humans to dogs and cause them problems.

[LordMortis]

You're a good kid. Make me some ham and eggs.

Spoiler:

[Smoove_B]

But yeah, I read that when I was reading about TB this past month while sitting at home, only venturing out grocery shop. Thank goodness most of the stigma of masking is gone these past few years.

You haven't been hanging out in casinos, have you? Like between 2018 and 2023?

The Contra Costa County Health Department has identified about a dozen cases of tuberculosis (TB), and contacted 300 more people so far who may have been exposed in the last five years. The health department is also working closely with the casino to test and screen staff members.

“We are making this recommendation now because there is new evidence that TB may have spread among people who spent time at the casino from 2018 to 2023,” said Contra Costa County’s Deputy Health Officer Meera Sreenivasan, M.D. in a statement.

[LordMortis]

I guess sanitariums and urgency aren't what they used to be. Dunno if this is COVID fallout, but here I am. I finally got a chest XRay on Friday. I finally called to follow up when no one has contacted me. My XRays are clean and they are referring me to ID specialist anyway. Why they couldn't start the referral process at the same time they started the XRay process if the end result was see an ID specialist anyway :idunno: The only quarantine I've under was self imposed. No referral is in my hands yet. I guess they'll mail me one because everyone has a different portal even within the same hospital system and none of them talk to each other.

But to your question, even pre-2020 isolation, I hadn't been to a casino since maybe 2016, maybe longer. I went to a local casino a few times with chaosraven, idunno how many years ago. Before that, it may have been when I met up with Trent, RM9, ND, and Octavious years and years ago in Atlantic City. That Griswaldesque kick in the nuts (No give and take at all. Lost about $1400 in matter of hours. Just giving it away $100 to $200 at a time and there is nothing to do AC when you're not gambling) left such a bad taste in my mouth, I kinda wandered away from gambling.

5 years and after a mass air cleaning move is a long time to have let that bacteria fester and move back and forth. A dozen cases seems like nothing.

[gilraen]

My XRays are clean and they are referring me to ID specialist anyway.

I don't remember if you already mentioned it, but did they do a second blood test (confirmation assay)? QuantiFERON Gold testing has a fairly significant false-positive rate.

Since you have no symptoms, you don't have active TB, and XRays wouldn't show anything if you have latent TB anyway (and you are also not contagious in that scenario, which may explain why no one is considering it particularly urgent).

Course of treatment for latent TB is at least 3-4 months of antibiotics, so if I were you, I'd insist on another blood draw.

[LordMortis]

My XRays are clean and they are referring me to ID specialist anyway.

I don't remember if you already mentioned it, but did they do a second blood test (confirmation assay)? QuantiFERON Gold testing has a fairly significant false-positive rate.

Since you have no symptoms, you don't have active TB, and XRays wouldn't show anything if you have latent TB anyway (and you are also not contagious in that scenario, which may explain why no one is considering it particularly urgent).

Course of treatment for latent TB is at least 3-4 months of antibiotics, so if I were you, I'd insist on another blood draw.

Nope. Just one test.

All of what you are saying rings true to me but ringing true to me and being told what to do by people who are supposed to know are different things. Google and/or what people say on a BBS are not a substitute for medical professionals. As example, one thing I still absolutely cannot do until medical professionals sign off on it, is resume my inflectra infusions.

[gilraen]

When I immigrated to the US, all arrivals were supposed to get a number of medical tests, including a TB test. This was in the 90s before the IGRA blood test, so all they could do was the PPD skin test. Pretty much all Eastern-European (and many other) immigrants/refugees at the time had received the BCG vaccine in infancy, which means the skin test was ALWAYS positive (since it reacts to antibodies that are introduced through vaccine same as they would through disease). But the INS-referral clinics just followed their script and prescribed the full course of antibiotics to every single person who tested positive. Knowing that 99% of them didn't have TB, and taking those kinds of antibiotics for 6+ months with no follow-up could do serious liver damage. These are medical professionals that are "supposed to know".

And then, of course, we followed our own "script", where I would throw the prescription in the trash and call the clinic a day later and tell them that the medication was making me nauseous and I will stop taking it. And they knew, they didn't even argue, just said "ok".

So color me unimpressed.

Also, I work with software that tracks, among other things, TB testing among hospital employees. The proper workflows always involve confirmation testing after a positive blood test (they may do XRays too but always a second blood test and symptom review). Now, if your doctor refuses to sign off on your immunosuppressive therapy unless you receive treatment for latent TB (whether or not you actually have it and/or want the treatment) - that's...different, I suppose.

[LordMortis]

As a follow up, I drove to the hospital yesterday and pushed for follow up. I got 2nd hand (nurse) confirmation that clean XRay means latent TB and my referral to the Infectious Disease physician, who can't see me until the 19th. So I'm resuming my version of normal as best I can. Infusions are still on hold until ??? from ID.

[LordMortis]

Also, I work with software that tracks, among other things, TB testing among hospital employees. The proper workflows always involve confirmation testing after a positive blood test (they may do XRays too but always a second blood test and symptom review). Now, if your doctor refuses to sign off on your immunosuppressive therapy unless you receive treatment for latent TB (whether or not you actually have it and/or want the treatment) - that's...different, I suppose.

Saw the ID doctor today. He said one of the tests was very high positive and one was negative. He said, due to the TB being latent, if I didn't have a suppressed immune system they would recommend doing nothing. But because my immune system is suppressed I should do one of 4 things. Take a second blood test and wait for results to see if it's a false positive (which is what I did). Or go straight to taking 3 month, 4 month, or 6 month course of medications. The longer the course, the less potential for damage to liver and less probable side effects with negative drug interactions. If the blood test is negative, I'm done. I don't even need to go back. If it's positive, we revisit the different antibiotic treatments. Infusions remain on hold.

[AWS260]

Happy anniversary, everyone.

[Isgrimnur]

Polar bear dies from bird flu as H5N1 spreads across globe

The death was confirmed in December by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. “This is the first polar bear case reported, for anywhere,” Dr Bob Gerlach, Alaska’s state veterinarian, told the Alaska Beacon.

It was found near Utqiagvik, one of the northernmost communities in Alaska, two years after this latest strain was detected in North America. Gerlach said it was likely the bear was scavenging on the carcasses of infected birds.
...[The current outbreak of the highly infectious variant of H5N1 – which started in 2021 – is estimated to have killed millions of wild birds. Globally, thousands of mammals have also died of the virus, including black bears and brown bears. Bald eagles, foxes and kittiwakes are among the species to have died of the virus in Alaska in recent months.

“It’s been in Antarctica and now it’s in the high Arctic in mammals – it’s horrifying,” Diana Bell, emeritus professor of conservation biology at the University of East Anglia, told the Guardian.

“And yet I’m not surprised – in the last couple of years the list of mammals killed has become enormous. It’s killed such a wide range of predatory and scavenging mammals now, this isn’t just a poultry disease.

[Smoove_B]

Measles outbreak in Philly is spreading:

Five children attending a day-care center in Northeast Philadelphia have been sickened with measles, health officials said this week, confirming two more cases there.

In all, the city has identified eight cases in a growing outbreak.

Six of the people infected have been hospitalized to treat the infection, and all later discharged. The outbreak began in Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in early December and spread to a day-care center on Castor Avenue.

How did this happen?

In Philadelphia, the outbreak began last month with the hospitalization of an infant at CHOP who was recently in a country where the virus is more common. It took two days before the infant developed the rash characteristic to measles, and by that time, other patients were infected. They included an infant who was too young to get vaccinated, an unvaccinated older child, and the older child’s unvaccinated parent.

Before Christmas, one of the children with measles was in violation of quarantine guidelines and attended the Multicultural Education Station Day Care at 6919 Castor Ave. Since then, four other children at that day-care center have been diagnosed with the disease.

Of note:

Before the measles vaccines was available, 400 to 500 people died of the virus each year in the United States.

How fucking quaint. Hey kids, ask your elders the amount of effort we went through to eliminate measles in the United States over 500 deaths a year.

[stessier]

Given how we feel about 500+ deaths a DAY, I'm not sure that moves the needle.

[Smoove_B]

I guess my sarcasm didn't translate well.

Also, if we can only expect the measles to kill 500 people a year in the modern era, then I'm not confident we're going to do a damn thing about why it's surging again.

[Smoove_B]

As expected, it's has jumped across the border into NJ; no known connection (yet) between the kids:

A Camden County [NJ] child tested positive for measles, health officials said Friday night. The child visited two health-care facilities and a day-care center, and officials are currently contacting people who were exposed.

The source of the child’s measles infection is unknown. County health officials could not say whether it is related to the outbreak in Philadelphia at this time but the investigation continues.

...

The Camden County child was not fully vaccinated or otherwise immune against measles.

On the one hand, it would be helpful to connect these two and figure out what happened. On the other hand, if there are two separate and completely unconnected cases of measles spreading in different states? Trouble.

[dbt1949]

It came from monkeys.

[Max Peck]

And now for something completely different (i.e. not horrible news for a change):

Cameroon starts world-first malaria mass vaccine rollout

The world's first routine vaccine programme against malaria has started in Cameroon, in a move projected to save thousands of children's lives across Africa.

The symbolic first jab was given to a baby girl named Daniella at a health facility near Yaoundé on Monday.

Every year 600,000 people die of malaria in Africa, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Children under five make up at least 80% of those deaths.

Cameroon is offering the RTS,S vaccine free of charge to all infants up to the age of six months old.

Patients require a total of four doses. Health officials say these will be given at the same time as other routine childhood vaccines to make it easier for parents.

It comes after successful pilot campaigns in Kenya, Ghana and Malawi - where the vaccine caused a 13% drop in malaria deaths in children of eligible age, says Unicef.

The jab is known to be effective in at least 36% of cases, according to US researchers, meaning it could save over one in three lives.

While the rollout is undoubtedly a relief and a life-saver, its relatively low efficacy rate means that it is not a "silver bullet", argues Willis Akhwale at End Malaria Council Kenya.

But for medics it is an important additional tool in the fight against malaria alongside mosquito nets and malaria tablets. Using all three together potentially gives children 90% protection from malaria, one UK-led study estimates.

[Smoove_B]

Every movie about zombies is now complete fiction:

Up to 75% of adults have concealed an infectious disease from others in order not to miss work, travel, or social events, according to a new study in Psychological Science.

The article, by researchers at the University of Michigan, is based on four studies and surveys given to 4,110 survey participants. All surveys were given after March 2020, when the COVID-10 pandemic began, and initial survey participants included 399 university healthcare employees.

...

"Healthy people forecasted that they would be unlikely to hide harmful illnesses—those that spread easily and have severe symptoms—but actively sick people reported high levels of concealment regardless of how harmful their illness was to others," said Wilson N. Merrell, a doctoral candidate and lead author of the study, in a press release from the Association for Psychological Science, which publishes the journal.

[LordMortis]

Having lived through the last five years, I find it hard to believe it's only 75%. Though, part of concealment in my small world view is denial on how infectious they really are.

[LawBeefaroni]

I think it's unfair to only attribute death to measles. Its so much more well rounded than just deaths. Approx 1 in 5 are hospitalized, 1 in 20 get pneumonia, and one in 1000 or so get encephalitis. Oh, and long term, you have a low, but not zero, chance of developing subacute sclerosing panencephalitis.

Now that's with today's low numbers and high vax rate. Give it a wider spread and it will undoubtedly pick off more of the vulnerable population.

[Kraken]

Measles was a childhood rite of passage for my generation, along with chicken pox and mumps. I had all three. Looks like it will become normal for the next generation, too.

Are mumps and the pox still around?

[gilraen]

I got chicken pox when I was 15. Do not recommend.

[Smoove_B]

Are mumps and the pox still around?

Yes, though still being controlled by vaccinations. Measles will be the first to reappear as you need higher vaccine coverage in the population to prevent spread. In addition, people like us (olde folks) that might not have had a booster in decades are potentially able to get and spread measles...again. Of course if you're completely unvaccinated that's really bad, but if you had prior vaccinations, that's better. I'm sensing a theme here.

What you really want to ask about is Diphtheria. If you start seeing an increase of cases of that happening in the United States, things are definitely changing for the worse.

The 2024 report probably won't be out for another month, but you can look at the 2023 report here (if that type of thing interests you).

[gilraen]

Diphtheria is weird, though, because lots of people are getting vaccinated against it "accidentally", when getting a tetanus shot after an accident or injury. "Tetanus shot" being either a T/Td (tetanus/diphtheria) or Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) vaccination - no such thing as a standalone tetanus-only vaccine. The most rabid antivaxxers will refuse a tetanus shot too (I remember reading the story of a kid in Oregon getting tetanus a few years ago because his parents didn't vaccinate him). But your regular run-of-the-mill nutjobs probably don't even think twice about it, in their mind tetanus shot is something you just get when treating an open wound.

[Smoove_B]

That's a good point - and maybe what is keeping it in check here in the United States - higher than average ER visits and aggressive doctors that that administering a TDap to anyone over the age of 25 when they cut or break something.

[em2nought]

Millions slipping over the border, and it's the Ted Kaczynski's out in a cabin in the deep woods who you're worried about getting the pox from.
Who or whom?



"A pox upon me"

[hepcat]

I heard billions were coming over the border. And that Taylor Swift is to blame.

Covfefe!

[Punisher]

TE: Hiding illness for work
I'd bet it's at a rate of 100% for retail workers although, they really don't need to hide it as every retail job I've worked didn't care how sick you were or what you wrre sick with as long as you showed up for your shift.
Management would actively try to convince you to come in.