COVID-19 News and Updates
Hello all,
Nina Duggan here with the latest COVID-19 news and updates.
This week we will be discussing the flu season and Thanksgiving, the recent request for an emergency declaration on RSV in the U.S., and the discovery of potential biomarkers for long COVID.
COVID Communication:
Tips for a Healthy Thanksgiving
As we are set to have our third Thanksgiving since the start of the pandemic here in the United States, there is good news in that we now have many tools available to use to help us gather more safely with our family members for the holidays.
Ways that you can ensure safe holiday gatherings:
· Make sure you are up to date on your vaccinations (especially the bivalent booster and flu vaccine)
· Test before gathering: ideally take two tests 24 hours apart for the best results
· Ensure adequate ventilation: experts and discovering more and more just how important this is to reducing spread. Gathering outdoors is the safest option, but where that isn’t possible open windows, open doors, use fans, use HEPA air filters, and limit the capacity of indoor gatherings.
· If someone in your family is particularly vulnerable, it can be a good idea to revisit the notion of a “bubble” for the holiday season. For example, only going unmasked with the individuals you are spending the holiday season with.
· If you are sick, make sure you do not attend a gathering, especially if you know those who are vulnerable will be attending
This flu season is proving to be much more severe, with COVID still circulating and RSV on the rise and overwhelming hospitals early on. It’s vitally important that we do what we can to protect the most vulnerable in our families and broader communities from getting sick.
See this CNN Health full article on Thanksgiving precautions for further reading
COVID in the News:
State of COVID-19 in Maine
Overall COVID-19 is decreasing in Maine, with cases, hospitalizations, ICU admissions from COVID, and deaths from COVID all down over the past week. Test positivity is hovering at around 5.8% on average across the state.
Children’s Healthcare Professionals Request Emergency Declaration
On Monday, November 14, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) officially requested that the federal government declare a health emergency in order to support a national response to the startling uptick in pediatric respiratory viruses this fall, namely Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and influenza. Pediatric ICU beds continue to fill up across the country, with many states already at or past capacity (including Maine).
Rates of hospitalizations for adults for flu and RSV are already abnormally high this year, arriving earlier and hitting the country harder than usual. According to the CDC, cumulative hospitalization rates from the flu have not been this high at this point in the season in over a decade, and RSV hospitalization is ten times higher than it typically is at this point in the season.
This comes on top of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is still circulating throughout the country. With low levels of uptake of the new bivalent booster, particularly among the pediatric age group, experts are understandably concerned for the coming months. The good news is that precautionary measures taken for COVID also help prevent other respiratory viruses (like RSV and the flu). Making sure you’re vaccinated, washing hands often, wearing a mask, and testing are all key tools that help both children and adults alike stay healthy.
Links and Sources: CNN Children’s health leader’s call for emergency response as respiratory viruses continue to spread across the US; American Academy of Pediatrics Pediatric Healthy Care Organizations Call for National Response on RSV and Flu Serge.
Potential Biomarkers Identified for Diagnosing Long COVID
Renowned immunologist Dr. Akiko Iwasaki and her collaborators released some early findings in the world of diagnosing long COVID earlier this year. They have taken the first steps towards diagnosing long COVID, a condition characterized by persisting symptoms of COVID-19 infections. These symptoms can sometimes be quite debilitating, significantly decreasing quality of life and taking people out of work, yet there has been little that people suffering from long COVID could do to get an official diagnosis.
Following their study, Dr. Iwasaki and her team were able to identify distinct biomarkers and immunological changes unique to long COVID patients. This research is still in the early stages but has the possibility to not only help patients get a diagnosis and any aid that may follow it, but also potential treatments.
One of the major takeaways from the study was that patients were more than able to accurately self-report symptoms of long COVID, and as such able to accurately predict their own long COVID cases.
For an excellent synopsis of this study and the released data, check out this summary by Science Whiz Liz and Unambiguous Science.
Featured in the Field:
AAP-Healthy Children
Healthyhildren.org is a website run by the American Academy of Pediatrics specifically for parents. They have been sharing a plethora of valuable information on everything from COVID and masks to RSV and the flu.
They can be found on their website as well as on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter.
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If you or anyone you know have questions or concerns about COVID-19 or the available vaccines please call or text our COVID-19 Peer Support Line at 207-271-6023, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.