Jump to content

Coronavirus (COVID-19)


Recommended Posts

52 minutes ago, bendan said:

Northern Italian weather may indeed be shite but the daily highs in Milan this week will be between 12 and 17 degrees. That's not far off a typical summer in Scotland. I admit that nightime temperatures would be better than Italy now, but as a general point I don't think it's nonsense. And as SlipperyP has pointed out, your stats are wrong. I think you're comparing the average temperature in Venice with the average daytime temperature in Inverness.

Seasonal viruses aren't just about temperature. We just have to hope that this particular one is seasonal.

Quote

 its name, “influenza” may be a reference to its original Italian name, influenza di freddo, meaning “influence of the cold” (4).

A common misconception is that the flu is caused by cold temperatures. However, the influenza virus is necessary to have the flu, so cold temperatures can only be a contributing factor. In fact, some people have argued that it is not cold temperatures that make the flu more common in the winter. Rather, they attest that the lack of sunlight or the different lifestyles people lead in winter months are the primary contributing factors. Here are the most popular theories about why the flu strikes in winter:

1) During the winter, people spend more time indoors with the windows sealed, so they are more likely to breathe the same air as someone who has the flu and thus contract the virus (3).

2) Days are shorter during the winter, and lack of sunlight leads to  low levels of vitamin D and melatonin, both of which require sunlight for their generation. This compromises our immune systems, which in turn decreases ability to fight the virus (3).

3) The influenza virus may survive better in colder, drier climates, and therefore be able to infect more people (3).

http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2014/the-reason-for-the-season-why-flu-strikes-in-winter/

Edited by welshbairn
Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, AL-FFC said:

see there was some scientist that said he made a cure for it 3 years ago but couldnt get the funding (sorry if this has been posted before first time i have looked at the thread).

Just looking at some stats and when you consider Dec17 - Mar 18  there were 23,137 deaths with the flu  so i can understand that corona virus is highly contageous but i think in the grand scheme of things theres a shit load of scare mongering by the media on this unfortunately its the older generation that become the main casualties of the flu.

 

Comparisons with the flu are pointless. Seen so many people on social media compare it. Flu has obviously killed more because it's been around longer and at the moment is more widespread. The key factors for future impact are how contagious it is and the death rate of those infected - which appears to be 2 or 3 times that of flu. Therefore if/when coronavirus 'catches up' in terms of its distribution it appears it will be far more deadly, plus there is no vaccine or base level of immunity that many people already have with the flu.

Plus, regardless of 'which is worse', another virus that could potentially kill thousands and make thousands more require hospital treatment in a short space of time will continue to cripple our health care system. Obviously the media thrive on fear and panic which is annoying, and all the people stock piling food etc are morons, but that doesn't mean that the virus isn't a serious problem if it is not dealt with properly. And that's not even considering the significant economic impact this is going to have.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think a lot of people just react to stories like this with comfort blanket responses - “look at all these panicky idiots... the worst thing is prejudice... actually it’s not as bad as flu”.

I also think that people who hand wave about it only being old people and those with underlying health conditions who are at risk should be put on a register and a close eye be kept in them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, Diamonds are Forever said:

Comparisons with the flu are pointless.

Not two flus are the same either, some versions are far more dangerous than others. I don't think that people who compare flu to a sore throat and a bit of the sniffles have ever had it. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, ICTChris said:

I also think that people who hand wave about it only being old people and those with underlying health conditions who are at risk should be put on a register and a close eye be kept in them.

This^ How anyone could be so brain dead as to think "well it won't kill me" aye don't bother washing your hands pal cause it will only kill the most vulnerable in society you just continue being a filthy self centred w****r.

 

Spoiler

Wanking can protect your immune system, Div is thankful his base of VLs will survive

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The weakest in society are the most vulnerable but then again it doesn't mean to say just because your relatively healthy your going to be ok. There is a lot of different angles from it at no point in any of our lives are we really safe from anything.  As with covid as the name suggest this is the 19th strain of it which seems to be the most contageous and deadly (probably because if you look on dettol it says it kills covid just how effective it is against the 19th strain is anyones guess.

Though i do think there is a bit of a mass panic over it can someone explain what bog roll is going to do to prevent it i can understand the dettol wipes but not the bog roll (i appreciate the sneezing part but there are also tissues or handkerchiefs)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The weakest in society are the most vulnerable but then again it doesn't mean to say just because your relatively healthy your going to be ok. There is a lot of different angles from it at no point in any of our lives are we really safe from anything.  As with covid as the name suggest this is the 19th strain of it which seems to be the most contageous and deadly (probably because if you look on dettol it says it kills covid just how effective it is against the 19th strain is anyones guess.

Though i do think there is a bit of a mass panic over it can someone explain what bog roll is going to do to prevent it i can understand the dettol wipes but not the bog roll (i appreciate the sneezing part but there are also tissues or handkerchiefs)
The 19 is for the year it was identified not the strain.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 minutes ago, AL-FFC said:

The weakest in society are the most vulnerable but then again it doesn't mean to say just because your relatively healthy your going to be ok. There is a lot of different angles from it at no point in any of our lives are we really safe from anything.  As with covid as the name suggest this is the 19th strain of it which seems to be the most contageous and deadly (probably because if you look on dettol it says it kills covid just how effective it is against the 19th strain is anyones guess.

Though i do think there is a bit of a mass panic over it can someone explain what bog roll is going to do to prevent it i can understand the dettol wipes but not the bog roll (i appreciate the sneezing part but there are also tissues or handkerchiefs)

Some people buy lots and lots of bog roll because they are worried that they will have to self-isolate and will run out. Other people then panic buy bog roll because the first lot are taking most of it and they are also worried they will run out. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, bennett said:

Only the staunch will survive...

Doesn't explain how you are supposed to use your elbow on a normal tap.

33 minutes ago, AL-FFC said:

The weakest in society are the most vulnerable but then again it doesn't mean to say just because your relatively healthy your going to be ok...

If you check the official stats on this, if you are under 50 it looks like you almost certainly will be though and even if you are under 70 and relatively healthy your odds are looking very good.

The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic was particularly bad because it sent the immune system of a lot of healthy younger people into overdrive in a way that killed them. No sign so far anything like that is happening with the Wuhan virus.

Think the big fear is not so much what is happening right now but more what could happen if it mutates into a more lethal strain before a vaccine can be developed given the human population has had no time to build up any immunity to it yet.

For example, many of todays over 50s didn't have much to worry about on the last swine flu pandemic in 2009 because they had caught it the last time around in the late 70s when they were still young and healthy and that helped to limit the mortality rate. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, LongTimeLurker said:

Doesn't explain how you are supposed to use your elbow on a normal tap.

If you check the official stats on this, if you are under 50 it looks like you almost certainly will be though and even if you are under 70 and relatively healthy your odds are looking very good.

The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic was particularly bad because it sent the immune system of a lot of healthy younger people into overdrive in a way that killed them. No sign so far anything like that is happening with the Wuhan virus.

Think the big fear is not so much what is happening right now but more what could happen if it mutates into a more lethal strain before a vaccine can be developed given the human population has had no time to build up any immunity to it yet.

For example, many of todays over 50s didn't have much to worry about on the last swine flu pandemic in 2009 because they had caught it the last time around in the late 70s when they were still young and healthy and that helped to limit the mortality rate. 

Think that was what i was angling at tbh it takes just one person under the age of 50 but then what other health issues that person i dare say i am throwing in more variables into it, like you say the biggest concern is it mutating to a stronger virus

Link to comment
Share on other sites



If you check the official stats on this, if you are under 50 it looks like you almost certainly will be though and even if you are under 70 and relatively healthy your odds are looking very good.

Alive and okay are two different things. The chances of a couple of weeks in hospital are still high enough for me to be pretty vigilant.

As for being relatively healthy, we need to remember that as a country Scotland is not very healthy. Male life expectancy in Glasgow is roughly a decade shorter than that of Italy where a big chunk of the stats are coming from. With all else equal you'd imagine our mortality rate would be higher than theirs.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, DiegoDiego said:


 


Alive and okay are two different things. The chances of a couple of weeks in hospital are still high enough for me to be pretty vigilant.

As for being relatively healthy, we need to remember that as a country Scotland is not very healthy. Male life expectancy in Glasgow is roughly a decade shorter than that of Italy where a big chunk of the stats are coming from. With all else equal you'd imagine our mortality rate would be higher than theirs.

It sounds fucking horrible even if you don't need to go to hospital. The English teacher in Wohan I quoted earlier described it as trying to breathe with 2 crumpled paper bags filled with broken twigs. I'm on medication at the mo that hammers my immune system so I'm going to follow all the advice to the letter. Thankfully following Clach it will be easy to still go while avoiding close contact with other people.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you get the virus and then get over it can you catch it again for a second time? If not then everyone who’s not got underlying health conditions should just go out there and get it then spend a few days in quarantine whilst the weaker members of our society stay well clear and we just wait for a fortnight for this entire thing to blow over.

 

ETA

 

 

E568E01A-5BDE-4A1C-BD0B-A41138648DC5.gif

Edited by throbber
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Worktheshaft said:
1 hour ago, AL-FFC said:
The weakest in society are the most vulnerable but then again it doesn't mean to say just because your relatively healthy your going to be ok. There is a lot of different angles from it at no point in any of our lives are we really safe from anything.  As with covid as the name suggest this is the 19th strain of it which seems to be the most contageous and deadly (probably because if you look on dettol it says it kills covid just how effective it is against the 19th strain is anyones guess.

Though i do think there is a bit of a mass panic over it can someone explain what bog roll is going to do to prevent it i can understand the dettol wipes but not the bog roll (i appreciate the sneezing part but there are also tissues or handkerchiefs)

The 19 is for the year it was identified not the strain.

Lol.

 

The World Health Organization announced on 11 February 2020 that "COVID-19" will be the official name of the disease. World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said "co" stands for "corona", "vi" for "virus" and "d" for "disease", while "19" was for the year, as the outbreak was first identified on 31 December 2019. Tedros said the name had been chosen to avoid references to a specific geographical location (i.e. China), animal species, or group of people in line with international recommendations for naming aimed at preventing stigmatization

 

 

Chinese Bat Flu would have been more memorable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So are they still saying 2% death rate?

The figures on bbc this morning suggest worldwide folk with it was 100,000 had it, 60,000 have recovered, and 3,500 have died.

That's a much higher death rate than 2% but presumably it's about those that have had it not were never officially diagnosed, and recovered without any hassle?

Also, will western treatments and healthcare systems do better at keeping people alive? Or is that factor negligible until they get a cure/vaccine?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...