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posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:05AM   Printer-friendly
from the viral-compendium dept.

Coronavirus Roundup

Both c0lo and takyon write in with today's coronavirus collection of stories:

Why are children 'missing' from coronavirus outbreak cases?

So far, it seems that youth protects against the worst effects of 2019-nCoV.

The outbreak of a new coronavirus in China has killed more than 900 people, but one group has escaped with minimal damage: children.

Youth can certainly contract the virus. Among the infected are at least two newborns, according to Chinese health officials. But few children are among those sick enough to be diagnosed with the coronavirus, according to an article published Feb. 5 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. According to the data analyzed in that article — and numbers are changing quickly as the outbreak evolves — the median age of patients skews older, between 49 and 56 years old.

It's not entirely clear why children seem to be escaping the worst effects of the virus, dubbed 2019-nCoV. But a similar pattern holds for many infectious diseases, from the familiar, such as chickenpox and measles, to the newly emerged, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), doctors say.

Claims coronavirus could spread through the air. Eight variants isolated and two genome sequences produced

According to a report in local news site China Daily, the deputy head of the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau, Zeng Qun, revealed the potentially troubling development over the weekend at a media briefing concerning government efforts to contain the virus' spread.

Mr Qun said transmission routes of the coronavirus included direct transmission, contact transmission and aerosol transmission.
  'Aerosol transmission refers to the mixing of the virus with droplets in the air to form aerosols, which causes infection after inhalation, according to medical experts,' he said.
  'As such, we have called on the public to raise their awareness of the prevention and control of the disease caused by family gatherings.'

While Associate Professor Ian Mackay, a virologist at the Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre, told newsGP he would not be surprised if coronavirus could be transmitted by an airborne route, he said there is 'zero public-reviewed experimental evidence' to support the claim.
...
Meanwhile, doctors in New South Wales have reportedly made a 'research breakthrough', according to the state's Health Minister Brad Hazzard. Minister Hazzard said extensive testing on an isolated patient at Westmead Hospital has allowed scientists to isolate the virus and study eight variants, producing two full genome sequences in the process.

Scientists worry coronavirus could evolve into something worse than flu, says quarantined expert

The seasonal flu has killed more people than the coronavirus, but that is not why the outbreak is so concerning, infectious disease expert Ian Lipkin told CNBC on Monday.

"It's a new virus. We don't know much about it, and therefore we're all concerned to make certain it doesn't evolve into something even worse," said Lipkin, speaking from his New York home on a 14-day self-quarantine after traveling to China to work on the outbreak.
...
Lipkin, who worked on the 2003 SARS outbreak, said it is true that seasonal flu presents its own kind of problem, noting that globally up to 650,000 people die from it each year.
So far, more than 900 people who had the coronavirus have died.

The coronavirus is "not nearly as challenging for us as influenza" when seen strictly by the number of deaths, Lipkin said.

But that is not the only lens through which the outbreak should be viewed, he cautioned.

"We don't know much about its transmissibility. We don't necessarily have accurate diagnostic tests. And we don't really know where the outbreak is going to go," Lipkin said on CNBC's "The Exchange."

"The only thing we have at present, absent vaccines or drugs, is containment," he added.

Coronavirus affects supply chains

With China's unique position in the global economy, 2019-nCoV has the potential to seriously disrupt manufacturing. It may seem crass to worry about something as trivial as this when people are suffering, and of course our hearts go out to the people who are directly affected by this virus and its aftermath. But just like businesses have plans for contingencies such as this, so too should the hacking community know what impact something like 2019-nCoV will have on supply chains that we've come to depend on.

Chinese automakers retool production lines to make face masks

A shortage of face masks has prompted Chinese companies from car manufacturers to energy providers to start making their own to help fight the coronavirus.

Auto companies including BYD Co. have reconfigured production lines to churn out masks that can help block particles and germs, with petroleum giant Sinopec and iPhone assembler Foxconn joining the fray. Some are also dabbling in disinfectant and goggles.


Original Submission #1Original Submission #2

Related Stories

Coronavirus Roundup (Feb. 17) 65 comments

This story is a roundup of several virus stories that were submitted over the past few days. This is a changing story, so some of what is posted below may have changed since the time of their originally being published.

What's in a name? One significant change is what the names are for everything. There is the question of what to call the actual virus and then what to call it when someone is infected.

Virus: The virus by itself is now officially referred to as SARS-CoV-2 (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2). It was formerly known as 2019-nCoV (2019 novel coronavirus).

Disease: Those who have been infected by this virus are said to have a disease. The name of the disease is coronavirus disease (COVID-19) which is also known as 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease.

More details are available on Wikipedia.

The six submitted stories are presented below.

NIH Official Says Coronavirus 'on the Verge' of Becoming Global Pandemic Unless Containment Improves

NIH official says coronavirus 'on the verge' of becoming global pandemic unless containment becomes 'more successful':

Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CBS's "Face The Nation" that multiple person-to-person transmissions need to occur in multiple countries in order to reach the pandemic threshold.

[...] "Technically speaking, the [World Health Organization] wouldn't be calling this a global pandemic. But it certainly is on the verge of that happening reasonably soon unless containment is more successful than it is right now," he said.

CoronaVirus (SARS-CoV-2) Roundup 2020-03-12 93 comments

Even though it has only been a short while since our last round-up there are 22 separate stories merged into this round-up. Many report duplicate news but, nevertheless, we have tried to distill the important elements of each submission.

Firstly, there is some confusion regarding the actual names that are reported for the virus, the disease that it causes, and names frequently seen in media reporting. From https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-020-0695-z:

The present outbreak of a coronavirus-associated acute respiratory disease called coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) is the third documented spillover of an animal coronavirus to humans in only two decades that has resulted in a major epidemic. The Coronaviridae Study Group (CSG) of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, which is responsible for developing the classification of viruses and taxon nomenclature of the family Coronaviridae, has assessed the placement of the human pathogen, tentatively named 2019-nCoV, within the Coronaviridae. Based on phylogeny, taxonomy and established practice, the CSG recognizes this virus as forming a sister clade to the prototype human and bat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronaviruses (SARS-CoVs) of the species Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus, and designates it as SARS-CoV-2.

In order to facilitate communication, the CSG proposes to use the following naming convention for individual isolates: SARS-CoV-2/host/location/isolate/date. While the full spectrum of clinical manifestations associated with SARS-CoV-2 infections in humans remains to be determined, the independent zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 highlights the need for studying viruses at the species level to complement research focused on individual pathogenic viruses of immediate significance. This will improve our understanding of virus–host interactions in an ever-changing environment and enhance our preparedness for future outbreaks.

There is much more information at the link provided.

Secondly, as this is a fusion of stories received over the last week or so take all quoted figures of casualties as possibly out-of-date. At the time of merging these stories (12 Mar 20) there have been 127,863 confirmed cases world-wide resulting in 4,717 deaths. 68,309 people have already recovered with the remainder either in self-imposed or advisory isolation, in basic hospital care and a relatively small number in critical care. The pandemic has affected 116 countries/regions. Source: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6 - a graphical display produced by Johns Hopkins University (JHU).

Many countries have taken emergency measures to restrict travel or large gatherings of people. As this is a very fluid situation we suggest you refer to the media of any specific country in which you have an interest. President Trump has banned transatlantic air travel from countries in mainland Europe to the USA from Friday 2020-03-13 at 23:59 (no timezone stated) for a period initially of 30 days, and air travel within Europe is also significantly disrupted.

SoylentNews Community -- How has SAR-CoV-2 (Coronavirus) / COVID-19 Affected You? 325 comments

A lot has already happened this year. SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) which can cause COVID-19 (COronaVIrus Disease 2019) has been making headlines shortly after it was first reported. The first cases were reported to WHO (World Health Organization) on 2019-12-31. The virus spread. It began as an epidemic in China . The world watched apprehensively. Reports surfaced of cases in other countries and the the apprehension grew. For many folk, it turned to fear when it was upgraded to a pandemic: WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 11 March 2020: "We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic."

We have seen increasing efforts to stem the spread of the disease. Efforts have run the gamut. Closing of borders. Cancellation of sporting events. Conferences cancelled. Churches and other places of worship also closed. Schools closed. Panic buying of household goods and supplies. Supply chain disruptions affecting manufacturers. Restaurant, bars, and other such establishments closed. Work-from-home policies established and enacted.

The changes have been many, widespread, and continuing.

Reading about all the ways that "other people" have been affected is one thing. It seems different, somehow, when it hits closer to home and affects us directly. With many of our usual social activities curtailed or cancelled, it is easy to begin isolating and lose perspective. SoylentNews arose from a troubled period (the SlashCott) and a community has formed from that challenging period.

How have you been affected? Have you been infected? Had a family member or friend who was? Helped neighbors who are struggling? Hunkering down and isolating? (In a basement is optional.) Are you suddenly working from home and finding it challenging to manage your time? Still working on site, but now have a faster commute due to all the other people staying home? Catching up on watching TV shows? Reading more SoylentNews? How has your life changed?

From a somewhat different perspective, how have others helped you to cope... and how have you been able to help others? One of the potential impacts of social distancing is isolation and depression. I count myself fortunate, indeed, to have served this site for over 6 years and for all the people I have gotten to know, here. For those who may not be aware, SoylentNews has its own IRC (Internet Relay Chat) server. Feel free to drop in to #Soylent and just say "Hi!"

Social distancing is permanent when you're dead. So, practice good hygiene and stay safe.

Previously (oldest first):
China Battles Coronavirus Outbreak: All the Latest Updates
2019-nCoV Coronavirus Story Roundup
Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Roundup
Coronavirus Roundup
Coronavirus Roundup (Feb. 17)
Roundup of Stories about the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus and COVID-19 Disease
COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2 - CoronaVirus) Roundup
CoronaVirus (SARS-CoV-2) Roundup 2020-03-12
Working from Home: Lessons Learned Over 20 Years


Original Submission

2020-03-25 Coronavirus (COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2) Story Roundup 85 comments

This story presents a roundup of a selection of our COVID-19, SARS-Cov-2, coronavirus story submissions. Some stories have been omitted because they were a duplicate, outdated, superseded, and sometimes just as a matter of keeping the size of these roundups managable. etc. (Before thinning, this story contained over 16,500 words (excluding HTML markup) and that excluded what is contained in this introduction.

If you are not interested in this coverage, then please ignore this story; another story will appear presently. Otherwise, please see the rest of the story below the fold:

2020-03-30 Coronavirus (COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2) Story Roundup 108 comments

This story is a merge of 30 story submissions. Given that it was well over 17,000 words of original source material (excluding HTML markup!), a great deal of pruning was performed to get it to a manageable size. I strongly encourage folks to read the linked articles for more information.

For latest statistics, and finer granularity, see https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/.

As of 20200330_151936 UTC, it reported these world-wide totals:

  • Coronavirus Cases: 743,081
  • Deaths: 35,347
  • Recovered: 157,046
  • Active Cases:
    • 550,688 (Currently Infected Patients)
    • 522,206 (95%) in Mild Condition
    • 28,482 (5%) Serious or Critical
  • Closed Cases:
    • 192,393 Cases which had an outcome
    • 157,046 (82%) Recovered / Discharged
    • 35,347 (18%) Deaths

Stories appear below the fold.

2020-06-15 Roundup of COVID-19 (SARS-CoV2, Coronavirus) Stories 153 comments

World-wide data as of: 20200615_140637 UTC:

total_count 8,028,325
closed_count 4,584,407
closed_deaths_count 436,277
closed_deaths_percent (10%)
closed_recovered_count 4,148,130
closed_recovered_percent (90%)
active_count 3,443,918
active_mild_count 3,389,380
active_mild_percent (98%)
active_serious_count 54,538
active_serious_percent (2%)
total_deaths 436,277

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  • (Score: 5, Informative) by FatPhil on Tuesday February 11 2020, @11:41AM (9 children)

    by FatPhil (863) <reversethis-{if.fdsa} {ta} {tnelyos-cp}> on Tuesday February 11 2020, @11:41AM (#956799) Homepage

    China changes counting scheme to lower Wuhan virus numbers [taiwannews.com.tw]

    China stops counting confirmed asymptomatic patients in Wuhan virus statistics

    TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The daily reports of Wuhan virus infections in China will likely begin to drop as the government has decided to stop counting patients who test positive for the disease but do not exhibit symptoms as "confirmed cases."

    In a notice issued by China's National Health Commission (NHC) on Feb. 6, it wrote that the classification of new Wuhan virus infections will be divided into four categories: "suspected cases," "clinically diagnosed cases," "confirmed cases," and "positive tests." Among these, "positive tests" refers to "asymptomatic infected patients" who test positive for the disease but have no symptoms.

    There is also a clear stipulation in the official document stating that "If the reported 'asymptomatic infected patient' has clinical manifestations, their status shall be revised to 'confirmed case' in a timely manner" (highlighted text in Tweet below). This indicates that even if a person tests positive for the disease but does not exhibit any symptoms, they will no longer be included in the daily infection reports.

    ...

    --
    Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by c0lo on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:02PM (8 children)

      by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:02PM (#956812) Journal

      As far as I can see, there's nothing inherently wrong with the scheme, as long as one has all those numbers and adds the "confirmed cases" with the "positive tests".
      In fact, it should be better to make the distinction, every bit of info may help.

      --
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
      • (Score: 3, Troll) by FatPhil on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:40PM (4 children)

        by FatPhil (863) <reversethis-{if.fdsa} {ta} {tnelyos-cp}> on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:40PM (#956823) Homepage
        I agree that for a more accurate mathematical model you do want to separate the different cases, as they will behave (or be treated) differently on the ground. However, those cases could be labelled "state A", "state B", "state C", and it would make no difference, the mathematics does not depend on the variable names.

        However, human reactions and openness to information (e.g. news, medical advice) definitely do depend on how it's presented. You'd never teach the Ideal Gas Law as:
          Penis . Vagina = Nigger . Rape . Tranny
        for example.
        --
        Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
        • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @02:03PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @02:03PM (#956830)

          According to this funeral director they have been processing 4-5x the normal number of bodies and less than 10% are confirmed:
          https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-KFxCqV1fPQ [youtube.com]

          So most deaths are unconfirmed, many patients are asymptomatic, test kits are only 50% accurate (according to what gold standard?).

          I'm still not 100% convinced they have the right virus.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:30PM (2 children)

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:30PM (#956973)

          What the fuck? You look pretty fucking stupid for deliberately using offensive terms. You could easily have said apple . orange = hat . shoe . scarf, but instead you seeded terms so that GOOG can redirect people searching for hate to our community.

          Which makes you an ASSHOLE.

          Fuck off, fatphil.

          • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:53PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:53PM (#956985)

            (((jihadi)))

          • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:38PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:38PM (#956999)

            P×V = N×R×T
            Doesn't work well with apples and oranges.

      • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:00PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:00PM (#956991)

        Are the asymptomatic positive testees capable of infecting others?
        Maybe they should list them as "suspected cases," "clinically diagnosed cases," "confirmed cases," and "positive tests Typhoid Mary's".

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @04:43AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @04:43AM (#957102)

        Yes but a big question is... just how accurate is this test?

        • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday February 12 2020, @05:12AM

          by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday February 12 2020, @05:12AM (#957105) Journal

          Inaccurate as hell.
          Don't you see? We are all gonna die [youtu.be]

          --
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @12:26PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @12:26PM (#956805)

    It is possible that the virus requires docking sites to latch onto? And that those docking sites are on the chromosome 23? If so, the indeterminate nature of that chromosome in today's children would explain the statistics.

    • (Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday February 11 2020, @12:46PM

      by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday February 11 2020, @12:46PM (#956810) Journal

      The replication [wikipedia.org] takes place in ribosomes, not on the chromosomes.

      --
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by c0lo on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:26PM (3 children)

    by c0lo (156) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:26PM (#956816) Journal

    Various sources report on recent (last week) H5N1 bird flu [nhk.or.jp], H9 bird flu [scmp.com] (a child aged 7), H5N6 bird flu [reuters.com] occurrences originated in China.

    This after the Chinese had big loses (of bacon) to swine fever in latish 2019 [nytimes.com]

    Bird flu in UK [euroweeklynews.com] too

    --
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:35PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @01:35PM (#956819)

    They will figure a solution soon

    • (Score: 2) by Freeman on Tuesday February 11 2020, @05:00PM

      by Freeman (732) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @05:00PM (#956890) Journal

      Wrong movie, I'm thinking more of an "I am Legend" kinda thing. 'eh, okay, probably not that bad.

      --
      Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:22PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 11 2020, @06:22PM (#956918)

    n/t

  • (Score: 2) by tizan on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:51PM (1 child)

    by tizan (3245) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @09:51PM (#956983)

    there is most probably more than 10000 deaths due to the influenza in the US alone this season

    https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/burden/index.html [cdc.gov]

    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Nuke on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:54PM

      by Nuke (3162) on Tuesday February 11 2020, @10:54PM (#957005)

      But flu is in the wild across the world, OTOH the 900 coronavirus deaths so far are mostly within a relatively small area. For example coronavirus is not (yet) in the wild in the UK (all known cases so far have been isolated). So that 900 needs to be multiplied up by a very large area factor to understand its real potential

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @02:43AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @02:43AM (#957058)

    Miley Cyrus has coronavirus.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @05:58AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 12 2020, @05:58AM (#957108)

      The vocal cord surgery made her throat more vulnerable than usual.

  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday February 12 2020, @11:44AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday February 12 2020, @11:44AM (#957165) Journal
    We'll see if this continues or not. But presently, the reported number of new cases has dropped dramatically since the early days of the infection, going from substantial double digit growth per day (12 days of growth above 30% per day through 1/28) to around 5% growth yesterday (2/11). Given the considerable lag between infection and displaying of symptoms, this may already indicate that China has the problems mostly licked.
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