Covid 19 Pandemie

The evidence suggests to me that Omicron could be the silver bullet that finally ends the pandemic. The following two statements are more or less facts:

1. Getting infected by covid confers almost as much protection against serious illness from a future infection as a vaccination does

2. People who've been vaccinated, and then get a "breakthrough infection", get very strong immunity from future infections (link)

Here are three relevant facts about Omicron:

1. It's able to break through vaccination protection

2. Because it breeds in the throat at an unbelievably fast rate, it spreads like wildfire: the "R rate" is FAR above any previous variant

3. Because it's so weak at breeding in the lungs, it's causing very little serious illness

Obviously it's too soon to say for sure, but it's looking to me as though Omicron might just be the free global vaccination that will be the killer blow to Covid that we've been praying for!

Germany incidence now 306,4.

Mclane wrote:

Germany incidence now 306,4.

I'm guessing that this reduction is mostly the Delta variant.

IMO Omicron is so transmissible that a lockdown won't stop it (though it will slow it down). It seems to me that what the Netherlands is REALLY doing by implementing a lockdown is buying time.

Deaths are still not rising in Britain: it's too soon to be super-confident though, because deaths are a lagging indicator. The small number of British doctors who have spoken in public are saying that at this time, the health service is not being overwhelmed.

I will try to get a booster shot this year,
not easy when you work to get the time to do so.

Mclane wrote:

I will try to get a booster shot this year, not easy when you work to get the time to do so.

Probably not the same in Germany, but my personal experience was:

* the first two jabs I got almost as soon as I walked into the building

* I had to queue for over half an hour for the booster jab

All three had been booked in advance.

Today's British infection number is slightly down on yesterday. If this continues, the infection curve will soon begin to visibly flatten.

TheSelfImprover wrote:

Today's British infection number is slightly down on yesterday. If this continues, the infection curve will soon begin to visibly flatten.

Hospitalisations in Britain are still flat - link. As I've said before, our high seropositivity is likely to be a contributory factor to this anomaly. Also, Omicron probably causes less serious illness than Delta.

Germany 289

Mclane wrote:

Germany 289

German infection rate in very clear decline - link.

In Germany only ten guests during Christmas. Man that's strict.
Hope they don't export their Omnikron to the Netherlands.

South Africa seems to be over the worst of the Omicron wave - link.

Today's UK infection number is an all-time high - 106,122. The previous peak was the 17th December with 92,500.

The problem for us might be too many heath care staff self isolating at the same time. Too many people getting seriously is looking a bit unlikely now.

If you search on https://ourworldindata.org/ for the country's with the lowest vaccination rates (poor country's), you wil see that these country's also have the lowest confirmed COVid infections and COVid deaths.
https://ibb.co/tx4cC3r
I wonder what would be the explanation for this?

Jonathan003 wrote:

I wonder what would be the explanation for this?

I haven't looked at this, but assuming good faith in Jonathan (and there's absolutely no reason not to), it likely comes down to exposure to fungi, bacteria and viruses. In the rich countries, we eat too much, move too little, and keep our environment too clean, so our immune systems are out of tune.

My prescription - and a message to my fellow rich country men: we need to...

More then one million dead people due to covid in russia. Dictator of course denies it.

Mclane wrote:

More then one million dead people due to covid in russia. Dictator of course denies it.

I cannot find this in any news source. If it's correct, then my guess would be that someone has done a projection from a small sample size.

TheSelfImprover wrote:

Today's UK infection number is an all-time high - 106,122. The previous peak was the 17th December with 92,500.

The problem for us might be too many heath care staff self isolating at the same time. Too many people getting seriously is looking a bit unlikely now.

Another new all-time high today: 119,789

USA infection rate shooting up - looks as though Omicron has landed.

Israel rate beginning to noticeably climb now.

There's no escaping the beast!

If Omnikron is 50% less severe. Maybe then divide figure by two for comparison.

TheSelfImprover wrote:

USA infection rate shooting up - looks as though Omicron has landed.

Israel rate beginning to noticeably climb now.

There's no escaping the beast!

That's why they start with a fourth dosis shot of Pfizer.
Where wil this end in the long run?

We've all heard Albert Einstein's famous line: "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
I suggest trying other measures.

The first thing i would find out is how Omicron could have been mutated with 24 changes ! To me that looks very impossible.

Germany 265,8

Jonathan003 wrote:

Where wil this end in the long run?  

I have seen no reasons to change my view since Monday (link) that Omicron could be the variant that ends this pandemic.

I also seriously believe that Covid-19 will be the last pandemic in history. Look what we have now, that we didn't have at the start of the Covid-19 outbreak:

* accurate mapping of how the virus's protein folding works

* vaccines in record time

* universal vaccines (there's already a universal flu vaccine in trial - link - it won't take forever to create a universal Corona Virus vaccine)

* new antiviral drugs in record time

* AI that picks out candidates from drugs that are already approved for use against the new disease

* artificial antibodies that quickly heal someone who is sick (the treatment Trump had)

All these products are only going to get quicker and cheaper going forward.

TheSelfImprover wrote:

TheSelfImprover wrote:

Today's UK infection number is an all-time high - 106,122. The previous peak was the 17th December with 92,500.

The problem for us might be too many heath care staff self isolating at the same time. Too many people getting seriously is looking a bit unlikely now.

Another new all-time high today: 119,789  

Another record breaking day!

...but perhaps an unwanted record...

Today's infection number 122,186

If the current trend continues, Omicron will be almost gone from South Africa in just a few weeks!


https://www.thesun.co.uk/health/17136680/omicron-gone-south-africa-within-weeks-hope-uk/