NON_POLITICAL China Coronavirus THREAD

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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,404
8,038
136
I still haven't gotten my 2nd booster. Is it worth getting against the BA.5 variant or should I wait until a new vax is approved?
My nephew is in the same boat. 3x Pfizer vaxxed but he's been holding off on the 2nd booster. Said he came down with covid during his trip to Mexico, I think less than a month ago. He's an M.D., surgeon. He's the first family member I have who I know to have gotten covid. Was sick for a week. Said he's hesitant to get that 2nd booster because he reacted badly to the previous shots. Said as long as he isn't at risk for hospitalization, he's willing to take his chances. I encouraged him to get boosted anyway, but I figure he'll wait for the next round. I suppose he got BA.4 or BA.5.

Myself, I'm 4x Moderna vaxxed and had mild reactions to all 4 shots. The minute it's approved, I'm going for the next booster.
 

balloonshark

Diamond Member
Jun 5, 2008
6,288
2,682
136
My nephew is in the same boat. 3x Pfizer vaxxed but he's been holding off on the 2nd booster. Said he came down with covid during his trip to Mexico, I think less than a month ago. He's an M.D., surgeon. He's the first family member I have who I know to have gotten covid. Was sick for a week. Said he's hesitant to get that 2nd booster because he reacted badly to the previous shots. Said as long as he isn't at risk for hospitalization, he's willing to take his chances. I encouraged him to get boosted anyway, but I figure he'll wait for the next round. I suppose he got BA.4 or BA.5.

Myself, I'm 4x Moderna vaxxed and had mild reactions to all 4 shots. The minute it's approved, I'm going for the next booster.
3x Pfizer boosted here but I didn't have much if any reaction. I kind of get why he is hesitant though. Has he considered trying a non-Pfizer booster? Was his vax reaction worse than his reaction to getting Covid?
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,404
8,038
136
3x Pfizer boosted here but I didn't have much if any reaction. I kind of get why he is hesitant though. Has he considered trying a non-Pfizer booster? Was his vax reaction worse than his reaction to getting Covid?
Yeah, I don't know. I did suggest him getting Moderna next time. Moderna booster is 1/2 dose. I think Pfizer is full dose.
 
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nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
58,055
12,245
136
Somehow when I got COVID a couple months ago my wife didn't get it and now she has it and I haven't gotten it. She is getting the terrible body aches and fatigue so far. I'm working from home and she has slept most of the day.
I sure napped a lot, on day 3 or 4 I got up and logged into work, took at nap after an hour or so, worked another hour or so, another nap, finished out work, and one more nap.
I'm now talking to people that have had it 4 times already.
My partner's sister is on round #3, but she's full-on antivaxx (they cause autism and ADHD, doncha know?) and doesn't take any countermeasures at all :rolleyes:
She's also a devout Christian who only goes to see an applied kinesiology specialist for her medical needs, so it's no sense trying to reason with her.
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,974
7,891
136
Has this new variant-of-a-variant been mentioned already?


The naming schema continues to puzzle me. First it was just "a variant" and then named colloquially after wherever it was first found, then they started with the Greek letters thing, now it's all omicron and a string of letters and numbers, and now they are giving those variants random 'nicknames' (say hello to "centaurus"). Are they going to resume the Greek letters schema again at some point?
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
24,998
3,327
126
The naming schema continues to puzzle me. First it was just "a variant" and then named colloquially after wherever it was first found, then they started with the Greek letters thing, now it's all omicron and a string of letters and numbers, and now they are giving those variants random 'nicknames' (say hello to "centaurus"). Are they going to resume the Greek letters schema again at some point?
There are I think 3 official groups with their own naming schemes. I think the one we see most often is PANGO: https://cov-lineages.org/index.html Centaurus's name in the PANGO scheme is B.1.1.529.2.75 (often simplified to BA.2.75). "Centaurus" came I think from Twitter as that is a lot easier to write and understand than B.1.1.529.2.75. This is still a mutation of a mutation of Omicron.

B (one of the originals) -> B.1 -> B.1.1 -> B.1.1.529 (also known as Omicron) -> B.1.1.529.2 (also known as BA.2) -> B.1.1.529.2.75 (aka Centaurus)
 
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pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,974
7,891
136
There are I think 3 official groups with their own naming schemes. I think the one we see most often is PANGO: https://cov-lineages.org/index.html Centaurus's name in the PANGO scheme is B.1.1.529.2.75 (often simplified to BA.2.75). "Centaurus" came I think from Twitter as that is a lot easier to write and understand than B.1.1.529.2.75. This is still a mutation of a mutation of Omicron.

B (one of the originals) -> B.1 -> B.1.1 -> B.1.1.529 (also known as Omicron) -> B.1.1.529.2 (also known as BA.2) -> B.1.1.529.2.75 (aka Centaurus)

Though, out of pure curiosity, are they likely to 'promote' any of these telephone-number variants to "pi" at some point?

Who decides whether some variant will at some point get such a title, and on what basis is that decided?
 

Torn Mind

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
11,567
2,626
136
Has this new variant-of-a-variant been mentioned already?


The naming schema continues to puzzle me. First it was just "a variant" and then named colloquially after wherever it was first found, then they started with the Greek letters thing, now it's all omicron and a string of letters and numbers, and now they are giving those variants random 'nicknames' (say hello to "centaurus"). Are they going to resume the Greek letters schema again at some point?
Basically, it's for smart people who need accuracy and can decode the string. They randomly toss out easy names in case they are seriously worried. So, that they would call it Centaurus rather than just leave as undecodable by the populace suggests major concern...or they want the news cycle to hype it up.

Just like organic chemistry nomenclature. IUPAC name is propan-2-ol. Colloquially, isopropyl alcohol.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
24,998
3,327
126
Though, out of pure curiosity, are they likely to 'promote' any of these telephone-number variants to "pi" at some point?

Who decides whether some variant will at some point get such a title, and on what basis is that decided?
We'll get a new Greek letter when a whole new evolutionary branch forms and spreads enough to be significant. Right now, we are getting branches off of the Omicron branch rather than whole new branches.
 
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nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
58,055
12,245
136
I suppose that makes sense with how extremely infectious Omicron is/was compared to prior variants.
 

pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,974
7,891
136
I suppose that makes sense with how extremely infectious Omicron is/was compared to prior variants.

But some of the sub-variants of Omicron are extremely infectious compared with plain vanilla Omicron, so that's not a significant distinguishing factor.

I don't know, just debating the terminology because it's frustrating that this seems never-ending. Still 1500 a day globally dying of/with this thing (a figure that seems to have hit a plateau).

Perhaps with it now being so incredibly infectious the proportion of that that is 'with' rather than 'of' is higher than with earlier variants? The 'excess death' figures don't look particularly encouraging either, though, still a lot more people dying who would otherwise not have, it seems.
 

nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
58,055
12,245
136
But some of the sub-variants of Omicron are extremely infectious compared with plain vanilla Omicron, so that's not a significant distinguishing factor.

I don't know, just debating the terminology because it's frustrating that this seems never-ending. Still 1500 a day globally dying of/with this thing (a figure that seems to have hit a plateau).

Perhaps with it now being so incredibly infectious the proportion of that that is 'with' rather than 'of' is higher than with earlier variants? The 'excess death' figures don't look particularly encouraging either, though, still a lot more people dying who would otherwise not have, it seems.
I think maybe you misunderstood, I was saying it makes sense for the current dominant variants to have come from Omicron since it was far more infectious than prior variants, IE, more opportunities for it to mutate into the sub-variants.
 
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pmv

Lifer
May 30, 2008
12,974
7,891
136
I think maybe you misunderstood, I was saying it makes sense for the current dominant variants to have come from Omicron since it was far more infectious than prior variants, IE, more opportunities for it to mutate into the sub-variants.

Oh, true. I was taking it as saying the increase in infectiousness was the justification for going to a new Greek letter.

My new theory is that it's becaue of a fear of offending the baked food industry. They are stuck on Omicron because "Big Pie" won't let them call a variant "Pi". (I heard they did, after all, skip Xi for for fear of upsetting the Chinese)
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,404
8,038
136
Saw a post yesterday by someone remarking about their demurring on a 5th shot that they said was approved 6/30. Is this true? I've tolerated 4 Moderna shots to date very well and if eligible for a 5th I'd grab it now in a heartbeat. My last booster was March 31st, 3 1/2 months ago and my immunity has waned. I assume that a Moderna booster gotten now would not be omicron tweaked.

Would getting a 3rd booster now have any impact on my eligibility to get an omicron specific booster in the fall? I AM at risk.
 

Captante

Lifer
Oct 20, 2003
30,246
10,748
136
I'm (mildly) immune-compromised so I'll get the next approved booster as soon as it's available.

As for masks I'm skipping them now if I'm going in someplace for a few minutes but when I went grocery-shopping the N95 went back on.

Connecticut is currently hovering around 11% daily-positivity rate which is still too high to get fully comfortable.
 

KMFJD

Lifer
Aug 11, 2005
29,044
41,733
136
i got my 2nd booster and first Pfizer shot and jeebus christ it's kicking my ass,2x Moderna, not a single reaction, Astrazeneca, just mild reaction.
 

JM Aggie08

Diamond Member
Jan 3, 2006
8,148
776
136
Welp, picked up the hot new variant (I assume?) on a work trip this past week. I'm 2x Pfizer 1x Moderna (does it really matter at this point?), and have been taking EmergenC and D3 supplements daily for a while now. Timeline:

  • Friday: Scratchy throat, decide to test before going out to dinner -- bingo, 2x positive tests. Mild (99F) fever that evening, slight congestion.
  • Saturday: Scratchy throat, way more congestion. Low-grade fever at some point in the afternoon that went away rather quickly. Generally felt kind of tired, but nothing serious thankfully.
  • Sunday: Feeling about 75% back to normal, though still congested and a little tired. I was thinking about cutting the grass later, but probably will not.

Wife and kid seem ok so far -- kid has been sniffly and tested negative. We'll test him again tomorrow before he MAYBE goes to daycare -- this is in line with their policies. Overall, VERY thankful for my health. I feel very fortunate given a lot of folks' experience with this shit.
 

quikah

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2003
4,068
649
126
Went through it last month. After my experience I can see why so many people simply don't care anymore. It was nothing for me. Slight congestion and a couple of days of sore throat.

Traveled to Florida last week and went to Disney. My family wore masks once we got to the SFO airport until we left the airport in Orlando. SFO had very high mask usage, maybe 60-70%+ . The layover in SLC was 98% no masks. Disney is pretty much back to usual, pack people in as much as possible.

Sucks for the high risk people. Seems like everyone else has moved on.
 

Geekbabe

Moderator Emeritus<br>Elite Member
Oct 16, 1999
32,167
2,399
126
www.theshoppinqueen.com
As a high risk cancer patient who is still recovering from COVID I can tell you life sucks. I am exhausted most of the time, still have productive coughing fits ( those are getting better slowly)

I go nowhere, am getting in home physical therapy to regain strength, I will be getting a cane & a nebulizer to help with breathing.

Biggest thing is how lonely I am, I am an introvert but at this point I crave social interaction…unfortunately for me, another bout of COVID would probably not bring me good things…so here I sit 😢😢😢
 

Captante

Lifer
Oct 20, 2003
30,246
10,748
136
I only mask up if I'm going to be around a bunch of random people indoors for more than a couple minutes.... that means pretty much only in the grocery-store despite Omicron.

Although my overall health has been steadily improving for the last 1.5 years or so I'm still technically "immune-compromised" so I'm not throwing caution completely to the wind.