“H has one of these to sterilize his CPAP equipment. These days, we put our cell phones in there every few days too so I just ordered a new bulb.”
It’s FAR cheaper to order new parts on Amazon.
@eastcoascrazy We could ask the mods to disable the comment function and have only doschicos’ posts… if that’s possible. It would certainly make her and their job easier, lol.
This isn’t anyone’s thread. It’s all of ours.
Potentially good news from the University of Minnesota. For those who are unaware, Minnesota has a good amount of biomedical device engineering firms such as Metronic and there is a working relationship with the state university. I am not a fan of how the story was written because the topic aren’t grouped well together.
…Upon hearing that a surge of COVID-19 cases could consume all hospital ventilators, Dr. Stephen Richardson rummaged for parts in the medical device lab at the University of Minnesota and built a homemade version.
In a first test last week, the prototype kept a pig breathing for an hour and raised the prospect that low-budget ventilators could be built to solve a shortage. The makeshift ventilator was made from $150 in parts, with a motor ripped from another device and a red metal toolbox tray as its base…
…A third U-generated trial, awaiting FDA approval, would test whether a blood pressure-lowering medication, losartan, minimizes the damage of COVID-19. When infection stops ACE-2 receptors from working, there is a buildup of a hormone called angiotensin II that causes lungs to constrict and fluid to build up, explained Dr. Michael Puskarich, who will be leading an arm of this trial at Hennepin Healthcare in downtown Minneapolis.
“Our main goal is to essentially stop that process,” he said.
The trial would consist of 700 patients treated for COVID-19 in a group of local hospitals or clinics…
…The flurry of activity on campus started March 13, when the university agreed to review and fund rapid response grants from its scientists. Eleven of 20 have been funded, and others are being reviewed.
Richardson said he awoke two days later with the gut feeling that he could quickly create a ventilator using common “ambu” bags that paramedics and emergency medicine specialists use to manually resuscitate patients. All that was needed was an automated mechanism that could press the bag, and a way to adjust it to control the volume and limit the pressure of air being pushed into patients.
“This is not a device that anyone would choose to use if they had a … super high-end alternative,” he said. But it could be sold as a cheap backup, or its plans could be distributed online so hospitals could build their own.
Richardson called friends from MGC Diagnostics in Vadnais Heights, and soon they were scavenging parts from devices and soldering them together for the prototype. After success in maintaining lung function in a pig, Richardson sought a more sophisticated prototype and gained custom parts from Protolabs in Maple Plain, and motors and electrical equipment from Digi-Key of Thief River Falls and other companies…
TL/DR
A cheap back up ventilator is prototyped and there is another medication ready for approval to trial
Australia’s biggest state is shutting down all “non-essential services”
From CNN’s Isaac Lee in Hong Kong
The Australian state of New South Wales will shut down all “non-essential services” in an attempt to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
“Tonight I will be informing the National Cabinet that NSW will proceed to a more comprehensive shutdown of non-essential services,” NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said in a statement Sunday.
Essential services and stores, such as petrol stations, convenience stores and pharmacies, will remain open. The shutdown will take place over the next 48 hours.
Sydney – Australia’s biggest city – is the capital of New South Wales.
New South Wales has 469 confirmed novel coronavirus cases, the highest of all Australian states. Australia has more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus.
@privatebanker i agree this should be everyone’s thread, I like different opinions
Regarding your comment to me, not sure if it’s related to my previous post. I just meant that all the correlations they are just not high priority right now. We are trying to put out the fire first, where China has a ton of data they can look at all the correlations. There are so much data to be studied but not a priority now for the US unless it’s related to saving lives.
I am not sure why you asked me all those questions…
@Nhatrang I am sorry - I didn’t mean to link to you. It was to a different question. My bad.
Since most governments around the world are now asking / requiring citizens to “shelter in place” , there IS hope to slow the transmission of this virus in the next coming months, until scientists are able to find a way to defeat this disease.
If too many do not comply, then millions will die because of the selfish intransigence of others.
If you see someone willfully ignoring what authorities has asked, please ask them- would you be happy if someone you really loved died in this crisis because people like you decide to ignore what is asked? Is maintaining your life style really more important to you than saving the life of someone you care about?
He was reportedly diagnosed with the coronavirus after treating an infected glaucoma patient.
https://time.com/5779678/li-wenliang-coronavirus-china-doctor-death/
I am at the point of feeling that those who continue to socialize and gather in groups, not stay home when not at work, etc - they are like anti-vaxxers during a measles epidemic. They are counting on themselves having good odds based on everyone else’s efforts.
And yet, when they or their loved ones get sick, they are going to clog up the hospitals and use resources. If you are not going to slow down this disease’s progression you had better have DNR tattooed on your arm.
At this point you have to pick a side. If we are to have any hope of saving lives of the pandemic victims and those of our medical workers, we need to stay home. It is a moral and ethical fork in the road.
Speaking of prisoners:
Two people are dead and six wounded in a protest at a Sri Lankan prison where guards fired on inmates to prevent them from fleeing.
Prisoners at the Anuradhapura prison, about 200km from Colombo, were complaining about the decision by the authorities not to allow visitors as a move to contain the virus.
Senaka Perera, president of the Committee for Protecting Rights of Prisoners, said the inmates were protesting congested conditions and the poor quality of meals after the government banned visitors for two weeks to prevent the spread of the virus. Visitors often bring home-cooked food.
Sri Lanka’s prisons are overcrowded, sometimes housing 5,000 inmates in a facility capable of holding 800, according to the pressure group.
Tensions erupted Saturday at the prison when guards tried to control the riot, police said. In the commotion, guards opened fire to prevent inmates from fleeing, police said.
Sri Lanka has imposed a three-day countrywide curfew since Friday as the number of cases has risen to 77. (Guardian)
Japan urges citizens to avoid non-essential travel to the United States
From CNN’s Yoko Wakatsuki in Tokyo
Japan has raised its travel alert for the United States, urging citizens to not go there unless it is essential.
The alert was raised to level two, the Japanese Foreign Ministry announced on Sunday. Four is the highest alert level.
Meanwhile, the United States is warning its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Japan.
The United States has more than 25,000 coronavirus cases, while Japan has just over 1,000 cases.
El Salvador begins a 30-day nationwide coronavirus curfew
From CNNE’s Daniel Siva in Miami and CNN’s Radina Gigova in Atlanta
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele announced late Saturday that a 30-day nationwide curfew will take effect immediately.
Bukele said that one person from each family would be allowed to go out so they can supply their household with food and medicine.
The Central American country has three confirmed cases of coronavirus.
Who is exempt?
People who work in restaurants, public transport, gas stations, security companies, private clinics, finance, hospitals, vets and the media can continue working. Those who work at the Supreme Court and public employees directly linked to emergency care will also be able to continue.
The livestock and agriculture sectors will also be able to continue operating, because “we need to guarantee food security,” Bukele said.
Economic help
To alleviate the economic situation, the government will invest $450 million per month to help households that consume less than 250 kilowatts of electricity per month.
“We are talking about 75 percent of the population that will benefit,” Bukele explained.
Question: does any data source compile the new cases, etc as a percentage of the population? I find it hard to compare how things are going in various states/countries using only the raw numbers. I have looked, but haven’t seen a chart of that info. If I missed it, I apologize.
The percentage of tested/diagnosed/deaths of citizens of China v Italy, for example, would tell their vastly different stories with more clarity - especially if broken down by province. Also, as the population of California is so much larger than West Virginia, people may see smaller numbers in WV and assume WV is doing a better job containing the virus or managing resources than they actually are.
I find myself looking up how big a country is compared to the US in order to make sense of the great info @doschicos is curating.
My .02 on the “opinion” part of the thread v the “reporting” part: both have their place. But as someone pointed out upthread, segregating editorial opinions from fact-based reporting is important.
@CateCAParent https://www.statista.com/chart/21176/covid-19-infection-density-in-countries-most-total-cases/
google coronavirus or covid-19 infection density and you’ll see other stories.
Not that I’ve seen/found. I find myself crunching numbers a lot myself. Examples:
Iceland with a population of 365K has 473 cases so 1 case for roughly every 772 people.
San Marino has a tiny population of roughly 34K and 160 cases so 1 case for every 212 people. But, definitely a unique case being surrounded by Italy.
Unfortunately, with the quick spread of the virus, the data on that site is now dated quite a bit.
Thailand reports 188 new coronavirus cases, brings total to nearly 600
PUBLISHED : 22 MAR 2020 AT 12:00
Thailand reported 188 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, its largest daily increase, taking the total to 599 cases, a senior Public Health Ministry official said.
The majority of the new infections are connected to a previous cluster of cases from Lumpini boxing stadium, ministry spokesman Taweesin Wisanuyothin told a news conference.
Seven are in serious condition, he said, while one has already recovered.
“Most of the new cases were found in Bangkok and were among young people who continue to have social activities, which can lead to more infections,” Dr Taweesin said, urging the public to stay home.
Infections in Thailand have jumped this month, prompting the government to close shopping malls, restaurants and other gathering venues to stop the pandemic. The nation’s capital imposed a partial shutdown from Sunday. (BANGKOK POST)
6:42 pm
Lost or diminished sense of smell could signal coronavirus in people with no other symptoms
An early warning sign of COVID-19 may be a loss of smell, particularly among patients showing no other symptoms, a medical group in the United Kingdom said Saturday. The observation could help reveal otherwise hidden carriers of the illness, whose lack of symptoms have fueled its rapid spread.
“There is already good evidence from South Korea, China and Italy that significant numbers of patients with proven COVID-19 infection have developed anosmia/hyposmia” – lost or decreased sensitivity to smells, wrote the leaders of the British Rhinological Society and ENT UK, a professional group for ear, nose and throat surgeons. “In Germany it is reported that more than 2 in 3 confirmed cases have anosmia. In South Korea, where testing has been more widespread, 30% of patients testing positive have had anosmia as their major presenting symptom in otherwise mild cases.
“In addition, there have been a rapidly growing number of reports of a significant increase in the number of patients presenting with anosmia in the absence of other symptoms – this has been widely shared on medical discussion boards by surgeons from all regions managing a high incidence of cases,” wrote Professors Claire Hopkins and Nirmal Kumar.
They acknowledged the chance that this “apparent increase” may be a result of all the attention on COVID-19, and that more typical viruses – which account for up to 40% of anosmia cases in adults – could be the cause.
That said, they wrote, “There is potential that if any adult with anosmia but no other symptoms was asked to self-isolate for seven days, in addition to the current symptom criteria used to trigger quarantine, we might be able to reduce the number of otherwise asymptomatic individuals who continue to act as vectors, not realising the need to self-isolate.”
Patients arriving with anosmia should also trigger the use of full personal protective equipment by healthcare personnel, they wrote.
—Benjamin Romano/ST
Here is the article:
https://www.entuk.org/loss-sense-smell-marker-covid-19-infection
A Connecticut man who died of coronavirus was delivered last rites by phone
From CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia
A Connecticut man who died after a coronavirus diagnosis was given his last rites by his pastor over the phone while his family listened in from quarantine.
Cathie Pike told CNN that her husband, Bill Pike, “led a life of intellectual fascination of the world.” Calling her departed husband “simply amazing,” she said he had the most beautiful last rites thanks to modern communication.
“It was a like a tapestry or quilt of our affections for him,” she said.
The delivery of last rites was made possible after a nurse at Norwalk Hospital agreed to assist. The nurse gathered the Rev. Peter Walsh of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in New Canaan on the phone and then connected Pike’s wife and three children to the call from quarantine.
The nurse held the phone to Bill Pike’s ear as Walsh delivered last rites, which he described as “the most beautiful litany of prayer.” The pastor then “told him I loved him” and hung up so his family could say their goodbyes.
Bill Pike passed away about 10 minutes later. Walsh said it was the first time he ever delivered last rites over the phone. 
China diverts all Beijing-bound international flights to other Chinese cities amid rising imported cases
From CNN’s Steven Jiang in Beijing
All international flights to Beijing will be diverted to other cities in China starting Monday, amid growing concerns over imported cases of novel coronavirus.
Passengers on affected flights will need to clear immigration and customs at their first port of entry. Those deemed healthy will then be allowed to board the same aircraft to fly onwards to Beijing, the government announced Sunday.
These rules had already been applied to some Beijing-bound international flights last week, with planes diverted to three nearby cities.
Now that policy has been rolled out wider, 12 cities, including Shanghai, have been identified to handle the diverted traffic.
The bigger picture:
Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, has not reported any new cases for four days in a row.
But now Beijing has a new focus in its fight against coronavirus: people bringing the virus into China.
China recorded 46 new coronavirus cases on Saturday – and all but one came from abroad. That brings the total number of imported cases to 314.
David Bryan, keyboardist for Bon Jovi, says he tested positive for coronavirus
From CNN’s Amir Vera
David Bryan, a founding member of Bon Jovi, announced Saturday on Instagram that he tested positive for coronavirus.
“I’ve been sick for a week and feeling better each day,” the keyboardist wrote. “Please don’t be afraid!!! It’s the flu not the plague.”
Bryan said he has “been quarantined for a week and will (be) for another week. And when I feel better I’ll get tested again to make sure I’m free of this nasty virus. Please help out each other. This will be over soon… with the help of every American !!”
Bryan is also a Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist. (Guardian)
More than 50,000 people queued to see the Olympic flame in northeastern Japan on Saturday.
Honestly.
Some people stood in the 500m queue for hours, according to local media.
The flame arrived in Japan to a scaled-down welcoming ceremony on Friday as doubts grew over whether the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will go ahead on schedule as the deadly virus causes chaos around the world.
It was displayed at Sendai station in Miyagi, chosen as part of the “Recovery Olympics” to showcase the region’s revival after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown. (Guardian)
[ the accompanying photo showed a big crowd close together, definitely not 6 feet apart. ]
https://pubpeer.com/publications/3B1F9EAD4982C64445A60F5E83CCFEP
Just for the record, I believe this was the study being discussed earlier relating to hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. 4 patients did not do well on the treatment and 1 of them died (as noted in the comments). Hope this is helpful for someone. I find this interesting reading.
Good illustration of why the staying home bit helps in this link - about a third of the way down. The alternatives to handshakes at the bottom is good, too, with some Aussie references.