A new study about people who suffer from long-term complications caused by COVID-19—a phenomenon called Long COVID—underscores how widespread, varied and common the condition really is.
Thorough data about Long COVID has been hard to come by; most reports so far have been either anecdotal or provided by doctors treating individual patients. But the new research, released yesterday by health care nonprofit FAIR Health, is based on health care claim records from nearly 2 million people diagnosed with COVID-19 in 2020, and found that nearly 25% reported at least one symptom that lasted 30 days or more. Those symptoms were wide ranging, but the most common included pain, trouble breathing, high cholesterol, fatigue and high blood pressure.
"The fact that long-term symptoms were this common in such a large patient group underscores that Long COVID is a very real risk," says my colleague Jamie Ducharme, who has been covering the condition for months.
No demographic group has been spared from Long COVID; it has affected everyone from babies to the elderly. Sex doesn't make a big difference, either, though women were slightly more likely than men to report symptoms. It even struck among people who didn't have serious initial cases of COVID-19, as well as those who needed to be hospitalized.
This latest research follows recent reports that some Long COVID patients are finally recovering from many months of sickness. Further research into the phenomenon may shed light on how to help those who are still suffering, Jamie says, as well as prevent doctors from dismissing patients who don't get better as generally expected. As the pandemic ebbs in the U.S. and people itch to return to normal life, Jamie adds, it's important that we don't forget those who remain affected.
"It's crucial that we continue to research this condition now so that they aren't left behind when the rest of the population moves on from the pandemic," says Jamie.
About 375.1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been shipped to various U.S. states as of this afternoon, of which 312.9 million doses have been administered thus far, according to TIME's vaccine tracker. About 43.9% of Americans have been completely vaccinated.
The number of daily injections being administered across China has tripled this month, Reuters reports, hitting an average of about 17 million doses per day. Forty-four percent of China's population has received at least one dose. However, the country's rollout has been unequal, with major cities like Beijing and Shanghai (where 50-70% of residents are fully vaccinated) outpacing other provinces like Guangdong and Shandong (where the rate is below 20%). China is hoping to vaccinate as many people as possible before hosting the Winter Olympics early next year.
Nearly 900 people received expired doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot this month at a Manhattan vaccine site, the Associated Press reports. People who received doses at the former NFL Experience building in Times Square between June 5 and June 10 should book an appointment to get another shot as soon as possible to ensure adequate protection, the New York City Health Department said. People who got the expired doses—which aren't dangerous, according to the company that administered the shots—have been notified.
TODAY'S CORONAVIRUS OUTLOOK
The Global Situation
More than 176.6 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 1 a.m. E.T. today, and more than 3.8 million people have died. On June 15, there were 370,360 new cases and 10,569 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here is every country with over 3 million confirmed cases:
The European Union may open its borders to all U.S. tourists for nonessential travel on Friday, the New York Times reports. That report comes after European ambassadors suggested today that they would add the U.S. to the E.U.'s list of safe countries, a distinction that would allow even unvaccinated Americans to visit the bloc without restrictions (however, individual countries may have stricter rules). Many European countries are desperate to welcome tourists back to boost their economies.
The Situation in the U.S.
The U.S. had recorded nearly 33.5 million coronavirus cases as of 1 a.m. E.T. today. More than 600,200 people have died. On June 15, there were 10,334 new cases and 326 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
The U.S. yesterday surpassed 600,000 deaths from COVID-19, marking another unfortunate milestone among many during the pandemic. While the country's rate of daily deaths has decreased alongside mass vaccination, half of the population remains un-inoculated and vulnerable—nearly all recent U.S. coronavirus deaths have occurred among unvaccinated people, experts told the New York Times. "It's a tragedy," said Stephen Morse, an epidemiology professor at the Columbia University Medical Center. "A lot of that tragedy was avoidable, and it's still happening."
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) yesterday classified the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, first identified in India, a "variant of concern." The new classification means that there's evidence of easier transmissibility, more severe disease and reduced vaccine effectiveness (though the vaccines authorized for use in the U.S. are still highly effective against the Delta variant). Studies also suggest that monoclonal antibody treatments are less effective against the variant. The Delta variant now makes up about 6% of all cases in the U.S., per Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease.
Regeneron's monoclonal antibody cocktail lowers the risk of death by 20% among hospitalized COVID-19 patients who are not producing their own antibodies against the virus, finds a large preprint study published today, Bloomberg reports. Furthermore, patients who got the drug spent an average of four fewer days in the hospital compared to those who did not. However, the drug didn't seem to help patients who were already producing antibodies. Regeneron will use the data to try to extend its U.S. Food and Drug Administration emergency-use authorization to include all hospitalized patients, not just high-risk outpatients.
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of June 16, 1 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
Nepal Needs Vaccines
Nepal's vaccination program has an excellent historical track record, but the country has received few COVID-19 shots. That needs to change, writes Nepali-American fashion designer Prabal Gurung for TIME. "A fraction of the size of India, and even weaker diplomatically, [Nepal's] suffering has not received the kind of media coverage and visibility that is urgently needed to garner equitable help from the rest of the world," he writes. Read more here.
We're Flushing Valuable Information Down the Toilet
Throughout the pandemic, wastewater analysis has helped scientists determine where and how quickly the COVID-19 virus was spreading. That's just the beginning of the technology's potential, reports STAT's Megan Molteni, who found that studying sewage could transform epidemiology. Read more here.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
If you were forwarded this and want to sign up to receive it daily, click here.
Today's newsletter was written by Mandy Oaklander and edited by Alex Fitzpatrick.
沒有留言:
張貼留言