Just the Facts, the Crown virus.

[Gearbox]

The 2 plants 1 in MN and Smithfield in SD are only 65 miles apart . I suspect family members worked in both plants .

[Nebraska]

One of the factors that is common is densely shared housing, folks sleeping in rooms overnight then more folks working night shift using the same place to sleep during the day. Easier to save money to send back home.... Also sometimes the company owns/provides  apartments/dormitories  that workers stay in.  We have a pretty large meat processing  industry around us.

[SwampDonkey]

New Brunswick has had no new cases in 3 days. Were 118 total confirmed cases, 102 recoveries. 5 cases currently hospitalized, 1 in intensive care. No deaths.

The premier has said opening provincial borders won't be happening soon and that would be one of the last measures to be lifted.

CBC news

[Hilltop366]

NB has continued to do well, the NS numbers are not as good but the majority of new cases seem to be in a few communities around Dartmouth and a couple of seniors homes. 737 cases with 10 deaths.

Last week the province released a more detailed map of the cases, showing by hospital region instead of dividing the province into 4 large areas. It showed no cases in the three counties at my end of the province, that would be a hour or more drive in either direction of me.

[Bill]

fwiw

Yesterday afternoon one ( or two ) of the talk show hosts said that he was informed that two of the hog processing plants that had been closed were basically Chinese owned ( and implied there may not be full compliance with health code ) and possibly with " undocumented " workers  . 

The first caller that started the discussion was one of the hog producers that was in the supply chain for both/either of those two plants . They are saying it could be a $56M loss to the industry till its cleaned up and maybe more once all the suppliers are figured in .

[clearcut]

This is a long thread, but I did not see this addressed. 

Covid Toes, a sometimes painful chilblains skin lesion on the toes is emerging as a possible sign of Covid-19. 

There is also a rash that MAY be associated with COVID-19. Thank you Dr. Pimple Popper (Dr. Lee).

Anecdotal reports and early research has led some dermatologists to think that effects on the skin could be associated with COVID-19.


"It's common to get a rash from a viral illness," Lee, who also founded SLMD skin care, explains to Allure. Long before COVID-19 entered our collective lexicon, dermatologists understood this connection. "The skin is the body's largest organ, and in some cases, changes on the skin — often in the form of a rash — can be a sign of an underlying health condition," says Bruce H. Thiers, a board-certified dermatologist in Charleston, South Carolina, and president of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Doctors cite various types of rashes that may be associated with the virus. Melissa Kanchanapoomi Levin, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City, notes "red rashes, hives, and fluid-filled red bumps that look like chickenpox."
She also describes petechiae, the name for "tiny pinpoint red or purple bruises," and livedoid rash, which manifests as "mottled, net-like red or pink patches," as well as chilblains, which Lee defines as "purplish, slightly firm and often tender spots or bumps on the skin" that usually show up on the toes and sometimes fingers too.

[Claybraker]

That's the other side of the coin of the illegal immigration issue (does anyone even remember that, with all the coronavirus panic?) is that a lot of those folks get to work in conditions from the 1900's in a lot of cases. Who are they going to complain to? I remember probably 15 years back, an outfit in southern MN had illegal immigrant workers blasting off hog carcasses, including the head and brain cavity, with high volume compressed air. The workers ended up getting nasty lifetime debilitating neurological disorders from inhaling the aerosolized brain matter.

Probably explains a lot of what I'm seeing locally here in Georgia. Starting Friday I can get a tattoo, or visit a massage parlor for a Happy Ending.  I'm in Forsyth Co a wealthy suburb of Atlanta and the next county north is Hall, home to several poultry processing plants seems to be exploding with a 15% daily increase.

[SwampDonkey]

The curve has been flat here in New Brunswick for the last 6 days and the premier is opening up parks, beaches, golf courses, car pooling, hunting, fishing starting today. He never commented on silviculture specifically but said "If an employer can provide a workplace and conditions that meet Public Health's standards, then employees have to return to work if they want to keep their jobs." Can't be any more safe from this virus than alone walking down harvest trails. :D

Looks like stuff will open up every 2 to 3 weeks in stages after this.

Borders stay closed though.

[Don P]

I heard one health worker describe the reopenings at this point as being about the same as trying to designate a special area in the swimming pool for peeing.

[Stephen1]

SD that is good news. We can not stay huddled in our homes for ever. We will come up with new ways to do things to ensure physical distancing, better hygene, keep buisness and people working.

[Ianab]

New cases have been single figures here in NZ for the last few days. Lockdown is easing a little on Tuesday with more businesses able to "open", but they have to be "contactless". Like internet order and collect or home delivery. 

Rural mail run is going to get crazy. Been busy with parcel delivery all week (More than Christmas), and that's with people only able to buy "essential items" online. Next week they can order anything they want.  : 

Kids will be off school for a another 2 weeks at least, although schools will be "open" if parents have to work essential jobs. Lil's kindergarten is technically open, but only had 1 child planning to attend, and they made other arrangements. 

[Sedgehammer]

I heard one health worker describe the reopenings at this point as being about the same as trying to designate a special area in the swimming pool for peeing.

Lot of truth to that unfortunately. I think though the best way forward for the country is to allow it to spread, as it will anyway, but just control it so the hospitals don't get overwhelmed. Heard immunity the sooner the better. 

[Bandmill Bandit]

I heard one health worker describe the reopenings at this point as being about the same as trying to designate a special area in the swimming pool for peeing.

Lot of truth to that unfortunately. I think though the best way forward for the country is to allow it to spread, as it will anyway, but just control it so the hospitals don't get overwhelmed. Heard immunity the sooner the better.

The herd immunity theory is good in theory BUT there is a biggar dragon beging to emerge! Early indications in China are showing significant recurring infections with those numbers starting to climb enough to be a concern AND the second round is a lot worse than the first.

We have all had a "cold" multiple times in our lives and I have yet to meet someone that is immune to the common "cold".

The cold is a corona virus.  

IF recurring infection turns out to be a reality, this virus could conceivably wipe out a 1/3 or more of this planets people before we find a cure IF we even can find one.

There is no known cure for ANY of the Corona related viruses that I am aware of to date.

The Common Cold has been here as long as there have been people on this planet. This one has out morphed science so far.  

[Jeff]

I just sanitized this virus topic of a couple politically driven posts.  Not on this topic gentlepeople.

[doc henderson]

most corona viruses do just cause the common cold.  we think of many viruses as harmless but on rare occasions, they all cause life threatening complications of vital organs like the heart or brain.  this virus is in the same family, but has a major predispositions for the lungs.  I tell people with a cold virus, if I could cure the common cold, I would be retired.  but in part it is due to the cold being primarily benign and not life threatening.  the big problem is this virus is new, like SARS and EBOLA were, and often life threatening.  even RSV causes a cold except for premature babies after going home, wound up back on ventilator.  in this case it is the elderly and frail that do poorly.    We do not know the infectivity, and what % develop life threatening conditions. and we have only known about it for months.  when you get multiple colds, it is usually different viruses.  there are hundreds.  so you are not getting re-infected with the same one.  not sure why a second round would be worse, other than more lives lost.  No one knows the actual answers to these questions.  It may be that the majority of people have already had it.  the antigen test has a 30% false negative rate.  the antibody test has a 30% false positive rate.  so no one really know because the test to generate the data, are not good tests.  these will be developed over the next 5 to 10 years.  we do not know if antibodies that show up in the testing confers immunity.  This is a pandemic. (period) 

[Bandmill Bandit]

Thankyou Doc.

As a sawyer I could only articulate the way I understood it from the article I read this after noon. You, as a Doctor were able to take my rambling and make it coherent.

The thinking re the second round being worse was being attributed to the lungs not having had time to sufficiently recover from the first round. I will see if I can find the article and send the link too you. There was a lot of medical jargon that was over my head. My wife works in the system so I have access to professional postings that the doctors generally only see that my doc will forward to me when he can cause he knows I like to read the stuff.    

[doc henderson]

thanks bandit.  you comments are great, I am just trying to sort through all the fear, and state what I think is true.  I think some think the second round would be mostly prev. uninfected folks, not so much the previously infected.  mostly the media pushing fear.  Most on the forum are fearless.  people have and will die, but not the end of the world!  Best regards all!

[Bandmill Bandit]

Yes Docc:

The most important lesson that I have learned is that we have nothing to fear save fear itself because the fear incapacitates us and we stop fighting.

Many a good doctor/scientist gave his/her life to test a possible cure for some malady because they were unwilling to sacrifice some one else. Many lived through the test and today we have cures we would not other wise have.

[SwampDonkey]

Still in the clear here in NB, just 11 active cases, 4 hospitalized, none in ICU, no deaths.

[trapper]

Meat packing packing plants in Green Bay accounted for half the new cases in wisconsin the last two days.

[Bandmill Bandit]

It is really starting to look like herd immunity is a non exisitant dream. 

Recurring infections are really starting to be a rising reality.

Health Canada advised extreme caution on this and named 3 locations including the north island of Japan that are experiencing alarming recuring infections.
 

[Sedgehammer]

It is really starting to look like herd immunity is a non exisitant dream.

Recurring infections are really starting to be a rising reality.

Health Canada advised extreme caution on this and named 3 locations including the north island of Japan that are experiencing alarming recuring infections.

You have a link on that? I cannot find that the same people are catching it again and again in Japan. Thanks

[dgdrls]

It is really starting to look like herd immunity is a non exisitant dream.

Recurring infections are really starting to be a rising reality.

Health Canada advised extreme caution on this and named 3 locations including the north island of Japan that are experiencing alarming recuring infections.

Coronavirus lockdown: Lessons from Hokkaido's second wave of infections
I just saw the story this morning,  second wave could be worse than the first if its mismanaged. 

D

[Hilltop366]

Their saying "second wave",  I didn't get a sense that there was much talk of differentiation between new infections verses reinfected. Since there is no mass testing there is no idea how many people have been in contact with the virus but for example in Nova scotia the positive verses tested rate is about 3% overall, yesterdays stats were about 1.5% positive so it would lead me to believe that a lot of people have not been in infected with the virus yet. 

[tawilson]

New York is putting a lot of effort into antibody testing. First results showed 14% had already had the virus and were immune. They are ramping the tests up now. Different opinions are out there on the accuracy and value of the tests.