Coronavirus prep

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  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,897 Member
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    kimny72 wrote: »
    I listened to a TWIV quick clinical update with some interesting stuff:

    They did a quick update on the J&J vaccine now that more data has been released. They said after 28 days, J&J had a 100% effective rate as far as preventing disease requiring serious medical intervention or hospitalization. They also PCR tested everyone between 29 and 71 days after the one shot for viral particles that would show some level of asymptomatic infection leading to spread and found the vaccine was 74% effective overall. Especially considering this trial was run after some of the more worrisome variants are out there, this is another hint that the vaccines will at least greatly reduce transmission, which is kind of awesome.

    Still early, but no serious side effects have been reported yet, just soar arm and fatigue. They noted that J&J uses the same vaccine platform for their ebola vaccine, which has been given to over 200,000 people over the last decade, so there is every reason to be confident in the safety.

    They also mentioned that many studies are now showing no benefit to treatment with convalescent plasma, it just doesn't seem to help at all.

    The standard at this point is monoclonal antibodies early in disease, and steroids in those who are very ill. If you test positive and have ANY increased risk factors, you should advocate for yourself and make sure you get the monoclonal antibody serum if at all positive.

    Speaking of plasma, a branch of this place just opened near me:

    https://octapharmaplasma.com/about

    I thought they were going to GIVE treatments, and expected them to close again quickly. But it looks like they are collecting blood, which seems like an odd business model.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
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    I will definitely be interested in getting this test if it is ever readily accessible....
    "The first-of-its-kind test for detecting whether someone was infected withCOVID-19 in the past -- using the body's T-cells -- was granted emergency authorization by the Food and Drug Administration late Friday night."

    For those who were never confirmed cases or who were tested or antibodies past the three month mark.

    https://abcnews.go.com/Health/fda-authorizes-cell-test-game-changer-covid-19/story?id=76318248&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=news_tab&utm_content=algorithm
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I listened to a TWIV quick clinical update with some interesting stuff:

    They did a quick update on the J&J vaccine now that more data has been released. They said after 28 days, J&J had a 100% effective rate as far as preventing disease requiring serious medical intervention or hospitalization. They also PCR tested everyone between 29 and 71 days after the one shot for viral particles that would show some level of asymptomatic infection leading to spread and found the vaccine was 74% effective overall. Especially considering this trial was run after some of the more worrisome variants are out there, this is another hint that the vaccines will at least greatly reduce transmission, which is kind of awesome.

    Still early, but no serious side effects have been reported yet, just soar arm and fatigue. They noted that J&J uses the same vaccine platform for their ebola vaccine, which has been given to over 200,000 people over the last decade, so there is every reason to be confident in the safety.

    They also mentioned that many studies are now showing no benefit to treatment with convalescent plasma, it just doesn't seem to help at all.

    The standard at this point is monoclonal antibodies early in disease, and steroids in those who are very ill. If you test positive and have ANY increased risk factors, you should advocate for yourself and make sure you get the monoclonal antibody serum if at all positive.

    Speaking of plasma, a branch of this place just opened near me:

    https://octapharmaplasma.com/about

    I thought they were going to GIVE treatments, and expected them to close again quickly. But it looks like they are collecting blood, which seems like an odd business model.

    I knew some college students who basically used getting paid for their plasma as a side gig.

    I don't remember the spiel I got the first few times I gave blood, but I think plasma is used in several traumatic injury type treatments. When I was donating platelets, they also used to take a bag of plasma too.
    It was illegal to get paid for blood/blood component donations in NY, but now that I'm in VA I noticed there are a couple of collection businesses around here.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,070 Member
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    kimny72 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I listened to a TWIV quick clinical update with some interesting stuff:

    They did a quick update on the J&J vaccine now that more data has been released. They said after 28 days, J&J had a 100% effective rate as far as preventing disease requiring serious medical intervention or hospitalization. They also PCR tested everyone between 29 and 71 days after the one shot for viral particles that would show some level of asymptomatic infection leading to spread and found the vaccine was 74% effective overall. Especially considering this trial was run after some of the more worrisome variants are out there, this is another hint that the vaccines will at least greatly reduce transmission, which is kind of awesome.

    Still early, but no serious side effects have been reported yet, just soar arm and fatigue. They noted that J&J uses the same vaccine platform for their ebola vaccine, which has been given to over 200,000 people over the last decade, so there is every reason to be confident in the safety.

    They also mentioned that many studies are now showing no benefit to treatment with convalescent plasma, it just doesn't seem to help at all.

    The standard at this point is monoclonal antibodies early in disease, and steroids in those who are very ill. If you test positive and have ANY increased risk factors, you should advocate for yourself and make sure you get the monoclonal antibody serum if at all positive.

    Speaking of plasma, a branch of this place just opened near me:

    https://octapharmaplasma.com/about

    I thought they were going to GIVE treatments, and expected them to close again quickly. But it looks like they are collecting blood, which seems like an odd business model.

    I knew some college students who basically used getting paid for their plasma as a side gig.

    I don't remember the spiel I got the first few times I gave blood, but I think plasma is used in several traumatic injury type treatments. When I was donating platelets, they also used to take a bag of plasma too.
    It was illegal to get paid for blood/blood component donations in NY, but now that I'm in VA I noticed there are a couple of collection businesses around here.

    Yeah, I had friends in college even back in the 1970s that gave plasma for cash, at businesses like that. Don't know about now, but they used to be more common in college towns and in very low income areas or areas with a lot of unemployment/homelessness.
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,365 Member
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    33gail33 wrote: »
    ElioraFR wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    paperpudding wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    paperpudding wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    Update on the shingles vaccine reaction if anyone is interested. While the urgent care doctor said that she "couldn't rule out" a vaccine reaction, the next day her GP told her definitively that she believes it to be a vaccine reaction. Given her age, general health, and the timing of the rash "you would not have shingles right now if you hadn't had the vaccine".
    Don't shoot me I am just the messenger - that is what the doctors are telling us.
    Personally it wouldn't dissuade me from getting the vaccine, I do wish that I had a shingles vaccine prior though.

    Nobody is or was 'shooting' you :*

    Would be interested to know via what mechanism the Dr thinks covid vaccine brought on shingles - since, as we all know, shingles is caused by re activation of chicken pox virus, dormant in your system since having the primary disease.

    Or how he knows she wouldn't have shingles anyway - given young and healthy people can and do get it.

    It is her professional opinion given her age, health status and the timing of the illness that it was triggered by the vaccine. I imagine she thinks it was brought on by stressing her immune system enough to reactivate the virus. Of course we will never know for sure, although as time goes on if we start seeing more cases I guess that will give more confirmation.


    Ok, so she hasn't said by what mechanism this has happened just her opinion based on something

    Her age and health status wouldn't suggest it to me - since since young healthy people do get shingles.

    Not as commonly as older people but by no means rare.
    paperpudding wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    paperpudding wrote: »
    33gail33 wrote: »
    Update on the shingles vaccine reaction if anyone is interested. While the urgent care doctor said that she "couldn't rule out" a vaccine reaction, the next day her GP told her definitively that she believes it to be a vaccine reaction. Given her age, general health, and the timing of the rash "you would not have shingles right now if you hadn't had the vaccine".
    Don't shoot me I am just the messenger - that is what the doctors are telling us.
    Personally it wouldn't dissuade me from getting the vaccine, I do wish that I had a shingles vaccine prior though.

    Nobody is or was 'shooting' you :*

    Would be interested to know via what mechanism the Dr thinks covid vaccine brought on shingles - since, as we all know, shingles is caused by re activation of chicken pox virus, dormant in your system since having the primary disease.

    Or how he knows she wouldn't have shingles anyway - given young and healthy people can and do get it.

    It is her professional opinion given her age, health status and the timing of the illness that it was triggered by the vaccine. I imagine she thinks it was brought on by stressing her immune system enough to reactivate the virus. Of course we will never know for sure, although as time goes on if we start seeing more cases I guess that will give more confirmation.


    Ok, so she hasn't said by what mechanism this has happened just her opinion based on something

    Her age and health status wouldn't suggest it to me - since since young healthy people do get shingles.

    Not as commonly as older people but by no means rare.

    Honestly I wasn’t there (obviously) for the conversation and I didn’t grill my DIL on her exact wording.
    So since it wouldn’t suggest it to you what would you suggest might be the cause - what is the usual trigger for shingles in young healthy people? I have mostly read that is triggered by reduced immunity, illness and/or stress. Is it more accurate that the cause is just random chance in your experience?
    So correct me if I am wrong but you think it is more likely that this just occurred randomly with no identifiable stressor - than that it is somehow linked to a vaccine that directly affects the immune system? I guess to me with no other risk factor one would logically at least suspect the one risk factor that was recently introduced.

    Experience only for what it’s worth. I had shingles twice, once in my 20’s and in my mid 40’s. I’m 71 now. Most of my major stresses have been in my 50’s and 60’s. I kind of feel like stress is something of a factor in shingles, just not the whole cause. I haven’t decided whether to get a vaccination for shingles. Still waiting to see when I can get the Covid-19 one.

    I can say it is very very painful. Thank goodness it only lasted a few days.

    After this I am definitely going to get the shingles vaccine once I am done with the Covid series. I almost got it a couple of years ago when 2 people out of my 7 person office got shingles within a couple weeks of each other. I had the prescription to fill but it was I think $400, so I cheaped out and decided to wait until I am 60 and it is covered under our gov't plan. Think I'll just suck it up and pay for rather than wait another 5 years. :smiley:

    I had heard that there was a greater likelihood of developing shingles if one had chicken pox as an adult (although apparently this is not substantiated) so I was begging for that vaccine as soon as I turned 50. Fortunately my drug benefit plan covered it... but not the $20 fee for the pharmacist to inject it.
  • Theo166
    Theo166 Posts: 2,564 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    kimny72 wrote: »
    I listened to a TWIV quick clinical update with some interesting stuff:

    They did a quick update on the J&J vaccine now that more data has been released. They said after 28 days, J&J had a 100% effective rate as far as preventing disease requiring serious medical intervention or hospitalization. They also PCR tested everyone between 29 and 71 days after the one shot for viral particles that would show some level of asymptomatic infection leading to spread and found the vaccine was 74% effective overall. Especially considering this trial was run after some of the more worrisome variants are out there, this is another hint that the vaccines will at least greatly reduce transmission, which is kind of awesome.

    Still early, but no serious side effects have been reported yet, just soar arm and fatigue. They noted that J&J uses the same vaccine platform for their ebola vaccine, which has been given to over 200,000 people over the last decade, so there is every reason to be confident in the safety.

    They also mentioned that many studies are now showing no benefit to treatment with convalescent plasma, it just doesn't seem to help at all.

    The standard at this point is monoclonal antibodies early in disease, and steroids in those who are very ill. If you test positive and have ANY increased risk factors, you should advocate for yourself and make sure you get the monoclonal antibody serum if at all positive.

    Speaking of plasma, a branch of this place just opened near me:

    https://octapharmaplasma.com/about

    I thought they were going to GIVE treatments, and expected them to close again quickly. But it looks like they are collecting blood, which seems like an odd business model.

    Donated blood and plasma is processed and sold for a very nice return. I've read a pint of blood can go for $180 to $300, depending on demand. A liter of plasma that costs a company about $150 to collect/process can sell for around $500—a substantial markup in any industry..

    VICE: America Is Selling Blood for Big Profits to the Rest of the World
  • lkpducky
    lkpducky Posts: 16,739 Member
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    Noreenmarie1234 wrote: »
    I will definitely be interested in getting this test if it is ever readily accessible....
    "The first-of-its-kind test for detecting whether someone was infected withCOVID-19 in the past -- using the body's T-cells -- was granted emergency authorization by the Food and Drug Administration late Friday night."

    For those who were never confirmed cases or who were tested or antibodies past the three month mark.

    https://abcnews.go.com/Health/fda-authorizes-cell-test-game-changer-covid-19/story?id=76318248&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=news_tab&utm_content=algorithm
    Would just anyone who suspects they had COVID-19 be able to get it or would you have to be a long hauler (still feeling sick)? My husband strongly suspects that he had it in January 2020 but didn’t qualify for testing at the time.

  • Fuzzipeg
    Fuzzipeg Posts: 2,298 Member
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    Research in UK is beginning to suggest having the vaccine can help with "long covid" symptoms.

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