Non-COVID Headlines
CDC investigating salmonella outbreak in 23 states – The Hill
As of July 23, a total of 212 people have been infected with the salmonella strain, and 38 of the infections stemmed from new states: Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Maine, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Virginia.
Featured Headlines
Phase 3 clinical trial of investigational vaccine for COVID-19 begins – NIH
Multi-site trial to test candidate developed by Moderna and NIH. A Phase 3 clinical trial designed to evaluate if an investigational vaccine can prevent symptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in adults has begun. The vaccine, known as mRNA-1273, was co-developed by the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company Moderna, Inc., and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health. The trial, which will be conducted at U.S. clinical research sites, is expected to enroll approximately 30,000 adult volunteers who do not have COVID-19.
Confusion spreads over system to determine priority access to Covid-19 vaccines – STAT News
On Tuesday, the National Academy of Medicine, tasked by top U.S. health officials, named an expert panel to develop a framework to determine who should be vaccinated first, when available doses are expected to be scarce. But that panel is ostensibly encroaching on the role of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a panel that has made recommendations on vaccination policy to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for decades, including drawing up the vaccination priority list during the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic.
COVID-19 More Deadly Than Cancer Itself? – MedPageToday
During the recent months of the pandemic, cancer patients undergoing active treatment saw their risk for death increase 15-fold with a COVID-19 diagnosis, real-world data from two large healthcare systems in the Midwest found.
How Much Can We Reduce COVID–19 Spread by Staying Home? A Lot, New Research Shows – Science Direct
In the case of infectious diseases such as coronavirus, R determines how many people will be infected by each person who already has the virus. To successfully defeat a pathogen like SARS-CoV–2, you need R to be less than 1 – meaning each person passes the infection on to less than one other person, which ultimately leads to fewer and fewer people being infected. In contrast, an R value greater than 1 represents a growing spread.
Coronavirus: How bad will winter really be? – BBC
This has raised fears that coronavirus will surge when the seasons change, possibly leading to a second wave of the disease that is even bigger than the first. However, predicting what a Covid winter will look like is complex and uncertainty reigns – there are reasons both to be worried and to be reassured.
Clinical Considerations
How Long Are You Contagious With Covid-19 Coronavirus? Here’s A CDC Update – Forbes
You may be able to lose a guy in 10 days, based on the 2003 rom-com movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. That also may be time that it takes for you to “lose” enough of the Covid-19 coronavirus so that you are no longer contagious, based on updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). [Related CDC Guidance]
Association of cardiac infection with SARS-CoV-2 in confirmed COVID-19 autopsy cases – JAMA
Cardiac tissue from 39 consecutive autopsy cases were included. The median (interquartile range) age of patients was 85 (78-89) years, and 23 (59.0%) were women. SARS-CoV-2 could be documented in 24 of 39 patients (61.5%). Viral load above 1000 copies per μg RNA could be documented in 16 of 39 patients (41.0%). A cytokine response panel consisting of 6 proinflammatory genes was increased in those 16 patients compared with 15 patients without any SARS-CoV-2 in the heart. Comparison of 15 patients without cardiac infection with 16 patients with more than 1000 copies revealed no inflammatory cell infiltrates or differences in leukocyte numbers per high power field.
Can Covid-19 Coronavirus Cause Hearing Problems Even With No Other Symptoms? – Forbes
Seemingly every week more evidence emerges that the Covid-19 coronavirus is like a really bad box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.
Covid-19 infections leave an impact on the heart, raising concerns about lasting damage – Stat
Two new studies from Germany paint a sobering picture of the toll that Covid-19 takes on the heart, raising the specter of long-term damage after people recover, even if their illness was not severe enough to require hospitalization.
Official Reporting for July 27, 2020
World Health Organization
Confirmed Cases: 15,296,926
Deaths: 628,903
ECDC
Confirmed Cases: 16,249,165
Deaths: 649,208
Johns Hopkins
Confirmed Cases: 16,360,298
Deaths: 635,086
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Total deaths: 146,546
Surveillance Headlines
UNITED STATES
Maryland: Coronavirus In Maryland: Over 1,100 New Cases In 24 Hours – CBS News
Florida: 9,300 new coronavirus cases, blows past New York – Reuters
Texas: Readies Morgue Trucks in Preparation for Virus Surge – Bloomberg
Alabama: 40 infected with coronavirus after church event – ABC News
Missouri: Health officials call for ‘aggressive actions’ as COVID-19 cases rise – ABC News
Oklahoma: Reports single highest day yet with 1,204 new cases – Tulsa News
Alaska: Seafood processor outbreaks drive coronavirus count to one-day high – Alaska Public
North Carolina: NC COVID-19 update: Hospitalizations due to COVID-19 stay over 1,100 – WLOS
New Jersey: More than two dozen lifeguards in New Jersey test positive for COVID-19, health officials say – NBC
Louisiana: Coronavirus Pushes Some Hospitals In Southern Louisiana To The Brink – NPR
EUROPE
Germany: Germany Warns Rising Infection Rates Could Reignite Virus Spread – Bloomberg
LATIN AMERICA
Latin America leads world in coronavirus cases – NBC
ASIA
Indonesia: Confirmed coronavirus cases surpass 100,000 in Indonesia – ABC News
Japan: Hundreds of Japanese workers on US bases tested for coronavirus – CNN
Vietnam: First locally transmitted Covid-19 cases since April – Guardian
North Korea: South Korea Confirms a Defector Swam Back to the North – NYT
China: Biggest Virus Spike Since End of Wuhan Outbreak – Bloomberg
Science and Tech
None Today
Social and Psychological Impact
Lockdown was the longest period of quiet in Human History – MIT Technology Review
Lockdown was the longest period of quiet in recorded human history. The months of March through May presented scientists with a unique opportunity to listen to our planet. When lockdown started in March, the world went instantly, strangely silent. City streets emptied. Joggers and families disappeared from parks. Construction projects froze. Stores closed.
Published Research
Effect of Systemic Glucocorticoids on Mortality or Mechanical Ventilation in Patients With COVID-19 – Journal of Hospital Infection
Longitudinal analyses reveal immunological misfiring in severe COVID-19 – Nature
Pre-Pub (not yet peer reviewed, should not be regarded as conclusive)
None Today
Coping in Quarantine
Why is the Tulane Outbreak Daily so late today?
If you have noticed the late delivery, and a day or two in last few weeks with no daily email, I’ve had some dentistry drama in the time of COVID. Cracked a tooth back in the days of shut down, and by the time the dentist opened again… there were issues. I have a few more appointments in the coming weeks, there may be another day or two of late or missing Tulane Outbreak Daily emails, but not to worry. I’ll catch up on the the latest interesting reads in the next edition.