Doctors who treat Covid describe the ways the illness has gotten milder and shifted over time to mostly affect the upper respiratory tract.
Doctors say they’re finding it increasingly difficult to distinguish Covid from allergies or the common cold, even as hospitalizations tick up.
The illness’ past hallmarks, such as a dry cough or the loss of sense of taste or smell, have become less common. Instead, doctors are observing milder disease, mostly concentrated in the upper respiratory tract.
“It isn’t the same typical symptoms that we were seeing before. It’s a lot of congestion, sometimes sneezing, usually a mild sore throat,” said Dr. Erick Eiting, vice chair of operations for emergency medicine at Mount Sinai Downtown in New York City.
The sore throat usually arrives first, he said, then congestion.
Do the old covid tests still work? Ive had this cold several times this year and always covid negative.
The answer is yes they are still as effective, dont let anyone here convince you otherwise. The base protein has not mutated and that is what is being checked when you do this chromatography style test.
They have a much higher false negative rate now than they used to. Thats probably due to changes in the virus itself and lower viral load as people have higher levels of immunity now. However if you test positive you can still be pretty certain you have covid.
Mind the expiration dates.
My pneumologist had me do blood lab tests for "igm and igm"and according to him they are the best options right now, he doesn't trust the cotton swab one.
I simply had the worst sore throat I’ve ever had. No congestion. Then I lost my sense of smell for about 6 months. That was awful. Very grateful it came back.
Scheduled next boost for next week.
I finally caught it earlier this year. Thanks to vax, it was similar to a cold / flu. Was mostly better after a few days.
Medical science is awesome. I couldn't be happier about how it turned out. What a relief.
New vax wasnt approved on yet I thought…
Approved in the US and OZ that I've seen. Certainly others by now.
The EMA recommeded it recently. I think that has to filter down into member states now. So for the EU next week would probably be too soon. For Switzerland it's not approved yet. But maybe in other non-EU countries somewhere?
I don't think they're even doing boosters where I live, at least not for general population
Removed by mod
Likely. I know folks who got it over the weekend.
Huh, I have exactly that. Dunno if covid though of just some flu
Take a test?
Oh, I'm not that curious
Don't know why you're getting downvoted. I can't afford to pay for a test every time I get the sniffles either. Also, America showed me they dgaf a couple years ago, so now I just throw on the mask and go about my business.
Maybe they're disappointed I'm leaving them hanging? I really dunno
That's kind of the mystery, isn't it?
Indeed
Is this propaganda? My wife just recovered from covid and it knocked her on her ass. Yes upper respiratory was true, but nausea, fever, fatigue, fainting, body pain, loss of taste all happened
Just because an individual case doesn't fit the trend does not automatically make the news propaganda.
This article is a bit of propaganda though. That doesn't mean it isn't true or anything. But running an article in the news about how much milder the disease is, is still going to have an effect on how people respond to it.
I think you might be using too broad a definition of propaganda. The result of influencing opinion does not make something propaganda. Propaganda needs some intent to persuade or push an agenda.
The article might be propaganda, largely that depends on the motivations for writing and publishing it. But the fact that the content of the article might change people's opinions does not make it propaganda.
I think you might be using too broad a definition of propaganda.
Nah.
The result of influencing opinion does not make something propaganda. Propaganda needs some intent to persuade or push an agenda.
A bar this article very easily clears. What to publish is a choice. A choice was made to publish this article, with obvious influence on opinion and action.
The article might be propaganda, largely that depends on the motivations for writing and publishing it. But the fact that the content of the article might change people’s opinions does not make it propaganda.
Nah. Intent a nonsense metric. We can bicker forever about intent. Because we cannot know anyone's mind.
Using intent as a metric gives a lot of propaganda a free pass. Because we can't prove intent.
It's not a free pass. Something doesn't have to be propaganda to be bad.
I didn't say it did? I didn't even say that propaganda is universally bad?
Sure, but propaganda has to have intent. The article itself cannot be propaganda without it. It may advance a claim of COVID being trivial, but those who advance it must bend the article in some way. What they say then is the propaganda.
So you just don't know what propaganda is, got it.
Oh sod off then, dickhead.
Nah.
There is a ton of, "COVID is mild now" propaganda which is not supported by the science. More evidence points to increased immunity than a reduction in the lethality of the virus itself.
Omicron is less severe than Delta, but that's really misleading because Delta was the most dangerous variant.
What sort of propaganda do you think this would be?
An effort to downplay the risks we are under in order to avoid a panic or shutdown like before during a bad economy?
One idea, I don't know, I'm sure there are other possibilities, I'm wasn't thinking of anything specific.
There is more than just one strain in circulation
There's a lot of different strains going around, but it's a bunch of different subvariants of Omicron.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#variant-proportions
There will always be outliers in any population distribution, your wife being one it seems. This is talking about the general outcome now.
I feel like the comments are dragging you unnecessarily. Maybe one variant presents mildly, but the first line says hospitalizations are increasing. Is hospitalization ‘mild’?
The article contradicts its core premise in the first line.
