The United States is in the midst of a summer wave of COVID-19 fueled by highly contagious, new variants sweeping the country from coast to coast. As summer travel peaks, experts are warning people to take precautions to stop the spread, no matter the COVID rates in your state.
Currently, levels of COVID found in wastewater are considered high nationally, for the first time since last winter. What's more, 36 states have "high" or "very high" levels individually, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The West and Southeast are being hit especially hard.
"This years summer COVID-19 wave is coming earlier than last year, which occurred in late August and early September," a CDC spokesperson tells TODAY.com.
Cases may keep rising through the rest of the year, according to Michael Hoerger, Ph.D., assistant professor at Tulane University School of Medicine who leads thePandemic Mitigation Collaboratives data tracker. His models show the current wave is likely to peak on Sept. 11 at around 1.2 million new cases a day. (He uses wastewater data from Biobot Analytics, which used to provide the CDC its data.)
"We're probably somewhere between a quarter of the way through the wave to 40%, 50%, if we're lucky," he tells TODAY.com, adding that this is the ninth COVID wave in the U.S.
The CDC no longer tracks the total number of new COVID-19 cases. Instead, the agency estimates the level of transmission using indicators such as test positivity, emergency department visits and wastewater surveillance. These show a clear surge in COVID-19 across the nation.
Currently, test positivity is at 12.6%, the highest it has been since the peak of the winter COVID-19 surge in January, per CDC data. COVID-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations are also climbing, but the rate of deaths remains stable nationally.
Levels are lower than the peak from this past winter and are at similar levels to the early fall peak in 2023," the CDC spokesperson says.
The current COVID-19 trends in the U.S. appear to be the start of an expected summer "bump," Dr. William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, tells TODAY.com. "Unlike influenza, which essentially disappears during the summertime, COVID-19 never goes away."
COVID-19 has caused previous summer waves. People are traveling more and attending more social gatherings, which creates ample opportunities for highly contagious variants to spread, says Schaffner.
These include the fast-growing FLiRT variants KP.3, KP.2, and KP.1.1 and LB.1, which have spike protein mutations that make them better able to escape immunity compared to previous strains.
These mutated new variants, along with waning population immunity and poor uptake of the latest booster, are likely contributing to the rise in cases, TODAY.com previously reported.
COVID is increasing all over the country, says Schaffner.
According to wastewater data, states with the highest COVID rates are in the West, but it's also spiking in the Southeast and parts of the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions, per the latest CDC data.
(COVID) is up everywhere. Its not as though you could go to a state and avoid this increase. Its just that the increase is more prominent in some parts of the country than others, Schaffner notes.
Hoerger similarly stresses that the wave is national and discourages getting too focused on local COVID trends. "I think people should just be increasing precautions in general. ... I find it a bit trickier to know precisely what's happening locally," he adds.
Wastewater surveillance is used to measure COVID-19 trends and predict a rise in cases in a community. People infected with COVID can shed the virus in their stool even if they are asymptomatic or before they show symptoms which ends up in sewage. This method can help capture COVID levels without relying on testing or data from doctors offices and hospitals, according to the CDC.
Wastewater surveillance can serve as a more precise early warning sign than other measurements that COVID-19 is spiking or going down in a community, Hoerger says.
"If you see increased COVID-19 wastewater viral activity levels in your area, it might indicate that there is a higher risk of infection," the CDC spokesperson adds.
The CDC categorizes COVID-19 viral activity in wastewater into five levels: very high, high, moderate, low and minimal.
Wastewater activity levels are considered "very high" in the following states, including the District of Columbia, according to the latest data from the CDC as of July 25:
Wastewater viral activity levels are currently considered "high" in the following 14 states, as of July 25:
Another CDC map of test positivity by region shows that during the week ending on July 13, rates were highest in California, Nevada and Arizona. During the same week, COVID-related emergency room visits were highest in Florida and Hawaii, per CDC data.
The CDC also tracks where cases are growing and declining. The most recent data available show cases growing in 42 states, declining in zero and stable or uncertain in six.
"There are places that are rising earlier, and there are places that will pick up later, but that's what you would expect," Hoerger adds.
The symptoms of the COVID-19 variants driving the summer wave, including FLiRT strains and LB.1, are similar to those caused by earlier omicron subvariants.
Possible signs and symptoms of COVID-19, per the CDC, include:
The latest variants are highly contagious but do not appear to be producing more severe disease, experts say.
"These variants are spreading very, very widely (and) largely producing milder disease," says Schaffner. However, some people may still develop severe symptoms or require hospitalization.
"Since (the variants) are spreading so widely, they're also finding vulnerable people who are in the high-risk groups," says Schaffner. These include people ages 65 and older, individuals with underlying medical conditions, and those who are immune-compromised.
High-risk individuals, as well as people who are not up to date on their vaccinations, "are the people at the moment who are being hospitalized,"says Schaffner.
If COVID-19 levels are very high, you should take steps to protect yourself and your family from illness, the CDC spokesperson says. However, anyone anywhere can take steps to protect themselves and others from COVID-19. According to the CDC, these include:
These actions are especially important for high-risk groups or people who are in close contact with high-risk individuals, says Schaffner.
"Every day of 2024 remaining is likely to have more transmission than today," Hoerger says. "So people should really be taking the rest of the year very seriously."
Caroline Kee is a health reporter at TODAY based in New York City.
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Across the country, health officials are reporting a rise in COVID-19 cases that rival numbers typically seen in the winter months.
TACOMA, Wash. - Beautiful weather is here, but the COVID-19 virus isn't taking a summer break.
Across the country, health officials are reporting a rise in cases that rival numbers typically seen in the winter months.
The data in Pierce County mirrors what health officials are reporting nationally. In Pierce County, waste water tests show a summer surge of the virus and hospitalizations have also jumped since the spring.
"Right now about 2% of emergency room visits in Pierce County are due to COVID," said Dr. Jay Miller, Health Officer for the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department.
Wastewater tests and hospitalizations in Pierce County are revealing more about COVID's summer resurgence.
"We are seeing similar levels of COVID in wastewater as to what we saw back in the winter during the respiratory virus season," said Dr. Miller.
After a decline in the spring, scientists are seeing a community-level surge.
"Last year we saw a similar pattern where we had a spike in COVID in the summer," said Dr. Miller.
He says about 2% of emergency room visits in Pierce County are due to COVID, compared to about 0.5% in the spring, which amounts to a four-fold increase.
Hospitalizations show a similar pattern. Currently, 1.8% are for COVID compared to about 0.5% earlier in the spring.
Dr. Jay Miller says if you have a runny nose or respiratory problems that resemble an allergy, you may want to consider testing.
"If you have the ability to do so, get yourself tested and, regardless of that, take steps to prevent other people from getting sick," said Dr. Miller.
He says getting a vaccine is another way to protect yourself.
"That doesnt alwaysprotect you from getting COVID, but it will protect you from getting very sick from COVID. It could also provide some protection from getting long COVID," said Miller.
For high-risk groups, wearing a mask and avoiding large indoor crowds is something to consider.
"Outdoor events are generally quite safe, so people generally dont need to worry about outdoor events, but the biggest thing to think about is indoor spaces where there a lot of people," said Dr. Miller.
Since the fall, Miller says they've seen about 90 deaths from COVID in Pierce County. That's compared to less than 10 influenza deaths during that same time period.
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Whether or not a person becomes seriously ill with COVID-19 depends, among other things, on genetic factors. With this in mind, researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn, in cooperation with other research teams from Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Italy, investigated a particularly large group of affected individuals. They confirmed the central and already known role of the TLR7 gene in severe courses of the disease in men, but were also able to find evidence for a contribution of the gene in women. In addition, they were able to show that genetic changes in three other genes of the innate immune system contribute to severe COVID-19. The results have now been published in the journal "Human Genetics and Genomics Advances".
Even though the number of severe cases following infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus has decreased, there is still great interest in understanding why, at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, the infection was severe in some people but not in others.
This is important because it gives us information about the function and reaction of the immune system when it first comes into contact with a pathogen. If we have a better understanding of how severe courses of the disease develop, we can identify people at risk and protect them better or develop targeted therapies. We assume that the findings can be transferred at least in part to future pandemics."
Kerstin Ludwig, Professor,Institute of Human Genetics,University Hospital Bonn
Kerstin Ludwig is also a member of the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSenstation2 and the Transdisciplinary Research Area (TRA) "Life and Health" at the University of Bonn.
In addition to many possible reasons such as increased age or pre-existing conditions, some people's own genetic make-up can cause a severe course of the disease. Early work in the pandemic had already identified affected genes, most of which are involved in the innate immune response. The gene with the strongest evidence to date is the TLR7 gene, which was identified as the cause of the disease in two pairs of Dutch brothers with severe cases back in summer 2020. However, it was not yet known to what extent the effect of genetic changes in TLR7 is independent of other non-genetic risk factors, such as increased age or previous illnesses, and whether there are other genes in which so-called mutations significantly increase the risk of severe COVID.
In the recently published study, an international research group led by Prof. Ludwig looked at the gene sequences of 52 candidate genes, including TLR7, in a comparatively large patient sample. Through collaborations with various European groups, the Bonn researchers gained access to DNA material from 1,772 people with severe COVID-19 and 5,347 control individuals with unknown SARS-CoV-2 status from Spain and Italy - i.e. from regions where a very high incidence and high mortality rate was observed, especially at the beginning of the pandemic. All those affected were infected at a time when vaccinations were not yet available - these people therefore had no immune protection and were exposed to the virus virtually "unprepared".
In this large group of people, mutations that render the TLR7 gene non-functional were actually observed significantly more frequently in severely affected COVID-19 patients than in the control group. "This 'enrichment' was even stronger when only those affected people were considered who, due to their age and state of health, would not actually have had a high risk of a severe course. This means that certain mutations in this gene significantly increase the risk of severe progression," says first author and doctoral student at the Bonn Institute of Human Genetics Jannik Boos, who was in charge of the project. In addition to TLR7, the Bonn researchers were also able to identify mutations in the three other genes TBK1, INFAR1 and IFIH1 in the group of severely affected individuals.
The Bonn researchers then took a closer look at TLR7 and found something interesting: the TLR7 gene is located on the X chromosome, of which men only have one copy, but women have two. "So if there is a loss of function of TLR7 on one copy, men no longer have a functioning gene - women, on the other hand, still have a healthy copy, so at least a little bit of functioning TLR7. It was therefore surprising for us that we also found TLR7 mutations more frequently in women with severe COVID-19 courses," says Dr. Axel Schmidt, who is a resident at the Institute of Human Genetics and in the Department of Neuropaediatrics at the UKB and led the study with Prof. Ludwig. Together with Prof. Alexander Hoischen's team from Radboudumc University Hospital in the Netherlands, the Bonn researchers found initial indications that the type of genetic changes is different in women: while in men the mutations lead to the absence of TLR7, in women the "broken" TLR7 versions appear to interact with the "healthy" copies and thus also influence their function. "We assume that TLR7 can also be impaired in women with severe COVID, but presumably via a different biological mechanism," says Ludwig, who is now working with groups from the Immunosensation2 cluster to clarify whether this hypothesis is correct and, if so, what the effects of this mechanism are on the immune system.
Source:
Journal reference:
Boos, J., et al. (2024). Stratified analyses refine association between TLR7 rare variants and severe COVID-19. Human Genetics and Genomics Advances. doi.org/10.1016/j.xhgg.2024.100323.
COVID is making its rounds again in Minnesota with another wave of sickness.
Health officials are monitoring our sewage, looking for any indicators of the spread of COVID.
Recent wastewater monitoring shows the viral activity level "very high" in Minnesota and the cases of COVID-19 on the upswing.
Data from the St. Cloud area shows the virus levels category in our area is in the 60%-79% range of the highest levels ever detected at our wastewater sites.
Even so, COVID-19 cases are flat in Stearns and Benton Counties while they're increasing in Sherburne County.
Currently, the most cases of COVID nationwide are in The West and Southeast.
For the latest week of national data ending July 13th, Test Positivity -- an early indicator -- was at 12.6% up from 11.4% the week before.
Likewise, emergency room visits where COVID-19 was diagnosed were up from 1.6% from 1.4% the week before.
And Hospitalizations per 100,000 people were up from 2.1 to 2.5.
All this means is your chances of getting COVID are increasing again.
The Centers for Disease Control recommends its Core Prevention Strategies:
-- Stay current with your vaccines. -- Practice good hygiene. -- Take steps for cleaner air.
If you're sick:
-- Take precautions to prevent spreading it. -- Know when to isolate and when to go back to your normal activities. -- Seek health care for testing and treatment.
More strategies:
-- Mask up. -- Put some distance between you and others. -- Test for COVID-19.
Vaccinations for COVID-19 began being administered in the U.S. on Dec. 14, 2020. The quick rollout came a little more than a year after the virus was first identified in November 2019. The impressive speed with which vaccines were developed has also left a lot of people with a lot of questions. The questions range from the practicalhow will I get vaccinated?to the scientifichow do these vaccines even work?
Keep reading to discover answers to 25 common COVID-19 vaccine questions.
Gallery Credit: Stephanie Parker
The U.S. continues to ride the COVID summer wave. Emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID-19 are all up, putting the virus front and center again. But theres a new latest variant fueling cases, and it came on quickly: KP.3.1.1.
Its currently the second most common COVID-19 variant in the U.S., according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This variant started out as a blip on the radar in early June and quickly gained steam, surpassing variants like LB.1 that previously got plenty of attention.
Meet the experts: Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., is an infectious disease expert and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, William Schaffner, M.D., an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, John Sellick, D.O., an infectious disease expert and professor of medicine at the University at Buffalo SUNY
But what is KP.3.1.1 and is it more contagious than other variants? Experts break it down.
KP.3.1.1 is a newer COVID-19 variant that currently causes nearly 18% of cases of the virus in the U.S. KP.3.1.1 is a sublineage of KP.3, which is the most common variant in the country right now. Its another subvariant of the Omicron family, says William Schaffner, M.D., an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
KP.3.1.1 is also an off-shoot of the FLiRT variants that made headlines in the late spring, says Amesh A. Adalja, M.D., an infectious disease expert and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
KP.3.1.1 has an additional mutation in its spike protein, Dr. Adalja says. (The spike protein is what SARS-CoV-2 uses to latch onto your cells and infect you.)
There isnt a ton of data on KP.3.1.1, but there is some. Researchers in Japan analyzed KP.3.1.1 and found that its a subvariant of former JN.1, which was the dominant virus in the U.S. in the spring. Its also related to LB.1.
These variants keep coming up quickly because theyre able to mutate and adapt fast, Dr. Schaffner says.
There isnt a lot of information right now on symptoms of KP.3.1.1, given how new this variant is. However, Dr. Adalja says the symptoms of this strain are similar to what theyve been for other mutations of SARS-CoV-2. The symptoms for all versions of the virus are similar, he says.
Just in case you need a refresher, these are the most common symptoms of COVID-19, per the CDC:
As of right now, theres no evidence that theres any difference in severity with KP.3.1.1, says John Sellick, D.O., an infectious disease expert and professor of medicine at the University at Buffalo SUNY.
Yup, preliminary research has found that KP.3.1.1 is more contagious than previous variants. In fact, that analysis found that the variant has significantly higher infectivity compared to KP.3, which is already considered a highly contagious variant.
What we know about this variant is still rather limited, but it looks rather contagious although it seems to not be more severe, Dr. Schaffner says.
Given how quickly this variant has spread in the country and its spike protein mutation, Dr. Adalja says its likely that its more contagious than KP.3.
The current vaccine, which targets the XBB.1.5 strain of COVID-19, seems to help prevent severe disease in people who are at high risk for serious infection from COVID-19, Dr. Adalja says. However it has not been very effective or durable at blocking infection with any of the more recent variants, he says.
Recent research on KP.3.1.1 also found that it has enhanced immune evasion compared to other JN.1 subvariants. Meaning, the vaccine is even less likely to be effective at preventing infection with KP.3.1.1. (Although, again, it should help to protect against severe illness.)
The upcoming COVID-19 vaccine that will be released in the fall will target the KP.2 strain (Moderna and Pfizer vaccines) and the JN.1 strain (the Novavax vaccine). Because KP.3.1.1 is a descendant of JN.1 and is also related to KP.2, another JN.1 sublineage, the new vaccine should be effective against it, Dr. Schaffner says.
However, more data is needed. That is a question well have to look at in the laboratory, Dr. Schaffner says. So far, the planned vaccine in the fall has covered all of the variants up to this one.
Prevention for the KP.3.1.1 variant is the same as it is for other variants. Meaning, do your best to avoid people who are obviously sick and wear a mask indoors (like a KN95 or N95) if youre considered at high risk for serious complications from the virus.
This is an endemic respiratory virus that is difficult to completely avoid if one interacts in person with other humans, Dr. Adalja says. Its also important to be up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, especially if youre considered high-risk, Dr. Schaffner says.
If youre severely immunocompromised, Dr. Adalja recommends talking to your doctor about the monoclonal antibody Pemgarda, which can help lower the risk youll get sick.
But Dr. Adalja stresses that people shouldnt panic over the new variant. Variants will always arisein perpetuitybecause thats how evolution works, he says. There will always be a variant rising and variants falling. The virus is relatively new to humans and is facing a lot of pressure from the immunity in the population, so is evolving to remain viable, as would be expected.
Dr. Sellick agrees. Were going to continue to see these new variants, just like we continue to get new strains of the flu on a fairly regular basis, he says.
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Mens Health, Womens Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a masters degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.
Paris Thousands of athletes and spectators from around the world have descended on Paris for the looming 2024 Summer Olympics. They've brought with them the potential for a COVID-19 outbreak to spread within the tightly confined Games atmosphere.
Officials expect Paris to receive as many as 15 million visitors, including 2 million tourists from abroad, during the Games.
Dr. Cline Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, said Wednesday on "CBS Mornings" that a current spike in cases across the U.S. is likely due to the coronavirus continuing to mutate, and to vaccinations only preventing infection reliably for several months, though they continue to protect from severe illness for much longer, "which is why people are not getting sick the way they were early in the pandemic."
That underlying vaccination success may be helping to allay fears in Paris, where, despite a growing spate of early Olympic COVID-19 cases, disruptive infections at the recent Tour de France, the surge in infections in the U.S. and elsewhere and most antiviral international travel measures being long since lifted, Games organizers don't appear too worried.
France experienced a new wave of coronavirus cases in the general population in June, and the virus has hit some major sporting events more recently including the Tour de France, which took place from the end of June until July 21.
click to expand
Tour authorities established no official protocols in advance to deal with a flareup of the well-known pathogen, which delayed their reaction after the first cases among riders cropped up early during the three-week race.
It took the event's main organizer, the Amaury Sport Organization, until July 14 to ask journalists to wear face masks during interactions with riders and support teams.
Without any real COVID safety protocols in place, individual athletes and teams were left to develop their own strategies to deal with the virus, and responses varied widely.
While at least four athletes who tested positive pulled out of the race, others continued to compete,drawing complaintsfrom some of their competitors.
There have already been positive tests at some of the Olympic training sites. In the most recent cases, national team chief Anna Meares confirmed Wednesday that five of Australia's women's water polo players had tested positive for COVID-19.
"There is training this afternoon and, again, if those five athletes are feeling well enough to train, they will, and they are following all the protocols that we have," Meares said at a news conference in Paris. "I can confirm that the whole of the water polo team has been tested as well."
Meares said the infected polo players had started wearing face masks and were isolating from other team members when not actively training.
"They're not going into the high-volume areas of the allotment, like the gym and the performance pantry, and more broadly, we have our respiratory illnesses protocol in place," she said.
Several Belgian athletes delayed their departure for Paris after receiving positive tests.
The French Judo Federation had previously cut short its men's team's pre-Olympic training camp after a participant was diagnosed with COVID-19, and French soccer player Selma Bacha and track-and-field athlete Cyrna Samba-Mylena have also tested positive.
After positive tests during the French national swimming championship, the country's Olympic swimming team implemented stricter precautions during its July training session.
Given the pre-opening ceremony cases and the recent history at the Tour de France, the focus has turned sharply toward the fast-approaching Games.
Some 10,500 athletes are due in the French capital, and organizers know that along with the spirit of sportsmanship, they bring with them the potential for a major outbreak in the Olympic Village, which will be home to more than 14,000 athletes and accompanying team members.
But organizers appear relatively unfazed.
"For now, nothing has been put into place by the organizing committee," Andr-Pierre Goubert, the director of Olympics and high performance sport at the National French Olympic and Sport Committee (CNOSF), recently told the French newspaper Le Monde. "We recommended that the delegations test their athletes before coming to the Olympic Village, using their own medical teams."
Face masks are not required inside the Olympic Village, but hand sanitizer is available in its clinics and restaurants.
Public health officials in France admit an outbreak is possible and they've said athletes, support teams and tourists should be prudent, but not worried.
Games organizers have said they're keeping an eye on the situation and have promised to work closely with the French Health Ministry and the nation's public health authority to monitor cases over the course of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Their symptoms may fool them into thinking its a simple cold, but many people suffering from runny nose, cough or congestion over the past few weeks have discovered its actually COVID-19.
The respiratory virus has once again been spreading across Chicago and the rest of the country since last month, and positivity rates have skyrocketed in the city since the July Fourth holiday.
Were definitely seeing more patients in the hospital, were definitely seeing more patients in the emergency room, more patients that come into the clinic, more patients are calling out of work, so were definitely seeing a lot more COVID-19, said Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist with the University of Chicago.
The COVID-19 test positivity rate in Chicago for the week ending July 19 was 9.8%, up from 7.6% the previous week, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health. Thats an increase from 6% for the week ending July 12, and 5.6% for the week ending June 28 (the city did not report the week ending July 5).
Its difficult to determine the level from which the current increase has risen since the city and other health departments stopped reporting daily case counts last year, but experts assure theres no reason to panic.
The virus is constantly mutating into new variants, allowing it to evade some immunity built up from vaccinations and previous infections. The FLiRT and LB.1 variants are mostly the culprit of the recent rise, health officials say.
Holiday gatherings, kids being out of school and maybe a tendency for more indoor meetups during the hot weather are other grounds for more transmission of the virus, experts speculate.
Whats really important to remember about COVID is that it hasnt yet established a seasonality pattern like we expect from other respiratory viruses, Landon said. I know roughly when the flu is going to show up every single year, I know roughly when RSV is going to start to rise in children, but COVID tends to be of its own accord.
University of Chicago epidemiologist Dr. Emily Landon speaks to reporters at the Thompson Center in 2022
While the increase in cases has been somewhat rampant, hospitalizations and deaths have not nearly increased at the same rate, said Dr. Brian Borah, medical director for the citys Department of Public Health.
The majority of people being hospitalized are elderly, people who are immunocompromised or people with other medical issues, especially with problems affecting the heart or kidney.
St. Anthony Hospital in the Little Village neighborhood has seen an uptick in patients with COVID-19, but hospital staff have not at all been overwhelmed, said Dr. Alfredo Mena Lora, the hospitals director of infectious diseases.
I think at this point, we have so many levels of protection with vaccines, boosters and natural immunity as we continue to get COVID throughout these years that its really just a subset of these patients that remain at risk for severity, Mena Lora said.
But just because you dont fall into those categories doesnt mean you should let your guard down, experts say.
Its important for us to educate people that even though they may not be at risk, their neighbors, their grandparents, their co-workers these chains of transmission could lead to someone who is vulnerable, Mena Lora said.
According to experts, the best practices to limit transmission remain the same: wear a mask if you have symptoms such as cough, sore throat or runny nose, stay home if youre sick, wash your hands and get vaccinated.
We have to count on one another here, Landon said. Its a tough situation because for a lot of people its just a cold, but for a lot of other people its not just a cold. And even for some people for whom its just a cold, that turns into long COVID, the chronic condition that leaves some people with COVID symptoms, primarily fatigue, for months.
Borah, who is the medical director of vaccine preventable disease surveillance for the citys health department, said vaccination against COVID-19 has proven to reduce severe illness and death.
We are very confident that across the population level, these COVID vaccines do work and people are having less severe symptoms because of the vaccines, Borah said.
The newest iteration of the vaccine, expected to be made available in the fall, should incorporate protection against some of the recent variants as well.
A single at-home COVID-19 test by Quidel sits on a drugstore shelf in September 2021 in Chicago.
Landon, with the University of Chicago, said her top recommendation immediately upon symptom onset is to take a COVID-19 test. But dont always trust the first test result.
If its negative, wait 48 hours and then take another test before you decide to put other people at risk, Landon said. One negative test at the first sign of a sore throat does not mean that you didnt have COVID.
Some at-home test kits can be confusing, they can leave room for human error, or sometimes the rise of the virus in your nose can behave differently than elsewhere in the body, experts say.
Information about COVID-19 vaccines in Chicago can be found on the citys website at chicago.gov/covidvax.
Research shows there may be a link between long COVID and long-term mental health conditions, such as anxiety.
Long COVID defines a long-term condition that occurs after a person has had the COVID-19 infection and still has symptoms after a period of at least 3 months.
The condition can present a wide range of symptoms that may vary in severity and can affect both physical and mental health.
This article discusses the link between long COVID and anxiety, including whether long COVID can cause panic attacks, how it affects the brain, treatment options, and more.
Research from 2022 suggests that as COVID-19 spread, it became clear that the condition could affect the mental health of a person, not just their physical health. The research suggests that during the early stages of COVID-19, approximately 1 in 3 people develop neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety.
A 2020 study suggests there is a link between long COVID and a person developing a long-term mental health condition such as anxiety.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), anxiety is one of the common symptoms of long COVID that people report.
Research from 2023 suggests that a person with long COVID may be more likely to develop anxiety due to certain factors, such as:
Research from 2022 suggests that a person with long COVID may be seven times more likely to develop anxiety if they are also experiencing breathing difficulties.
Learn more about long COVID.
According to 2022 research, it is common for a person with long COVID to experience panic disorder. This is when a person has frequent panic attacks.
Research from 2021 states that there may be a link between the physical effects of long COVID and a person experiencing panic attacks and panic disorder. The research says this may be due to some symptoms of long COVID being the same as those of panic attacks, such as:
Learn more about panic attacks and panic disorder.
Research from 2022 states that the SARS-CoV-2 virus can permeate the blood-brain barrier, which is responsible for keeping harmful substances away from the brain. Once the virus is inside the brain, it can cause the immune system to release certain proteins and chemicals that may lead to mental health conditions, such as anxiety.
Other research from 2022 suggests that long COVID can affect the central nervous system (CNS), which may impair brain function and lead to conditions such as anxiety.
The neurons in the brain are nerve cells that send messages to the rest of the body. Glial cells modulate these neurons. The inflammation that occurs due to long COVID can cause glial cells to become overactive, leading to damage of the CNS.
Long COVID can also cause inflammation of the brainstem, which connects the brain to the spinal cord. This may lead to dysfunction of the CNS.
Read more about anxiety.
If a person experiences anxiety due to long COVID, there are various treatments that may help them manage the condition.
There are several types of medications that can help a person manage the symptoms of anxiety due to long COVID. These include:
Benzodiazepines and beta-blockers are typically for the short-term treatment of anxiety. However, a healthcare professional may recommend buspirone for longer-term use.
Read more about medications for anxiety.
There are several types of therapies that may be able to help a person manage the symptoms of anxiety due to long COVID. These include:
A person with anxiety due to long COVID can make several lifestyle changes that may help to manage the condition. These can include:
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a 25% increase in the amount of people with anxiety and depression across the world.
According to 2022 research, the most common long-term COVID symptoms are breathing difficulties, fatigue, pain, flu-like symptoms, and changes in smell or taste.
Long COVID defines the presence of COVID-19 symptoms at least 3 months after a person contracts the virus.
Research suggests that there is a link between long COVID and mental health conditions, such as anxiety. A person may also be more likely to experience panic attacks.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus can get through the blood-brain barrier and affect the central nervous system. This may cause damage to the neurons in the brain and lead to mental health conditions such as anxiety.
Treatment to help a person manage symptoms of anxiety due to long COVID can include medications such as antidepressants, therapy, and making lifestyle changes such as regular physical activity and practicing mindfulness.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The week of May 10th, Leon County had 19 cases of COVID-19 reported. As of last week, that number has jumped to 239! I'm Kenya Cardonne in the Northeast Tallahassee Neighborhood. As COVID-19 cases climb, I'm checking with the experts to find out why and what you can do to stay healthy.
Dr. Del Carter, Family Medicine Resident Physician at Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare - Certainly nationally, there has been an increase in the rate of COVID-19 cases and people who are having symptomatic infections.
A recent spike of COVID-19 cases across the U.S. is raising questions.
According to the CDC, the level of COVID-19 viral activity in wastewater is Very High in the state of Florida, even surpassing the national trend earlier this month.
Dr. Carter - Locally here in Leon County, were seeing a rise in mild symptomatic infections but thankfully, severe infection has been very uncommon.
I turned to the experts at Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare, who say theyve noticed the trend, but at this point hospitalizations are still very low.
I asked what could cause a sudden spike like this.
Dr. Carter - The life cycle of viruses. Bacteria are always trying to find ways to continue living just like we try to continue living.
Dr. Del Carter tells me viral variations are mostly to blame.
Dr. Carter - Over time they will make changes that make them more readily available to live and keep on infecting individuals.
Although the Big Bend is feeling the surge in cases, experts say its not time to panic.
I checked in with the folks at HCA Florida Capital Hospital, who say times like this just call for special attention on prevention.
Deborah Krauser, Interim Chief Nursing Officer at HCA Florida Capital Hospital - First of all, you want to try to stay away from sick people. Secondly, good hand hygiene.. so washing with soap and water or sanitizing when you cant wash with soap and water. Thirdly, immunize.
The CDC says staying up to date on COVID-19 vaccines significantly lowers the risk of getting very sick, being hospitalized, or dying from COVID-19.
In Northeast Tallahassee, Kenya Cardonne, ABC 27.
In a recent study published in the journal Science Advances, researchers analyzed survey data from individuals in India to understand mortality and life expectancy during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. They found that life expectancy in India fell by 2.6 years in 2020, with 1.19 million excess deaths, disproportionately affecting younger age groups, females, and marginalized social groups.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant global mortality while reducing global life expectancy. In high-income countries (HICs), robust surveillance systems recorded notable declines in life expectancy and increased disparities across socioeconomic status and race. However, the extent and social variation of COVID-19 deaths in low- and middle-income countries remain poorly understood due to limited resources and inadequate health response and data quality.
Given that India is the world's most populated country with a highly diverse demographic, accurately estimating pandemic mortality is crucial for understanding the global impact of the pandemic.
Therefore, researchers in the present study estimated changes in life expectancy by social group and gender from 2019 to 2020 in India, where it is estimated that one-third of the global excess deaths from the pandemic may have occurred. Using high-quality data from India's National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5), the researchers aimed to address the current gaps in knowledge caused by incomplete data. They also estimated monthly excess mortality in 2020 relative to baseline, enabling comparisons of pandemic mortality impacts across different populations.
In the present study, a "subsample" from the NFHS-5 data was used (n = 765,180), which included households interviewed in 2021, representing 23.2% of India's population. Mortality was estimated for 2018, 2019, and 2020 using retrospective questions, ensuring unbiased comparisons. Initially, life expectancy at birth was compared between 2019 and 2020 for both the entire subsample and separately for the two genders. Further, high-caste Hindus were compared to the following social groups: Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Muslims, and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Retrospective questions on household deaths were used to estimate age-specific mortality.
Additional data were obtained for comparison from the Sample Registration System, Civil Registration System, World Health Organization (WHO), and United Nations World Population Prospects. Robustness checks were performed to ensure the representativeness of the subsample and address potential concerns related to data quality and recall bias.
The findings revealed a 2.6-year reduction in life expectancy at birth from 2019 to 2020, a decline more severe than in HICs and greater than previous estimates for India. This decline was notably pronounced among the youngest and oldest age groups, with higher-than-expected mortality among older individuals, possibly due to higher infection fatality rates and indirect effects of the pandemic.
Gender disparities were also evident, with females experiencing a larger decline in life expectancy (3.6 years) compared to males (2.6 years), likely due to gender inequality in healthcare and resource allocation. Social disparities were also highlighted, with SC, STs, and Muslims experiencing a greater reduction in life expectancy compared to high-caste Hindus. Muslims saw a 5.4-year decline, STs a 4.1-year decline, and SCs a 2.7-year decline, adding to pre-existing inequalities.
The study estimated a 17.1% increase in mortality during 2020 compared to 2019, with significant peaks in the last four months of 2020. If extrapolated to the entire country, this suggested about 1.19 million excess deaths in 2020, substantially higher than official COVID-19 death counts and previous WHO estimates. The excess mortality patterns were validated with civil registration data in states with high death registration rates.
The NFHS-5 data provided valuable insights into pandemic mortality, addressing gaps left by administrative data and non-representative surveys. The study is strengthened by its use of comprehensive, high-quality data from the NFHS-5, providing a large and diverse sample for unbiased mortality analysis. The observed patterns suggest that indirect effects of the pandemic and lockdown might have contributed to increased mortality.
Still, more data are required to differentiate between the direct and indirect impacts of COVID-19 on mortality in 2020 and beyond. Additionally, geographic clustering and compositional differences in the subsample are found to potentially limit the generalizability of the findings to the national level.
In conclusion, the study highlights significant life expectancy declines and increased mortality in India during COVID-19, especially among females, younger age groups, and marginalized communities. It emphasizes the value of high-quality data for understanding such crises and demonstrates effective retrospective mortality estimation methods.
In the future, studies could explore gender and age disparities, differentiate between direct and indirect mortality impacts, broaden geographic coverage, and enhance data quality. Targeted interventions for disadvantaged groups are essential to address exacerbated inequalities and improve crisis responses in the future.
