DR writes:
Dear Dr Griffin,
I hope this finds you well.
Recently I saw a Twitter post where someone, apparently immune compromised, was testing COVID +ve for the sixth consecutive month in a row.
How is that even possible?
Doesn’t the nasal pharyngeal epithelium run out of cells at that rate ??
Thoughts?? (you too Vincent)
Best regards,
D R
Jared writes:
Hi Daniel,
My five year old has a question about TWiV 1152. She wants to know if you were in the dungeon.
Apparently, the stone in your background reminds her of a dungeon.
Thanks,
Jared
Laura writes:
Hello Daniel and Vincent-
My first time becoming sick with COVID was unfortunately on our vacation in Italy, ironically in Venice, the origin of quarantines, lol.
Luckily I had brought Paxlovid on vacation, although a challenge to convince my doctor to prescribe it as she seems to believe in Paxlovid rebound. Additionally, i had received a booster exactly 2 weeks before my first symptom. We also masked with N95s on planes and trains, but not elsewhere.
The first COVID test on Day 2 was clearly negative. I tested 48 hours later and the test was clearly positive.
Question:
As a COVID Case Investigator in 2021, I remember the CDC rules changed so that if one was exposed to COVID but fully vaccinated, they did not have to quarantine unless they started to experience symptoms.
1) Does this rule still apply, and is it because a fully vaccinated or currently boosted person transmits a smaller or negligible amount of virus?
2) Are fully vaccinated/boosted individuals no longer pre-symptomatically spreading COVID in the 48 hours before the onset of their symptoms? I ask because we had been in the car for many hours on the 2 days before my first symptom. Luckily that person did not become sick because they were over 70 years old. However, i felt so terrible exposing them.
3) As I look for a new doctor, what papers would you recommend I send to doctors that clearly show that Paxlovid is a key tool in the reduction of COVID hospitalizations and mortality? I did find a few systematic reviews, but if you have suggestions for others, i would be grateful to read your favorites.
Thank you!
Laura, PhD from Northern California
Epidemiologist
John writes:
30:53 Since metformin is typically prescribed in the beginning phases of Type 2 DM, doesn’t the fact that a DM patient is on metformin indicate that their severity of diabetes is low relative to other non-metformin patients? Does the PASC risk seem reduced among the metformin population because the severity of Type 2 DM is lower in that population compared to Type 2’s on latter-stage drugs?
Jean writes:
Thank you Vincent and Daniel for all that you do to inform.
I’ve been a regular listener since late 2020 and although (or perhaps because) I am not trained in a science field, I really appreciate TWIV and especially the Clinical Update. I feel that you really arm us ordinary folks with the information and tools to understand the facts and advocate for ourselves and for our loved ones.
As I currently have Covid-19, I listened even more attentively than usual to listener Ginny’s (sp?) question about antigen tests. And suddenly I had a question that I hadn’t considered before that perhaps you have covered and I missed because I wasn’t in the thick of it myself. I understand that still testing positive on an antigen test at day 11-28 does not mean you are “contagious,” but if you do text negative on day 6, does that mean you are “not contagious”? In other words, where there is no protein, is it likely there is no transmissible virus?
Your answer will come too late but I’m curious anyway… I was hoping to attend a Rosh Hashanah lunch with my in-laws (ages 79 and 83). I started feeling bad and tested positive on Tuesday 24 Sept (day 0) and I am due to have lunch with my in-laws on Thursday 3 Oct (day 10). Is that the only thing I should be considering? Or if I were to test negative (antigen) for two consecutive days before day 10, would you consider that I could relax and consider myself post acute Covid and mix as usual. Would the presence of symptoms or lack thereof change this decision?
P.S. I live in England and can tell you that Novavax has been approved here, but the NHS has limited the rollout of Covid vaccines as per this website https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2024/08/02/whos-eligible-for-the-2024-covid-19-vaccine-or-autumn-booster/. Your son may be able to find a dose privately. My local pharmacy is doing private Covid vaccines for £85, but unhelpfully their website doesn’t say which vaccine they have in stock.
Kind regards
Jean
Greater London