rheumatologynetwork.com/vie...
This has just been posted on the Lupus forum. The study is VERY small but does seem encouraging. I shan't be indulging in the concept of "freedom day" (I don't live in the UK and if I did I'd be locking up at home!) but it does make me hopeful
Thankyou. Yes....feel a little more reassured and optimistic.
That does seem encouraging. Good to have any positive news just now.
Things are going to get even worse very soon. What are the chances of people continuing to self isolate when the Health Sec has tested positive (after visiting a care home of course) and it seems that the PM and Chancellor have have been pinged because they met him but apparently have also been ‘randomly selected' for a pilot scheme where you don’t have to self isolate if pinged but just take lateral flow tests... What an amazing coincidence!
Not Freedom Day in Scotland tomorrow and I do hope visitors coming on holiday from South of the Border realise that the rules are still different here (and other parts of the UK) in terms of face-masks etc. It’s not exactly being pointed out on the UK news media.
Yes - funny that. Trevor thing on Sky was a bit scathing about that. Not that I find it particularly comforting when we know that despite having symptoms Andrew Marr tested negative twice with quick tests before getting the positive PCR. The UK quick tests do seem a bit dodgy ...
Indeed. We've known the lateral flow tests are not very accurate for a very long time...
And the Health Sec did a video yesterday telling people to take a lateral flow test if they had symptoms whereas the NHS site quite specifically says they are only to be used for asymptomatic testing...
No wonder people are confused/fed up if the Health Sec contradicts his own department’s advice! 🤦🏻♀️
If you have symptoms it is the PCR test that is needed - yes, I saw that piece of bargle. Left hands, right hand - no hands ...
Problem is, as I mentioned t’other day, NHS are still reticent to give PCR test unless you have positive lateral flow test and/or “old” symptoms as listed in their site - not acknowledging newer symptoms!!
But if you mention to Zoe any symptoms they ask you to take a test & say it’s at their request!…..
Yes - thanks - should have mentioned that!
My thoughts are the same as yours re lateral flow tests being for people who are asymptomatic
Lateral tests are unreliable but they satisfy the government’s lax attitude to the situation! It’s rather scary that a country with the highest death rates in Europe is behaving so irresponsibly… I so despair.
Oh! They are going to self isolate after all. That's a quick U-turn...must have realised it was politically toxic. So I wonder what the ministers sent out to justify the 'pilot' this morning will be saying now...?
Totally agree. After ‘the’ football match several friends with youngsters still around ended up positive PCR after at least two negative lateral flow tests in the same week. One poor family had rolling isolation for three weeks! Track and trace or whatever the Scottish version is took about a week to contact any of them. Some youngsters were told by employers they had to go to work, even if they knew they had been with positive friend, unless they had been contacted!Chaotic no wonder Edinburgh has one of the highest rates.
Yes we had the Scottish football surge up here too although not as bad as Edinburgh. I think that’s probably dying down a bit now (infection rates are finally reducing a bit although worryingly hospital admissions aren’t) whereas I fear England still has more to come following the Wembley debacle last week... We have lots of restaurants and shops closed or restricting working hours here because they have so many staff self isolating...
Have you heard about the hundreds of Italian teenagers stranded abroad? School is out so they are off on study holidays and "just" holdays. 200 out of 300 in Bahrain are positive, the rest isolating as contacts, loads in Malta (probably also study), Greece and somewhere else. Can't travel back because of +ve tests so medical teams have been sent to look after them.
You couldn't make it up could you?
Good grief! No I hadn’t heard that actually. Why on earth would people send their children abroad in groups during a pandemic???
Malta is making big noises about being safe. No doubt Bahrain is too. They are both popular for English teaching, As for the kids - they've been in school, tested 2x a week.
I can sort of understand them going to Malta, Bahrain less so...
It's very handy - but you have to fly ...
Indeed. That’s why I said 'sort of'! 😉
Andrew Marr describes it like being hit by a bus. Not nice. bbc.co.uk/news/health-57640550
Exactly my thoughts / random selection my…..
I have absolute evidence that it's all over, Waitrose removed all the free hand sanitizer stations from our local store yesterday, you heard it here folks........
I hope most of us who shop at Tesco have received an email from the CEO saying they are continuing to advise the wearing of masks and will continue to provide trolley and hand sanitiser.
Well done Tesco.
To be fair, the handsanitizer is of doubtful benefit!!! It doesn't appear to be used a lot here now (Italy) and until the delta variant sneaked in the numbers have fallen lots.
However - masks reduce the amount of virus shed by someone by half and reduces the amount that is outside your mask from someone else that gets to you by about half again. So masks reduces risk by 75% - seems a reason to wear them doesn't it? But it does need to be everyone ...
Thanks for posting.
A very positive article many thanks
I’ll take it…small sample size and all. Looking forward to future similar research with larger sample size, hopefully including PMR/GCA participants.
I was one of the people who had Covid and overall faired pretty well. My GP credited my first dose of Moderna and well managed PMR as factors related to my outcome with Covid.
Now that I have antibodies to the UK variant and am past 14 days of both Moderna vaccine doses, I’m feeling I have as much protection as I’m ever going to (unless I get a booster shot in the future). As my GP proposed to me about vaccination…better to have some, than none (protection wise).
Hoping for encouraging results for those of us with AI conditions as research continues moving forward.
The article talks about *reinfection* suggesting / implying previous contraction of CV-19. I’m not sure though? Also the study was conducted for patients suffering from an AIRD and doesn’t mention the immunosuppressant medicine (drug). What read across to those of us here with PMR / GCA taking Prednisolone? Probably more questions than answers!
There are cases of second Covid infections post vaccine - and as variants develop that could become a major problem - it already is for the beta variant.
The Gupta lab Cambridge released a pre-print paper. The study found 8x less neutralising ABs for AZ vaccine against Delta. biorxiv.org/content/10.1101...
Yes - had registered that somehow. Bit disappointing for them.
But it occurs to me that since a lot of AZ vaccine was used in the UK, surely that should encourage reticence in opening up???? At least, keeping masks almost everywhere,
You would certainly think so but clearly not! "Freedom Day" with the Health Sec infected and PM and Chancellor self isolating. Irony is truly dead!
Unfortunately, so is common sense - seemingly in high places anyway
They are just discussing it on Sky - even Iain Dale thinks the performance yesterday was unbelieveable!
You would have hoped common sense would prevail. Sadly not! Over 130 Scientists from around the world have signed a letter / paper denouncing the reckless U.K. government actions. I received 2 doses of AZ so without the action of GovUK today I was concerned, but now I’m alarmed. Far from freedom day, it’s UnFreedom day for me and many others.
They've had several pointing that out on Sky. 1200 scientists, not just 130! And someone saying it is aiming for herd immunity that is nothing short of murderous action
A good article, thank you. Hubby and I are still taking part in the UCL study, sending in blood samples once a month. We are both double jabbed, second one was in early April. Still showing S antibodies, which is encouraging. I was on 10mg in April, tapering down to 6 now.
Good news…on both fronts!
Thanks! I think it is going to be slower tapering now. A few tiny niggles creeping back, but not too bad. I was very pleased about the antibodies. I think relaxing the restrictions is crazy!
Yep..again agree on both points..
Thank you for finding that article and posting it. A big sigh of relief through my mask.
Thanks a lots for this. Very interesting and positive.
Encouragement
Soft pouch at front of neck
Swollen lymph nodes in front of ears
Encouraging production of natural cortisol
