COVID-19 Update: Monday, October 12th

Pain, Hotspots, 18-24 and treatment options

1. A recent study published in the journal, Pain, suggests that the virus may deactivate the pain pathway which could explain why so many people are asymptomatic. This study was done in animals, so it really just provides insight and direction for future research. But it has significance beyond this outbreak. If they can figure out how it does that (deactivate the pain pathway) they may be able to harness that for better pain management options as we move forward – this discovery could potentially impact the way we treat pain in the future. You may recall we discussed previously that scientific/medical discovery came out of the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 – this is one potential gain from this one.

2. The CDC conducted a study in hot spots to identify spread trends. The findings were that as % positive increases among those under 24 – it then spreads among those above. The increases in those 1-24 were seen about 30 days prior to a place seeing increases high enough to be considered hot spots. At the point at which a location became a hotspot the positivity rates were as follows: 0-17 years (11%), 18-24 years (14%), 25-44 years (10%), 45-64 years (8%), and over 65 years (6%). Percent Positive continued to increase in all age groups for roughly 33 days with the exception of the 18-24 group. This is further evidence that prevention efforts need to focus on those 18-24.

3. In related news to #2 – a survey conducted in Wisconsin tried to determine the driving forces behind increased risky behavior among those ages 18-24. They found that that age group perceived their personal risk of a negative outcome (i.e. hospitalization or death) to be minimal, they did not have a strong sense of responsibility to others, peer pressure, conflicting messages regarding the disease, the influence of anti-masking sentiment and exposure to misinformation/conspiracy theories were the main drivers behind their willingness to engage in risky behavior.

4. I don’t often discuss treatment options because irresponsible treatment information can cause significant problems. However, there is a lot going on in the world of treatment and the NYTimes did a piece covering some of the most common treatments. You can read their article here https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirus-drugs-treatments.html they also did coverage of the vaccine progress which can be accessed via a link at the same site.

FINAL THOUGHTS – I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are fresh and ready to start this new week. Think of us as slow-mo walking our way into this week. We cannot fail if we slow-mo walk!