It appears the cold weather favours the coronavirus but it is anticipated that COVID will not be as virulent as it was in 2020, and suspected that with vaccines too, immunities have risen.\u00a0 Reformulated boosters against the latest strain of the virus can stifle some of the cold-season spread, experts say.<\/p>\n
Unlike the cruel second wave that saw thousands gasping for air, as the virus directly crippled the lungs, these variations are more nasal and throat related. Some patients have struggled with long COVID for more than two years and have been incapable of getting back to work or settle into a pre-pandemic way of life.<\/p>\n
Looking at the worldometers COVID records as of the morning, Delhi has 1,457 active cases, Maharashtra has 9,197 cases, Haryana 1,185 cases, Assam has 2,838 cases, Kerala has 9,645 covid cases, Tamil Nadu has 5,127 active cases and Karnataka 5,051.<\/p>\n
India recorded 7,219 fresh covid infections and 33 COVID-related deaths in the last 24 hours, the union health ministry said in an update on Saturday. Active cases now stand at 56,745, with the total reported cases since the pandemic hit in early 2020 at more than 4.44 crore. The death toll stands at 5,27,965.<\/p>\n
The daily positivity rate was at 1.98 %, while the weekly positivity rate stood at 2.42 %.<\/p>\n
In the last 24 hours, more than 9,651 people recovered from covid, pushing total recoveries to more than 4,38,65,016.\u00a0\u00a0India has completed over 88.68 crore covid tests to date, with 3,64,886 done in the last 24 hours.<\/p>\n
Under the nationwide vaccination drive, more than 213.01 crore vaccine doses have been administered to the eligible population across India so far.<\/p>\n
In America<\/a>, the CDC recommends reformulated coronavirus booster shots for winter. Vaccines remain favourably effective at decreasing the infection fatality rate and keeping people out of the hospital and should not be forsaken.\u00a0 In India, after the first vaccine and booster dose, no one is thinking of another booster.<\/p>\n In America, Peter Marks, the top vaccine official at the Food and Drug Administration, said in a briefing Wednesday that the approval of reformulated boosters comes as the agency is \u201clooking at a possible fall wave, with a peak around December 1st.\u201d<\/p>\n Anthony S. Fauci, the president\u2019s chief medical adviser for the pandemic, told The Washington Post that America’s winter campaign against the virus will require widespread uptake of booster shots.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not going to eradicate it. We\u2019re not going to eliminate it,\u201d Fauci said. \u201cBut we do have the capability to get it to a low enough level so that it doesn\u2019t continue to disrupt the social order.\u201d<\/p>\n There is talk of an emergence of a new variant in September that could result in a wave of infections and severe illness in December, according to Lauren Ancel Meyers, director of the University of Texas Covid-19 Modeling Consortium. A variant emerging in October would push the peak to January, she said.<\/p>\n Researchers noted a BA.5 omicron subvariant and the almost identical BA.4 have not been challenged this summer by a new strain. Immunity against BA.5 and BA.4 has been steadily building in the population as people get infected and then recover. That immunity should get a significant enhancement from the new boosters that have been designed to fight not only the original strain of the virus, but also BA.5\/BA.4.\u00a0 The fear is that BA.5 is presently spreading. It could evolve from an obscure branch of the virus\u2019s family tree \u2014 which happened last November, when omicron, with its ominous mix of mutations, emerged in southern Africa and instantly overtook the freshly risen delta strain.<\/p>\n If the virus remains as a BA.5, it will not be much of a threat to the people.\u00a0 Any new variant that could alter the pandemic\u2019s course is perceived to be more transmissible than the omicron subvariant<\/p>\n The scenarios assume that reformulated vaccine boosters will be embraced by the public at a rate similar to that of the annual flu shots \u2014 possibly an optimistic assumption given that more than half of Americans eligible for boosters have yet to receive their first dose.<\/p>\n Post-COVID, Millions Experiencing S<\/span>evere Fatigue and Brain Fog<\/span><\/p>\n Millions are now experiencing the health crisis of \u201clong covid,\u201d an array of post-infection symptoms that include severe fatigue and brain fog.<\/p>\n Marks, the FDA official on speaking about the illness says \u201cThe brain fog, in some cases, the mood changes \u2014 people who used to be very bright and cheery, who now are anxious and depressed \u2014 those things seem to be very real,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSome are young, healthy, athletic people, and they can\u2019t even go back to work,\u201d said Akiko Iwasaki, an immunologist at Yale University School of Medicine. \u201cPeople should know the risk before they remove the mask and stop getting their boosters.\u201d<\/p>\n Millions are now experiencing \u201clong covid,\u201d an array of post-infection symptoms that include severe fatigue and brain fog and many suffered from depression post COVID.<\/p>\n On August 31, 2022, in America, 1,403 people died from COVID.\u00a0 One American, Myra Batchelder, on Twitter wrote, “When our government leaders pretend to be shocked this fall\/winter when the #COVID surge becomes massive & horrendous, remember their surprise is a lie. Experts estimated 100+ million new COVID cases this fall and winter and our leaders decided to do nothing to prevent it.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile, in India, people are travelling around freely and in all this, no one is thinking of the consequences.\u00a0 It is time people mask again and maintain distance and hygiene because we still have to be aware that around the globe, hundreds of people are dying every day from the virus.\u00a0 COVID is still hanging around and while one should never panic, One can never forget the horrible oxygen<\/a> crisis in 2021 where 25 patients died at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital due to oxygen shortage and many other similar situations. It is imperative to take precautions now, without fear-mongering.<\/p>\n
\nPresently, in India and around the world, people are going back to offices and schools but are no longer taking vaccinations nor are companies and schools providing regular coronavirus testing. Schools have dropped mask mandates.<\/p>\nNew Variants Count Hit in September<\/h3>\n
COVID is Still Lurking Around, Take Care!<\/h3>\n