Tuesday, September 15, 2020
In the last few days, efforts to misinform on healthcare and COVID have become evident. There are reports describing efforts at changing CDC publications to align with PR objectives, including articles in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports (MMWR). Some of those same officials are actively spreading misinformation. This morning, I found articles about related political actors who sponsor organizations with overt agendas publishing pseudo-science journal articles about the coronavirus. Despite the slog, it is more important than ever to be sharp and critical about all media we consume.
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/11/exclusive-trump-officials-interfered-with-cdc-reports-on-covid-19-412809
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/04/business/stephen-bannon-guo-wengui-china.html
https://twitter.com/CT_Bergstrom/status/1305743494913245184
----Latest Data---
Global-View:
https://www.ft.com/content/a2901ce8-5eb7-4633-b89c-cbdf5b386938
Nationally:
There is a continued slow decline in new cases in the U.S., for now. https://ig.ft.com/coronavirus-chart/?areas=usa&areas=gbr&areasRegional=usny&areasRegional=usca&areasRegional=usfl&areasRegional=ustx&areasRegional=usco&cumulative=0&logScale=0&perMillion=1&values=cases
Also, look at https://covidtracking.com/data
The U.S. Regionally:
The NY Times state-level data visualization:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html
About the data:
https://covidtracking.com/about-data/visualization-guide is the best resource to understand data visualization and data integrity.
----
Dr. Ali Nouri, who is President of the Federation of American Scientists, offers 12 recent articles of value published by the CDC
https://twitter.com/alinouriphd/status/1305539891854553088?s=10
Here are ten takeaways from the 12 linked CDC articles:
1. Children of all ages are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2.
2. SARS-CoV-2 is stable in the air: once airborne, SARS-CoV-2 retains the ability to infect cells for at least 16 hrs.
3. Testing asymptomatic people is essential.
4. Going to restaurants can be risky. (previously covered).
5. Young children contract SARS-CoV-2 and spread it to households.
6. We need more testing. Infections in health workers often go undetected.
7. Air Travel can be risky: even though a passenger wore an N95 mask most of a flight, she was infected by someone three rows away.
8. The virus is very contagious.
9. Masks confer protection.
10. Young adults are not immune and can get very sick.
A former colleague (who now lives in Beijing) documented her and her family's recent return to China on Instagram. You can read her 15-20 posts on arrival, testing, and mandatory quarantine to see how this works in countries with more authoritarianism in managing the pandemic. Interestingly, they learned that passengers on their plane tested positive after arrival in China, extending their quarantine to 14 days.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFJCRwDAaAEySufahzqAWphW4lsegtEZvrDeoc0/
I have wondered what it takes to anger Bill Gates. He is dissatisfied with our performance, as a country, re coronavirus. I have followed his career since the 1980s. I cannot recall a time he publicly said anything super negative, until now.
https://www.statnews.com/2020/09/14/bill-gates-slams-mismanaged-u-s-response-to-covid-19-pandemic/
When doctors landed more toward art on the spectrum of art to science - a brief history of amulets and wind chimes for disease protection:
https://theconversation.com/scarabs-phalluses-evil-eyes-how-ancient-amulets-tried-to-ward-off-disease-143842
MIT's free ongoing coronavirus lecture series today at 11:30 EST. Today's speaker is virologist David Baltimore.
http://web.mit.edu/webcast/biology/covid-19-sars-cov-2-and-the-pandemic/
Infographic of the day: What to do if exposed to coronavirus.
The Maryland State Medical Society offers this straightforward algorithm, which is surprisingly suitable for framing.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/qw4vh7tgz6785zp/COVID_Exposure_Flier_8-20_pdf.png?dl=0
from https://www.medchi.org/Your-Resource/Public-Health/Coronavirus-Resource-Center/What-Were-Doing
-----National Nephrology Nurses Week---
This week, instead of a bonus round, I will be sharing some thoughts and data in recognition of National Nephrology Nurses Week.
Nephrology nurses are our frontline - they explain test results, counsel patients about CKD, and frequently offer a lifestyle and dietary advice. I offer a conglomeration of the latest pearls on associations between food and kidney disease.
While not directly damaging to the kidney, higher sodium intake makes it harder for the kidneys to manage fluid balance and blood pressure.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15696458/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28209636/
The consumption of coffee is associated with a decreased risk of CKD and ESKD.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29571833/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29986029/
The consumption of higher volumes of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a higher likelihood of developing CKD.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23439375/
The consumption of artificially sweetened beverages is associated with an increased risk of CKD and ESKD, with a greater risk associated with greater consumption.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24068707/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27797893/
For otherwise healthy adults, increasing water consumption has not been associated with less decline in GFR, but does reduce the risk of kidney stones (in those prone to them) and may help slow the progression of polycystic kidney disease.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12376390/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29801012/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15111375/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19443627/
Adam's takeaways for otherwise healthy adults*: Eat a low sodium diet. More frequently drink water, not soda (neither diet nor regular). Drink coffee, maybe 2+ cups a day. And while all this is good, remember moderation, moderation, moderation.
*Please obtain individualized medical advice from your physician(s) before taking generic advice from some random kidney doctor who emails you every day.
Clean hands and sharp minds, team
Adam
In the last few days, efforts to misinform on healthcare and COVID have become evident. There are reports describing efforts at changing CDC publications to align with PR objectives, including articles in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports (MMWR). Some of those same officials are actively spreading misinformation. This morning, I found articles about related political actors who sponsor organizations with overt agendas publishing pseudo-science journal articles about the coronavirus. Despite the slog, it is more important than ever to be sharp and critical about all media we consume.
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/11/exclusive-trump-officials-interfered-with-cdc-reports-on-covid-19-412809
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/04/business/stephen-bannon-guo-wengui-china.html
https://twitter.com/CT_Bergstrom/status/1305743494913245184
----Latest Data---
Global-View:
https://www.ft.com/content/a2901ce8-5eb7-4633-b89c-cbdf5b386938
Nationally:
There is a continued slow decline in new cases in the U.S., for now. https://ig.ft.com/coronavirus-chart/?areas=usa&areas=gbr&areasRegional=usny&areasRegional=usca&areasRegional=usfl&areasRegional=ustx&areasRegional=usco&cumulative=0&logScale=0&perMillion=1&values=cases
Also, look at https://covidtracking.com/data
The U.S. Regionally:
The NY Times state-level data visualization:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html
About the data:
https://covidtracking.com/about-data/visualization-guide is the best resource to understand data visualization and data integrity.
----
Dr. Ali Nouri, who is President of the Federation of American Scientists, offers 12 recent articles of value published by the CDC
https://twitter.com/alinouriphd/status/1305539891854553088?s=10
Here are ten takeaways from the 12 linked CDC articles:
1. Children of all ages are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2.
2. SARS-CoV-2 is stable in the air: once airborne, SARS-CoV-2 retains the ability to infect cells for at least 16 hrs.
3. Testing asymptomatic people is essential.
4. Going to restaurants can be risky. (previously covered).
5. Young children contract SARS-CoV-2 and spread it to households.
6. We need more testing. Infections in health workers often go undetected.
7. Air Travel can be risky: even though a passenger wore an N95 mask most of a flight, she was infected by someone three rows away.
8. The virus is very contagious.
9. Masks confer protection.
10. Young adults are not immune and can get very sick.
A former colleague (who now lives in Beijing) documented her and her family's recent return to China on Instagram. You can read her 15-20 posts on arrival, testing, and mandatory quarantine to see how this works in countries with more authoritarianism in managing the pandemic. Interestingly, they learned that passengers on their plane tested positive after arrival in China, extending their quarantine to 14 days.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CFJCRwDAaAEySufahzqAWphW4lsegtEZvrDeoc0/
I have wondered what it takes to anger Bill Gates. He is dissatisfied with our performance, as a country, re coronavirus. I have followed his career since the 1980s. I cannot recall a time he publicly said anything super negative, until now.
https://www.statnews.com/2020/09/14/bill-gates-slams-mismanaged-u-s-response-to-covid-19-pandemic/
When doctors landed more toward art on the spectrum of art to science - a brief history of amulets and wind chimes for disease protection:
https://theconversation.com/scarabs-phalluses-evil-eyes-how-ancient-amulets-tried-to-ward-off-disease-143842
MIT's free ongoing coronavirus lecture series today at 11:30 EST. Today's speaker is virologist David Baltimore.
http://web.mit.edu/webcast/biology/covid-19-sars-cov-2-and-the-pandemic/
Infographic of the day: What to do if exposed to coronavirus.
The Maryland State Medical Society offers this straightforward algorithm, which is surprisingly suitable for framing.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/qw4vh7tgz6785zp/COVID_Exposure_Flier_8-20_pdf.png?dl=0
from https://www.medchi.org/Your-Resource/Public-Health/Coronavirus-Resource-Center/What-Were-Doing
-----National Nephrology Nurses Week---
This week, instead of a bonus round, I will be sharing some thoughts and data in recognition of National Nephrology Nurses Week.
Nephrology nurses are our frontline - they explain test results, counsel patients about CKD, and frequently offer a lifestyle and dietary advice. I offer a conglomeration of the latest pearls on associations between food and kidney disease.
While not directly damaging to the kidney, higher sodium intake makes it harder for the kidneys to manage fluid balance and blood pressure.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15696458/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28209636/
The consumption of coffee is associated with a decreased risk of CKD and ESKD.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29571833/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29986029/
The consumption of higher volumes of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a higher likelihood of developing CKD.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23439375/
The consumption of artificially sweetened beverages is associated with an increased risk of CKD and ESKD, with a greater risk associated with greater consumption.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24068707/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27797893/
For otherwise healthy adults, increasing water consumption has not been associated with less decline in GFR, but does reduce the risk of kidney stones (in those prone to them) and may help slow the progression of polycystic kidney disease.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12376390/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29801012/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15111375/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19443627/
Adam's takeaways for otherwise healthy adults*: Eat a low sodium diet. More frequently drink water, not soda (neither diet nor regular). Drink coffee, maybe 2+ cups a day. And while all this is good, remember moderation, moderation, moderation.
*Please obtain individualized medical advice from your physician(s) before taking generic advice from some random kidney doctor who emails you every day.
Clean hands and sharp minds, team
Adam
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