Covid-19 and African swine fever(ASF)..

There are some striking similarities between the Covid-19 outbreak and African Swine Fever.

 A different virus has taken over the headlines now ,sharing the spotlight with African Swine Fever dominating the columns online and in the paper, the Corona virus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

 The Corona virus does not affect swine but indirectly affects the swine business. There is one major difference between ASF and Covid-19, this is the fact that ASF leads to the death of virtually all pigs whereas Covid-19 would in most cases not be lethal, meaning that proper health care can play a role as well.

   Learn all you need to  know about ASF from  experts. Join us.

                                     

Lessons learnt with regard to Covid-19 and ASF, lessons learnt are threefold.

First, it’s never too early to start thinking about a virus at the other side of the planet (look at this Danish example).

Secondly, let’s hope the millions pumped into the vaccine business to find a good Covid-19 vaccine somehow lead to a positive spin-off for pig vaccine development too.

 Thirdly, countries reporting many outbreaks are not the ones having the largest problem – they in fact are the ones sharing the most information.

 The striking similarities between Covid-19 and ASF. 1) The sudden panic . 2) The absence of a vaccine now. 3) Reporting of outbreaks.


  Reporting the outbreaks is very important as there is a link between countries reporting and number of cases in such  countries.

There are many websites around the world keeping us posted about the progress of the Covid-19 virus, about the number of people infected, the number of people that died of the virus and mortality percentages, showing interesting maps.

Interestingly, however concrete those numbers appear to be, it’s good to ask questions about the ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind those figures and that there is a parallel with African Swine Fever outbreaks which Pig Progress has been following intensively.


 For example – can people be infected with Covid-19 yet barely notice it? If so, that would mean that the virus could be much more widespread than is actually reported, meaning that the real mortality figure is much lower.

 Extremely interesting in this context I find is the way in which authorities have behaved in recent years with the reporting of ASF outbreaks.

 It is important to understand that accurately reporting ASF outbreaks depends on a gigantic mix of components, just to name a few: 1)Availability of test kits.

 2)Presence of necessary diagnostics infrastructure, including labs.

3)Availability of funding for affected farmers.

 4)Availability of educated manpower to process all information.

 5)Knowledge about the virus.

 6)Sense of responsibility for others.

 7)Cultural attitudes with regard to transparency in case of large problems.

 8)Corruption.

 9)Protection of export interests.

 As regard to ASF, some countries have reported more outbreaks than others, in different frequencies, in different intensity, on different levels as well. Some did not report anything at all – or only occasional outbreaks.

Using the history of reporting , to have a reliable idea as to what numbers might be credible beyond doubt with regard to reporting corona virus, I’d first look at the countries that have been reporting ASF frequently, swiftly and without hesitation.
     Adopted from pig progress.

Universal testing contains COVID-19 outbreak in nursing home..

A nursing home in Pennsylvania rapidly contained a COVID-19 outbreak by implementing a universal testing strategy for all residents and staff, according to study findings published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.


 “We chose to publish our experience managing a COVID-19 outbreak that occurred in a local nursing home because we think that our experience in controlling the outbreak could potentially help others that work in nursing homes or long-term care facilities if they are trying to develop action plans for managing a COVID-19 outbreak in their respective facilities,” Daniel J. Escobar, MD, an infectious diseases fellow at the University of Pennsylvania, told Healio.




 According to Escobar, recently published data showed there have been more than 142,000 COVID-19 cases in nursing homes across the United States, and more than 38,000 COVID-19-related deaths. He said having a plan for management of COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities or nursing homes is essential to protect an older and more fragile population.

Covid-19: is it safe to leave hand sanitizer in the car?

The use of the hand sanitizer has doubled due to Covid-19 pandemic, many people carry it around and many more leave it in the car. This has raised the question, is it safe to leave it inside the car? yes it is.

The major concern has been the alcohol content people were of the opinion that it can explode, but this is not true.. The temperature that may trigger an explosion cant be achieved in a closed car.

 The real concern about leaving the sanitizer in the car is not the tendency to be flammable rather its the fact that exposure to sunlight will reduce the potency of the sanitizer because the alcohol evaporates .

The potency of the sanitizer in the ability to curb the spread of the corona virus lies in the fact that the alcohol content is 70%.


This percentage reduces upon each exposure,thus reducing the efficacy of the sanitizer.

 What to do, if you want to put sanitizer in your car. 1) Hide container from direct exposure to sunlight.

 2) Use a dark container to prevent direct contact with sun.

3) Use containers with tightly sealed caps .

#Covid-19 #sanitizer

Covid-19: How inspectors in abattoirs caused an outbreak.

Last month, two abattoirs in south-west Victoria were visited by inspectors who later tested positive for COVID-19 and were contagious while on site, but only one of the cases led to a large outbreak.


There have been criticisms leveled over how the state's Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) handled both cases, but experts say there are lessons to be learnt in understanding what happened.

 The largest meat producer in the state, Warrnambool's Midfields Meats, has been on high alert as clusters in other abattoirs continue to grow

.When general manager Dean McKenna found out that a meat inspector who had visited the site had tested positive, the company immediately shut the plant down — before it had heard from the health department.

 The company organised testing for nearly 1,000 workers via the local health service, but before the results were known DHHS advised that the meatworks could reopen.Mr McKenna said he ignored that advice and opted to keep the abattoir shut."We still wouldn't go back to work until we had a feel for where the testing was going," he said.


 The company made the inspector wear full personal protective equipment, a measure that is now being made mandatory across all Victorian abattoirs.

 For the Australian Lamb Company (ALC), based in the small town of Colac, it's been a different story.
A meat inspector there tested positive for COVID-19 in the same week.There are now more than 80 cases associated with the cluster, which has also spread into the community along with 11 more infections suspected to have been transmitted through the community.

Corona Virus: Germany's Robert Koch Institute withdraws optimistic vaccine claim.

Germany's top institute for infectious diseases pulled its own paper which claimed a vaccine could be available this fall. The Robert Koch Institute said the document was posted in error and removed it from its website.

Covid-19: Dentists say 'mask mouth' can cause serious health complications, including strokes.

Covid-19: Dentists say 'mask mouth' can cause serious health complications, including strokes. 


Dentists are warning about the health issues tied to prolonged use of a mask to stop the spread of the corona virus.They said dental problems associated with "mask mouth," including gum disease, could lead to serious complications.

 “Gum disease — or periodontal disease — will eventually lead to strokes and an increased risk of heart attacks,” Marc Sclafani, a dentist and co-founder of One Manhattan Dental, told the New York Post about “mask mouth,” which is increasingly causing inflammation and gum disease among patients.

                  Protect yourself and loved ones with this alternative.


 Another dentist and co-founder at One Manhattan Dental, Rob Ramondi, said 50% of his patients are suffering from negative health issues due to mask-wearing.The dentists said that the face coverings increase mouth dryness and contribute to a buildup of bad bacteria.


 “People tend to breathe through their mouth instead of through their nose while wearing a mask,” Sclafani said. “The mouth breathing is causing the dry mouth, which leads to a decrease in saliva — and saliva is what fights the bacteria and cleanses your teeth.” More.

Covid-19: important potential side effects of wearing face masks that we should bear in mind.

Covid-19: important potential side effects of wearing face masks that we should bear in mind. 

 Most scientific articles and guidelines in the context of the covid-19 pandemic highlight two potential side effects of wearing surgical face masks in the public, but we believe that there are other ones that are worth considering before any global public health policy is implemented involving billions of people.

The two potential side effects that have already been acknowledged are:

 (1) Wearing a face mask may give a false sense of security and make people adopt a reduction in compliance with other infection control measures, including social distancing and hands washing.

 (2) Inappropriate use of face mask: people must not touch their masks, must change their single-use masks frequently or wash them regularly, dispose them correctly and adopt other management measures, otherwise their risks and those of others may increase.

 Other potential side effects that we must consider are: (3) The quality and the volume of speech between two people wearing masks is considerably compromised and they may unconsciously come closer. While one may be trained to counteract side effect n.1, this side effect may be more difficult to tackle.

 (4) Wearing a face mask makes the exhaled air go into the eyes. This generates an uncomfortable feeling and an impulse to touch your eyes. If your hands are contaminated, you are infecting yourself.
(5) Face masks make breathing more difficult. For people with COPD, face masks are in fact intolerable to wear as they worsen their breathlessness.

         This is a better way to stay safe


Moreover, a fraction of carbon dioxide previously exhaled is inhaled at each respiratory cycle. Those two phenomena increase breathing frequency and deepness, and hence they increase the amount of inhaled and exhaled air.

This may worsen the burden of covid-19 if infected people wearing masks spread more contaminated air. This may also worsen the clinical condition of infected people if the enhanced breathing pushes the viral load down into their lungs. BMJ