COVID News Brief: The news you need to know

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AVAC's weekly COVID News Brief provides a curated perspective on what COVID news is worth your time.
"We’re all sick of viruses and diseases by now. COVID-19 has led to fatigue, and many don’t want to hear about public health and hygiene efforts any more. Yet viruses don’t care what we feel or whether we want to hear about them. The history of humanity is one of various germs trying to kill us, and our efforts to stay ahead of them using science and data. There is clear survival bias that shapes our thinking about the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s easy to look back in a post-vaccine era and say it wasn’t so bad, especially because we’re surrounded by those who were infected and lived. Those who died don’t have a voice."
-- Prof Devi Sridhar in The Guardian ([link removed])


** Share of People Who Completed the Initial COVID-19 Vaccination Protocol
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October 13, 2022
Source: Our World in Data ([link removed])


** Table of Contents
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* If You Are in a Hurry (#If You Are in a Hurry)
* Ebola Outbreak (#Ebola Outbreak)
* Americans Misled Each Other about COVID-19 (#Americans Misled Each Other about COVID-19)
* Africa’s COVID-19 Vaccine (#Africa’s COVID-19 Vaccine)
* More on COVID-19’s Origins (#More on COVID-19’s Origins)
* US CDC Shifts to Weekly COVID Updates (#US CDC Shifts to Weekly COVID Updates)
* New Insight into the Death of Dr. Li Wenliang (#New Insight into the Death of Dr. Li Wenliang)


* Politics and COVID-19 (#Politics and COVID-19)
* Long COVID (#Long COVID)
* Long-term Effects of COVID-19 (#Long-term Effects of COVID-19)
* COVID-19 Deaths among 65+ (#COVID-19 Deaths among 65+)
* COVID and Poverty in African Countries (#COVID and Poverty in African Countries)
* Public Health Messaging (#Public Health Messaging)
* COVID and Mental Health (#COVID and Mental Health)
* Bad News for Nasal Vaccine (#Bad News for Nasal Vaccine)

Three years into COVID-19, healthcare providers and researchers have more insights into the progression of disease – whether from personal experience of being infected, treating thousands of patients or research to find interventions and to understand the disease. We’re of learning more about how to treat infections and more about the effects long COVID. But what about “medium COVID”? Physician Benjamin Mazer writes in The Atlantic ([link removed]) (US): “As the pandemic drags on, data have emerged to clarify the dangers posed by COVID-19 across the weeks, months, and years that follow an infection. Taken together, their implications are surprising. Some people’s lives are devastated ([link removed]) by long COVID; they’re trapped with perplexing symptoms that seem to persist indefinitely. For the
majority of vaccinated people, however, the worst complications will not surface in the early phase of disease, when you’re first feeling feverish and stuffy, nor can the gravest risks be said to be ‘long term.’ Rather, they emerge during the middle phase of post-infection, a stretch that lasts for about 12 weeks after you get sick. This period of time is so menacing, in fact, that it really ought to have its own, familiar name: medium COVID…. When scientists analyzed Sweden’s national health registry, for example, they found that the chance of developing pulmonary embolism—an often deadly clot in the lungs—was a startling 32 times higher in the first month after testing positive for the virus; after that, it quickly diminished.”



** If You Are in a Hurry
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* Read an opinion piece in The Guardian ([link removed]) calling for international attention to the Uganda Ebola outbreak.
* Read about a new KFF ([link removed]) analysis of COVID-19 deaths and the impact on people 65 and over.
* Read about a Harvard ([link removed]) study looking at effects of positive vs. negative health message framing.
* Read Science ([link removed]) for the latest on the debate on the origins of COVID-19.
* Read The Washington Post ([link removed]) on a large new study of long COVID.
* Read This Day ([link removed]) about the impact of COVID-19 on mental health in Africa.




** Ebola Outbreak
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An opinion piece in The Guardian ([link removed]) (UK) argues for international attention and support for the Ebola outbreak in Uganda. “The Ugandan health secretary, Jane Aceng…has repeatedly called on other countries to provide funding to support Uganda’s public health workforce through adequate personal protective equipment…. But the calls from Uganda’s health secretary have been met by silence and a sense of fatigue from leaders across the world. Even Uganda’s own president, Yoweri Museveni, said last month that there was no reason for anxiety, panic, closures or any kind of restrictions on movement.”

Nature ([link removed]) (UK) reports that researchers and others are concerned about the outbreak of a strain of Ebola for which there is no vaccine and there is concern it can spread outside of the initial outbreak area. “Fortunately, health officials in Uganda are putting lessons from previous outbreaks into practice. For example, using a mobile laboratory in Mubende, the outbreak’s epicentre, health-care personnel can detect the virus in a sample within six hours, Braka says — rather than having to send all the samples to the Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe. Braka urges countries bordering Uganda to have Ebola test kits ready to distribute, and to ramp up surveillance for the virus."



** Americans Misled Each Other about COVID-19
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MedPage Today ([link removed]) (US) reports on a new survey of Americans: “Two in five Americans say they either misled others about their COVID-19 infection or vaccination status, or didn't follow pandemic-related public health measures, a new study indicated. In a survey involving over 1,700 respondents, 41.6 percent suggested they either misrepresented and/or did not adhere to at least one of nine survey items, most commonly 24.3 percent saying they were taking more precautions than they really were and 22.5 percent who said they broke quarantines…. People most commonly cited a desire to feel normal or to exercise their personal freedom as reasons for their misrepresentation or non-adherence.”



** Africa’s COVID-19 Vaccine
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The Guardian ([link removed]) (UK) reports on the South African vaccine hub that has replicated the Moderna mRNA vaccine. “The WHO mRNA hub in Cape Town will share the knowhow with 15 to 20 'spokes' in Africa, Latin America and eastern Europe, creating a network of scientists who will collaborate to produce mRNA vaccines in low and middle-income countries. Scientists from Brazil, Argentina, Indonesia and Egypt have travelled to the hub in South Africa to start training.” There are still issues with Moderna and the path forward is not clear. “Moderna has filed several patents in South Africa and has refused to cooperate and share technology with the hub in Africa, likening the replica vaccine to a ‘copy of a Louis Vuitton handbag’. In addition, Moderna is suing fellow mRNA vaccine manufacturers Pfizer and BioNTech, which has raised fears that it could enforce patents against the hub regarding any
future vaccines it may develop for illnesses other than COVID-19.” Activist Fatima Hassan has raised concerns that Moderna may sue the hub and “She is critical of the hub being pushed as a solution to vaccine inequity and a model of empowerment for low and middle-income countries, when much of the decision-making around it is being done by organisations including WHO and MPP, both based in Geneva.”

RFI ([link removed]) (France) reports, “It was sheer determination that kept South African biotech company Afrigen Biologics Vaccines, a small fish in the world of big pharma, fighting to produce homegrown African vaccines against COVID-19…. Researchers at the Antiviral Gene Therapy Research Unit based at the University of Witwatersrand had already been working on mRNA technology. Together with Afrigen, they were able to crack the code that could put South Africa on the map for producing the first mRNA vaccine for COVID-19 to be designed and manufactured in Africa. ’I think we’ve surprised many people…. We were afraid that people would be saying, “those guys, they’re just bullshitting.” So, we really had to be fundamentally solid and secure. But once we had the result, we proudly announced it,’ says [Afrigen’s Managing Director] Terblanche.”



** More on COVID-19’s Origins
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Science ([link removed]) (US) reports, “The acrimonious debate over the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic flared up again this week with a report from an expert panel concluding that SARS-CoV-2 likely spread naturally in a zoonotic jump from an animal to humans—without help from a lab. ‘Our paper recognizes that there are different possible origins, but the evidence towards zoonosis is overwhelming,’ says co-author Danielle Anderson, a virologist at the University of Melbourne. The report, which includes an analysis that found the peer-reviewed literature overwhelmingly supports the zoonotic hypotheses, appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on 10 October ([link removed]) .



** US CDC Shifts to Weekly COVID Updates
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WebMD ([link removed]) (US) reports, “The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it will start updating COVID-19 case and death counts on a weekly instead of a daily basis starting Oct. 20…. The change is another sign of a de-escalation in COVID-19 response as the major pandemic statistics drop. The New York Times reported that on Oct. 7 the United States was averaging 40,186 new COVID cases a day (a 26 percent drop over two weeks), 26,994 COVID-related hospitalizations (an 11 percent drop), and 380 COVID-related deaths (an 11 percent drop). Health experts say the case counts are actually higher because many home testing results are not reported to health agencies.”



** New Insight into the Death of Dr. Li Wenliang
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A New York Times ([link removed]) (US) investigation has added to what is known about the death of Dr. Li Wenliang, the Chinese doctor who spoke out about the severity of COVID-19 in the early days and later died of the disease, but not before going public and giving interviews from his hospital bed. Through an interview with “Dr. B” a colleague who spoke anonymously, the Times learned that Dr. Li received standard care and a medical team attempted to revive Li for hours after he went into cardiac arrest. There were conflicting accounts of when he died. “’They dragged their feet for so long over the announcement. It’s like the hospital really did not treat us as human beings,’ [Dr. B] said. For Dr. B, going public with his version of events was an attempt to get his story out and honor Dr. Li’s legacy.”



** Politics and COVID-19
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MedPage Today ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Florida's Surgeon General recommended against COVID-19 mRNA vaccines for men ages 18 to 39 late last week, based on an analysis of state data that many experts are calling flawed. In a tweet that POLITICO reported was taken down on Friday but restored on Sunday, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, MD, PhD, announced that men in this age group have an ‘increased risk of cardiac-related death,’ and linked to the guidance recommending against COVID-19 mRNA vaccines in this group…. Experts swiftly took to #MedTwitter to criticize the paper. Most immediately pointed out the oddity of having no named authors on the paper ([link removed]) , in addition to the fact that the paper was only published to Florida's COVID-19 website.



** Long COVID
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The Washington Post ([link removed]) (US) reports, “A new long-COVID study based on the experiences of nearly 100,000 participants provides powerful evidence that many people do not fully recover months after being infected with the coronavirus. The Scottish study found that between six and 18 months after infection, 1 in 20 people had not recovered and 42 percent reported feeling only somewhat better. There were some reassuring aspects to the results: People with asymptomatic infections are unlikely to suffer long-term effects, and vaccination appears to offer some protection from long COVID.” Read the study. ([link removed])

ABC News ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Most people suffering from long COVID are experiencing some trouble performing day-to-day activities, new federal data shows. As of Sept. 26, 81 percent of adults with ongoing symptoms of COVID-19 lasting three months or longer -- or four out of five adults -- are experiencing limitations in their daily activities compared to before they had the virus.”

STAT ([link removed]) (US) reports on ICU doctor Wes Ely’s efforts around long COVID: “As the pandemic marches on, he’s increasingly concerned about the resulting epidemic of chronic disease society may face.” Ely has a message of hope for people with long COVID: “I always tell them, do not lose hope because you will find recovery. And whether it’s mitochondrial disease or glial cells that have died, or vascular clotting that develops into long COVID, your body has this capacity to recover, and you must remain hopeful that you can get through this. And we are working hard as scientists to do the right trials to find answers. I just want people to hang on and know we’re going to stick with them and not abandon them during the process.” You can also follow Ely on TikTok ([link removed]) for his explanations and hot takes on the
pandemic.



** Long-term Effects of COVID-19
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Reuters ([link removed]) (UK) reports, “People who had COVID-19 are at higher risk for a host of brain injuries a year later compared with people who were never infected by the coronavirus, a finding that could affect millions of Americans, US researchers reported on Thursday. The year-long study, published in Nature Medicine, assessed brain health across 44 different disorders using medical records without patient identifiers from millions of US veterans…. Researchers said governments and health systems must devise plans for a post-COVID world. ‘Given the colossal scale of the pandemic, meeting these challenges requires urgent and coordinated - but, so far, absent - global, national and regional response strategies,’ [study author] Al-Aly said.”



** COVID-19 Deaths among 65+
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KFF ([link removed]) (US) reports, “Although [US] COVID-19 fatalities remain much lower than during the peak of last winter’s Omicron surge, deaths among people 65 and older spiked over the summer, more than doubling between April and July 2022, finds a new KFF analysis. The number of deaths topped more than 11,000 people 65 and older in both July and August…. The numbers illustrate that, despite the determination of many Americans to move on and resume normal activities, COVID-19 continues to exact a toll, especially among older adults. As of the week ending October 1, 2022, the United States had lost nearly 1.1 million lives to COVID-19, including about 790,000 people ages 65 and older. Although people 65 and older are 16 percent of the country’s population, they account for 75 percent of all COVID deaths to date.”



** COVID and Poverty in African Countries
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A Health Economics Review ([link removed]:) (US) study found, “a positive and significant relationship between poverty and the spread of COVID-19” in 52 African countries. The authors conclude: “the results reveal that population size and density, income inequality, and GDP per capita positively affect the spread of COVID-19, while health spending, official development assistance, government effectiveness, and control of corruption have a negative effect. These results suggest that more attention be paid on the poor in African countries in this time of pandemic.”



** Public Health Messaging
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A Harvard ([link removed]) study “surveyed the responses of nearly 16,000 people around the world to contrasting COVID-19 health messages; some messages focused on potential gains from taking actions such as wearing a mask, and others stressed the potential loss that could result from avoiding those actions. The study found that positive or negative messaging didn’t shift people’s attitudes or behavior related to those choices. However, the negatively framed messages did raise people’s anxiety—an emotion linked to ailments including high blood pressure and increased morbidity.” Researchers “posed survey questions in 48 languages to participants in 84 countries to ensure a global sample and discover any regional differences.” Read the study ([link removed]) .



** COVID and Mental Health
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This Day ([link removed]) (Nigeria) reports, “The World Health Organisation (WHO) has estimated that more than 116 million people were living with mental health conditions before the COVID-19 pandemic. It stated the world may have witnessed an estimated 25 per cent global rise in depression and anxiety after nearly three years, due to social isolation, fear of disease and death, and strained socio-economic circumstances associated with the COVID-19 pandemic…. According to [WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso] Moeti, inadequate financing for mental health has continued to be the biggest limitation, negatively impacting efforts to expand Africa’s mental health workforce. Moeti said in order to address the challenges posed by mental health, it was crucial that member states follow through on the implementation of commitments they made at the Regional Committee in August 2022,
when they endorsed the Framework to Implement the Comprehensive Global Action Plan 2013 to 2023 in the WHO African Region.”



** Bad News for Nasal Vaccine
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Many researchers believe a nasal spray vaccine that could better spark mucosal immunity and be delivered more easily could be an important step forward for vaccines. The Scientist ([link removed]) (US) reports “one such experimental vaccine, developed by scientists at the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, performed dismally in a small Phase 1 clinical trial…and the researchers behind the project say they plan to abandon it, at least in its current form…. The nasal approach is intended to enhance mucosal immunity, or the immune system’s ability to fend off pathogens at the point of contact on mucosal membranes rather than with antibodies or immune cells circulating in the bloodstream. The aim is to prevent more cases of COVID-19 than could be done with injected vaccines, which excel at preventing serious disease and death but not at heading off mild infections. However, the new study’s
results show that fewer than half of the study participants produced detectable levels of mucosal antibodies a month following administration, and in those who did, the level of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies was lower than that conferred by either injected vaccines or prior SARS-CoV-2 infection.”
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