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GOOD AFTERNOON AND WELCOME TO COVID TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES.
ERICA BROWN, REPRESENTING HARRIS COUNTY.
STANDING IN FOR DR. DAVID PER IS DR.
JANINA WHITE, REPRESENTING THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
SPECIAL THANKS TO PAST PRESIDENT ROTARY CLUB OF HOUSTON, KATHY FINNER TO OUR PRODUCERS DAVID CASTILLO.
I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THE LAST TWO WEEKS OF INCREASED VIRUS IN WASTEWATER? WELL, THIS WEEK THE VIRAL, UH, PERCENTAGE WAS 86%.
SO THAT'S A SLIGHT INCREASE FROM THE PREVIOUS WEEK, WHICH WAS THE 83%, WHICH WAS STILL AN INCREASE FROM THE WEEK BEFORE, WHICH IS ABOUT 49%.
SO THIS TREND IS A SLOW TREND UPWARD, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE KNEW WITH WASTEWATER WAS IT WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SORT OF SEE WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITY AS IT RELATED TO THE VIRUS.
'CAUSE WE KNOW OUR POSITIVITY RATE HAS SORT OF STAYED, STAYED PRETTY MUCH, UH, LOW.
AND OUR INDICATOR RIGHT NOW IS LOW.
THESE KIND OF PERCENTAGES ARE JUST BE HELPING US BE MINDFUL THAT AS WE WATCH AND SEE WHICH WAY THEY GO, IT'LL HELP DETERMINE HOW WE THINK ABOUT STRATEGIES IN, UH, HOW WE MANAGE OUR CARE AROUND OUR COMMUNITY WITH REGARDS TO COVID.
SO A VERY SLOW INCREMENTAL INCREASE, BUT NONETHELESS, IT'S SLOWLY INCREASING.
AT OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, NO ONE HAS WORN A MASK IN MANY MONTHS.
HOW ARE SCHOOLS IN GENERAL DOING? THE SCHOOLS ARE DOING PRETTY WELL, UM, WITH REGARD TO COVID.
I MEAN, AS WE JUST HEARD, THERE IS AN INCREASE IN WASTEWATER.
UM, SO, UM, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF FORMAL TESTING, ESPECIALLY WITH HOME TESTS, WE, WE REALLY RELY ON THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY, UM, IF THEY HAVE A POSITIVE TEST THAT THEIR STUDENTS STAY HOME.
BUT WE REALLY ARE NOT SEEING ANY LARGE, UH, OUTBREAKS.
UM, AS FAR AS FLU AS WELL, UM, THERE ARE JUST A FEW SCHOOLS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING SOME FLU OUTBREAKS, BUT IN GENERAL, UM, THE SCHOOLS ARE DOING WELL THERE TOO.
ONE OF THE BEST THINGS THAT WE CAN AGAIN, RECOMMEND IS TO GET YOUR FLU VACCINE TO GET, IF YOU HAVEN'T HAD YOUR COVID VACCINE PRIMARY SERIES, UM, DO THAT AND THEN CERTAINLY GET YOUR BOOSTER.
AND THEN THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS PAINT, GOOD HAND WASHING.
AND IF YOU DO HAVE SICK CHILDREN, PLEASE KEEP THEM HOME.
UM, UNTIL THEY ARE FEELING WELL.
DR. BROWN HARRIS COUNTY STATISTICS SHOWED NO DATA FOR VACCINES.
WHEN DOES THIS GET UPDATED? WHAT IS REALLY HAPPENING LOCALLY? YES.
SO, UM, AS YOU RECALL, YOU MAY OR MAY NOT RECALL, UM, WE CHANGED OUR SYSTEM, UH, MAYBE A FEW MONTHS AGO TO BE MORE IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE CDC SYSTEM.
THE SYSTEM UPDATES EVERY THURSDAY, UM, AND SO YOU ARE ABLE TO GO TO THE SITE, UM, AND SEE A CHANGE EVERY THURSDAY.
WITH REGARD TO OUR STATISTICS, CHINA IS MAINTAINING A ZERO COVID APPROACH.
WHILE WE'RE REPORTING IN THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF NEW CASES, LOOKING LIKE LOCKDOWNS AND TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS ARE NOT MAKING AN IMPACT.
WELL, CERTAINLY WE LEARNED, YOU KNOW, OUR LESSONS LEARNED HERE LOCALLY IS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DEFINITELY THINK THERE SHOULD BE A LAYERED APPROACH, AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT LOOKING AT WHAT SETTINGS PEOPLE ARE WORKING IN, LIVING IN.
SO FOR US, YOU KNOW, STRATEGIES AROUND A VERY TAILORED APPROACH IS REALLY THE MESSAGING THAT WE WANT EVERYBODY TO UNDERSTAND.
TO WHAT DR. BROWN JUST MENTIONED, SOME OF THOSE MITIGATION STRATEGIES, VENTILATION IS IMPORTANT.
WE KNOW OUR ECONOMIC STRUCTURE IS SUCH THAT WE WANNA PARTNER WITH OUR ECONOMIC BUSINESS INDUSTRIES TO REALLY SEE ABOUT HOW WE CAN DO THINGS MORE SAFELY.
AND CERTAINLY A LOCKDOWN OR A CLOSURE WOULDN'T BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD BE LOOKING TO DO AT THIS POINT.
KLOTMAN OF BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE PROJECTED THAT HOUSTON WILL HAVE A SURGE OVER THE HOLIDAYS.
DO YOU AGREE? UH, I, I THINK THAT IT IS, IS HIGHLY POSSIBLE.
UM, THE HOLIDAY TIME IS, IS USUALLY PEAK FLU SEASON, JUST IN GENERAL AS WELL.
UM, WE KNOW THAT THERE, UM, ARE HIGHER LEVELS OF, UH, RSV VIRUS ALONG WITH, UM, WE ALSO KNOW THAT WE STILL HAVE, UM, COVID, UH, WITH US.
SO IT'S VERY POSSIBLE, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE GATHERING.
UM, SO AGAIN, JUST WANNA REITERATE, PLEASE GET VACCINATED, UH, FOR FLU, FOR COVID, WASH YOUR HANDS, AND THEN IF YOU ARE UNFORTUNATELY ILL DURING THE HOLIDAY TIME, CERTAINLY ASK SOMEBODY TO, TO CHECK IN ON YOU AND, AND BRING A PLATE TO YOU.
UM, BUT CERTAINLY TRY NOT TO, UM, UM, GO TO THE FAMILY GATHERINGS IF EXPOSED TO COVID.
NOW, WHAT ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO
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TRYING TO KEEP EMPLOYEES SAFE? AND I THINK THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION BECAUSE I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS WE WANNA SEE IS THAT PEOPLE STILL KIND OF CONTINUE BUSINESS AS USUAL.AND WE WANT, WE KNOW THE IMPORTANCE OF PEOPLE WORKING AND THE SCHOOLS.
AND SO REALLY WHAT WE'RE SAYING AT THIS POINT IS, IF YOU'RE EXPOSED TO COVID, BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE SYMPTOMS, THEN WE JUST ASK YOU TO REALLY COVER YOUR COUGH.
I MEAN, COVER YOUR MOUTH BY WEARING A MASK, WATCHING AGAIN, YOUR VENTILATION, HOW YOU'RE WORKING IN THAT SOCIAL DISTANCING.
AND THEN ABOUT DAY FIVE OR SIX, JUST DO A RAPID TEST.
AND IF YOU STILL DON'T HAVE ANY SYMPTOMS, THEN REALLY, IF YOU COULD JUST WEAR THE MASK FOR THAT WHOLE 10 DAYS, THAT'S PERFECT.
IF YOU SAY, IF YOU START TO HAVE SYMPTOMS, THEN WHEN YOU'RE GONNA TEST, AND THEN YOU'RE GONNA DO SORT OF THE ISOLATION AND SEE YOUR PROVIDER ACCORDINGLY.
A NEW INJECTION TO PREVENT RSV HAS BEEN APPROVED IN EUROPE.
WHAT IS THAT? AND IS IT GOING TO BE OFFERED IN THIS COUNTRY? IN THIS COUNTRY? UM, I CAN'T ANSWER WHETHER IT'S GONNA BE OFFERED IN THIS COUNTRY.
UM, IT, IT IS, I DON'T KNOW IF I'M PRONOUNCING IT RIGHT, IT'S TIS AND IT IS A MONOCLONAL ANTIBODY THAT'S APPROVED FOR THE GENERAL INFANT POPULATION, INCLUDING THE PREMATURE, UM, BABIES WITH CERTAIN HEALTH CONDITIONS.
UM, IT'S A SINGLE DOSE INJECTION, UM, THAT CAN BE GIVEN FROM BIRTH UNTIL THE END OF RSV SEASON.
UM, THERE IS, UM, THERE'S NOT AN EXISTING VACCINE.
UM, BUT, BUT AGAIN, RATHER AN INJECTION, A SIMILAR INJECTION THAT WE HAVE IS SOMETHING CALLED SYNAGIS, UM, THAT REQUIRES UP TO FIVE DOSES, UM, AND TYPICALLY COVERS RSV SEASON.
UM, WE DO RECOMMEND IT FOR OUR PREMATURE BABIES, AND THAT IS THE CLOSEST, UM, THING WE HAVE RIGHT NOW.
UM, THE FDA, UM, IS LOOKING INTO, UM, UM, THE, THE DATA BEHIND IT FOR UNITED STATES APPROVAL, BUT AT THIS TIME I DON'T HAVE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THAT.
SO, UH, IS, IS SYNERGIST ONLY FOR BABIES WITH RSV OR OTHER VIRUSES LIKE COLD OR COVID? SO SYNERGIST IS REALLY ONLY FOR PREMATURE BABIES.
FOR, UM, RSV, IT'S BEEN AROUND FOR, LIKE DR. BROWN SAID FOR 20 YEARS.
AND ESSENTIALLY IT'S MEANT FOR AT-RISK PREMATURE INFANTS, THREE, FOUR MONTHS, THREE FOUR WEEKS.
AND UNDER THOSE WHO HAVE, UH, BRONCHOPULMONARY DYSPLASIA, THOSE ACTUALLY WHO HAVE, UM, CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE.
AND THEN THERE'S SOME INDIVIDUAL, SOME BABIES WHO WILL HAVE TO HAVE IT BECAUSE THEY HAVE SIBLINGS WHO PARTICULARLY ARE AT RISK BEING IN DAYCARE.
SO WHEN NEONATOLOGISTS LOOK AT WHO'S A CANDIDATE, AND SO IT'S A VERY SMALL GROUP OF PREEMIES THAT ARE CANDIDATES FOR GEN PERCENTAGES.
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL IN THE NORTHEAST AND EAST SEEM TO ALREADY BE HIT HARD BY RSV.
HOW ARE WE DOING IN HOUSTON? UM, SO WE ACTUALLY JUST HAD, UM, SOME INFORMATIONAL UPDATES ABOUT THIS, UH, IN ANOTHER FORUM.
UM, WHILE WE ARE SEEING SOME DECREASES, WE, WE HAVE A PEAK IN JUNE AND WE ARE SEEING A LITTLE BIT OF DECREASE.
UM, WE STILL UNFORTUNATELY ARE SEEING MORE, UH, UM, UH, VIRUSES, UH, IN THE COMMUNITY, UM, THAN WE USED TO.
THE BIGGEST ISSUE THAT WE, WE HAVE IS, IS, IS SHORTAGE IN OUR, OUR WORKFORCE.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY BECAUSE OF COVID, UM, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF, A LOT OF STAFF LEAVE THE WORKFORCE, UM, AND WE JUST HAVEN'T RECOVERED FROM THAT.
SO WHILE, WHILE WE ARE SEEING A LITTLE BIT OF A PEAK IN, IN RSV, UM, WE'RE ALSO SEEING A SIMILAR PEAK IN, IN SHORTAGE IN WORKFORCE.
AND THAT COMBINATION IS WHAT'S CREATING, UM, UH, AN UNFAVORABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR US, GIVEN THE FACT THAT WE'RE SEEING FLU AND RSV.
DO COR VIRUSES CROWD OUT OTHER VIRUSES? PLEASE EXPLAIN COMPETITION BETWEEN VIRUSES.
SO CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A WHOLE DISCIPLINE TO VIROLOGY, SO I DON'T WANT TO MINIMIZE THOSE INDIVIDUALS WHO DO THIS SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH.
BUT AS A CLINICIAN, I MEAN, WE DO SEE VIRUSES.
UM, CURRENTLY RIGHT NOW WE'RE SEEING, YOU KNOW, FLU, INFLUENZA AND RSV AND COVID, AND OFTEN YOU DO NOT SEE PATIENTS WHO HAVE THE SAME VIRUS AT THE SAME TIME, BUT VIRUSES CAN GET INTO A CELL.
AND SO RSV AND FLU, PARTICULARLY IN ONE ARTICLE I REVIEWED WAS, WAS A COMPILATION OF A LOT OF STUDIES.
YOU KNOW, THEY TRY TO COMPETE AND ONE MAY ACTUALLY GET INTO THE CELL VERSUS THE OTHER, BUT WE DO KNOW PEOPLE CAN STILL REALLY GET MORE THAN ONE VIRUS AT ONE TIME.
AND SO AGAIN, THE MESSAGING ABOUT THOSE MITIGATION FACTORS OF GETTING YOUR VACCINES FOR FLU, YOU CAN GET A VACCINE FOR COVID.
THEY DON'T HAVE ANYTHING FOR RSV, BUT CERTAINLY RESEARCH DOES DEMONSTRATE THAT, YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW, ALL, ALL BETS ARE OFF AND THAT THIS IS A, A VERY UNIQUE TIME WHERE WE HAVE SORT OF THESE THREE VIRUSES ALL REALLY, UM, CREATING A LOT OF CHALLENGES.
RSV, PARTICULARLY FOR THOSE TWO AND UNDER, WE'RE SEEING, YOU KNOW, INFLUENZA AND THE FIVE TO 11 RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS A CONCERN, RSV DOES IMPACT THE ELDERLY.
AND WHEN WE SAW SIGNIFICANT DISEASE MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY IN COVID, IN THOSE VULNERABLE, AGAIN, WHO WERE, YOU
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KNOW, 60 AND OLDER, AND THIS IS THE QUE THE STATEMENT FIRST, RSV, UH, IN THE US IS UP NATIONALLY, BUT DECREASING IN THE SOUTH WHILE FLU IS UP.WHY IS, IS THAT THE CASE OR WAS THAT AT ONE POINT IN TIME? UM, WE, I THINK IT'S, IT'S A, A RELATIVE STATEMENT.
UM, IT'S FLU SEASON, SO FLU IS UP BECAUSE IT'S IT'S FLU SEASON.
UM, AND WE DID EXPECT TO SEE, UH, UH, UH, MORE CASES OF FLU THIS YEAR, UM, WHILE WATCHING OUR, OUR, UH, COVID STATUS AS WELL.
UM, I DON'T KNOW THAT WE CAN SAY THAT, UM, UM, WE ARE NOT KEEPING PACE WITH OTHER RSV INFECTIONS AROUND THE COUNTRY.
UM, I, I WILL SAY THAT FLU IS NOT A REPORTABLE DISEASE AND, AND REALLY NEITHER IS RSV.
WE'RE LOOKING AT THE HOSPITALIZATION RATES, WHICH AGAIN, SOME OF THE FACTORS AROUND, UM, THE URGENCY IN THE HOSPITALIZATION RATES HAS TO DO WITH SHORTAGE IN STAFFING.
AND SO, UM, WE REALLY DON'T HAVE ANY, ANY, ANY GREAT DATA TO TELL US WHETHER WE'RE SEEING HUGE INCREASES IN RSV AND FLU, OR WE'RE SEEING SOME INCREASE IN R RSV AND FLU, BUT AGAIN, COMPOUNDED BY SHORTAGES IN STAFFING TO CARE FOR THESE INDIVIDUALS AT THIS POINT.
WHY SHOULDN'T PAXLOVID BE AVAILABLE FOR ALL GROUPS AGE GROUPS? SO REMEMBER, THE FDA HAS TO SORT OF DO SAFETY STUDIES AND IMPROVE THE USE OF A NEW MEDICATION.
SO THIS WAS APPROVED IN DECEMBER OF LAST YEAR FOR THE TREATMENT OF MILD TO MODERATE COVID SYMPTOMS, BUT IT WAS APPROVED FOR CHILDREN AGES 12 AND UP.
SO RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, THE SAFETY DATA STILL IS GONNA REQUIRE MORE STUDIES AND EFFICACY REVIEWS FOR INDIVIDUALS UNDER THE AGE OF 12.
IS MAXINE RELUCTANCY FOR ALL CHILDREN'S VACCINE PER PERHAPS NOT ALL, BUT CERTAINLY WE DO KNOW THERE'S BEEN THAT EXPERIENCE AND WE SAW THAT WITH REGARDS TO MEASLES.
AND SO REALLY, YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL, THESE KIND OF FORUMS ARE WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO ENSURE THAT WE GIVE FACTUAL INFORMATION, SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION TO REALLY HELP EVERYBODY UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF, OF VACCINE PREVENTABLE INFECTIONS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING VACCINATED.
ARE THE NEW BIVALENT VACCINES STILL RESPONDING TO THE NEWEST STRAINS? THEY ARE.
SO, SO WHILE WE DO HAVE SOME, UH, NEW PLAYERS ON THE SCENE, THE BQ UH, UH, ONE, UM, IS CERTAINLY RISING IN OUR COMMUNITY.
BA FOUR AND FIVE IS CERTAINLY STILL PREVALENT.
AND THE, UH, THE, UH, BIVALENT VACCINES, UM, UH, ARE, UM, UM, B FOUR, BA FOUR AND FIVE ALONG WITH THE ORIGINAL STRAINS.
SO THE RECOMMENDATION IS STILL ABSOLUTELY TO GET VACCINATED WITH THE BOOSTERS SO THAT YOU CAN GARNER PROTECTION, UH, AGAINST THE NEWER STRENGTHS.
THE COVID NUMBERS ARE DOWN IN FIELD.
THE BIVALENT VACCINE IS UNNECESSARY.
ARE THERE ANY TRUSTED SOURCES THAT REFUTE THEIR THEORY? YEAH, I LOVE, I LOVE, I LOVE THE QUESTION BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY, WE JUST CAME FROM A CONFERENCE, AND SO, YOU KNOW, AS A PHYSICIAN, A PEDIATRICIAN, I HAVE RESOURCES WHICH ARE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF ACRONYMS. NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE, A A P, WHICH IS PEDIATRICS JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE.
WE HAVE, UH, PARTNERS IN OUR COMMUNITY AT TEXAS CHILDREN'S AND MEMORIAL HERMAN.
WE HAVE A LOT OF GREAT RESOURCES, BUT THAT'S NOT TRANSLATING TO JUST THE BREAD AND BUTTER TABLE DISCUSSIONS WITH YOURSELF AND YOUR, YOUR FRIENDS AND LOVED ONES.
THIS IS WHERE WE'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT MORE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
YOU ARE A TRUSTED MESSENGER, SO IF THIS IS WHERE YOU'RE GETTING YOUR INFORMATION, YOU FEEL LIKE THIS IS SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION AND WE'RE LEADING YOU TO RESOURCES, THEN WE THINK YOU SHOULD BE THE ONE TO HELP SUPPORT AND TRANSLATE IT TO YOUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO THESE ARE THESE OPPORTUNITIES WHERE WE KNOW IT'S SORT OF THE MESSAGE GETS FILTERED DOWN AND FILTERED DOWN, AND WE TRUST THAT YOU BELIEVE THAT WE'RE GIVING YOU SOUND INFORMATION, BUT THERE'S CERTAINLY AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS, LIKE I MENTIONED.
HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT HAS ON OUR PLATFORM, UH, HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH ON THEIR PLATFORM.
WE'RE ALL DOING OUR BEST TO REALLY GET INFORMATION TO YOU, SO THEN YOU CAN PUSH IT DOWN.
UM, BUT CERTAINLY LET US KNOW IF YOU NEED IT IN, IN ANOTHER FORMAT.
WHAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL LETY IN THE LAST MONTH ABOUT GETTING VACCINE? SO I THINK THAT THIS REALLY PIGGYBACKS ON WHAT, UM, DR. WHITE JUST SAID.
UM, IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, UM, THERE HAS BEEN SO MUCH HAPPENING, UM, IN OUR COUNTRY AND AROUND THE WORLD, NOT JUST WITH THE PANDEMIC.
UM, THE PANDEMIC ITSELF WOULD'VE BEEN ENOUGH, BUT JUST ALSO, UM, POLITICALLY AROUND THE WORLD AS WELL.
THERE'S JUST BEEN SO MUCH HAPPENING AND THERE IS A CERTAIN LEVEL OF, UM,
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MISTRUST, UH, IN THE INFORMATION THAT IS BEING SHARED BECAUSE, UM, THERE'S NOT ALWAYS CONGRUENCE AND CONSISTENCY IN THE INFORMATION.WHILE CERTAINLY, UM, AGENCIES ARE DOING THEIR BEST, UM, TO COMMUNICATE IN APPROPRIATE WAYS AND TO, TO PUT THE INFORMATION OUT IN THE, IN THE MOST, UM, CONVENIENT WAYS POSSIBLE, THE INFORMATION, ESPECIALLY AROUND COVID CHANGED SO RAPIDLY BECAUSE IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE HADN'T SEEN BEFORE.
UM, IT'S REALLY HARD FOR THE LAY PERSON TO UNDERSTAND.
UM, AND SO IF, IF WE CAN DO A BETTER JOB AT, AT COMMUNICATING, UM, THROUGH YOU ALL TO COMMUNICATE TO YOUR FRIENDS AND TO YOUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UM, TO GARNER A LITTLE BIT MORE TRUST IN, IN WHAT IS BEING DISSEMINATED, AND THEN ALSO RECEIVE FEEDBACK AGAIN, UH, ABOUT HOW WE CAN DO BETTER AT, AT COMMUNICATING, UM, I THINK THAT WOULD GO A LONG WAY.
BUT THERE'S JUST BEEN SO MUCH INFORMATION, UM, UM, SO MUCH HAPPENING IN THE LAST FEW YEARS THAT PEOPLE ARE JUST, THAT THEY HAVE VACCINE FATIGUE, ACTUALLY MR. VIRUS CREATING AN AUTOIMMUNE REACTION IN SOME INDIVIDUALS.
SO WE DO KNOW THAT THE, UM, VIRUS HAS VARIOUS SYMPTOMS IN PEOPLE.
AND SO AUTOIMMUNE IS ONE OF THOSE WHERE WE DO SEE AUTOIMMUNE INVOLVEMENT.
AND, UH, UH, I THINK WE TALKED PREVIOUSLY BEFORE IN OUR AREA, WE DO HAVE A, UH, UH, UM, A RESOURCE LOOKING AT SORT THAT LONG COVID STUDIES.
AND SO INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING THIS, WE ARE JUST ASKING THEM TO CERTAINLY LET THEIR PROVIDERS KNOW WHAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING BECAUSE THEY'RE TAKING ALL OF THOSE, THAT INFORMATION AND PUTTING INTO A REPOSITORY AND REALLY TRYING TO GET A BETTER SENSE OF ALL THE SYMPTOMS THAT ARE EXPERIENCED IN, UM, THE COVID INFECTION.
WHAT VARIANT IS INCREASING THE FASTEST AND WHAT ARE THE RAMIFICATIONS OF THAT? YEAH, SO BQ ONE, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, IS THE, THE NEWEST, UH, PLAYER ON THE BLOCK.
UM, IT IS FORTUNATELY PART OF THE BA FIVE LINEAGE, UM, WHICH MEANS THAT THE BIVALENT BOOST BOOSTER SHOULD, UH, AFFORD US PROTECTION.
UNFORTUNATELY, THOUGH IT IS ANOTHER VARIANT THAT, UM, SEEMS TO BE VERY EASILY TRANSMISSIBLE.
UM, SO AGAIN, THE BEST THING WE CAN DO IS GO AHEAD AND GET PROTECTED WITH EITHER VACCINATION, UH, PRIMARY VACCINATION IF YOU HAVEN'T STARTED, AND CERTAINLY A BOOSTER.
UM, IF YOU'RE ELIGIBLE AND HAVE GONE THROUGH YOUR PRIMARY SERIES, THE SAME MUTATIONS ARE OCCURRING IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD.
I'VE HEARD IT REFERRED TO AS A CONVERGENCE EVOLUTION OF CONVERGENT MUTATION.
DOES THAT MEAN THE VARIANTS ARE DESIGNED TO CHANGE IN THE SAME WAY, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY'RE BETTER HOSTS? LIKE THE UNVACCINATED JUST SEEM TO REFUTE THE THEORY THAT UNVACCINATED OR UNVACCINATED ARE VARIANT FACTORIES.
I MEAN, THE, YOU KNOW, WHAT VIRUSES WANT TO DO IS SURVIVE.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE UNDER VACCINATED AS A COMMUNITY AND THAT'S A GLOBAL DISCUSSION, THEN THEY'RE JUST GONNA FIND OPPORTUNITIES TO CHANGE AND BE SORT OF STRONGER ENOUGH THAT THEY CAN CONVERT INTO ANOTHER VARIANT.
AND SO RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ABOUT 300 DIFFERENT SORT OF LINEAGES OR TERMINOLOGIES OF DIFFERENT, UM, COM VIRUSES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT AS IT RELATES TO THE, TO THE, UH, COVID.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, LOOKING FROM COUNTRY TO COUNTRY, THOSE WHO ARE UNDER VACCINATED, AND WE LET THE VIRUS GET THE ABILITY TO SWITCH AND CHANGE.
AND AS DR. BROWN AGAIN MENTIONED, SHE TOLD YOU ABOUT THE VARIANCE BQ ONE, THERE'S BQ ONE, ONE BF SEVEN, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GONNA TRY TO DO WHAT THEY CAN TO SURVIVE.
AND SO WHAT WE'RE HOPING THOUGH IS, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU GET TO A POINT WHERE THEY'RE JUST NOT AS VIRULENT AS A PREVIOUS ONE, AND WE JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW.
SO THE REALLY, THE MESSAGE IS, YOU KNOW, REALLY WORK TO HAVE COMMUNITIES BECOME VACCINATED.
MONKEYPOX MAY SPREAD BEFORE SYMPTOMS START.
THIS WAS IN NOVEMBER 2ND, CNN, IS IT TRUE? SO THERE HAVE BEEN, UM, A, A FEW STUDIES THAT SHOW THAT, UH, ASYMPTOMATIC INDIVIDUALS, UM, WERE INFECTED WITH MONKEYPOX, UM, AND HAS BEEN SHOWN TO BE IN SEMEN AND IN A**L SWABS, UH, AGAIN OF ASYMPTOMATIC INDIVIDUALS.
THESE HAVE BEEN RARE CASES, BUT AGAIN, THE BEST THING TO DO IS IF YOU, UM, THINK YOU HAVE BEEN EXPOSED OR ARE AT RISK IS TO GET VACCINATED SO THAT THIS IS NOT AN ISSUE.
OKAY, I'M GONNA ASK WHETHER THE, THE NEXT TWO QUESTIONS ARE TRUE OR TOO, I'LL JUST READ STATEMENTS.
FAUCI SAID COVID DEATHS ARE TOO HIGH HEADING INTO THE WINDOW WINTER.
ALSO, THE US NEEDS TO DRAMATICALLY REDUCE THE NUMBER OF COVID DEATHS CURRENTLY STANDING AT 400 PER DAY BEFORE THE COUNTRY CAN DECLARE THE PANDEMIC OVER.
FCIS CAREER SPEAKS FOR ITSELF.
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THAT EXPERIENCE, AND HE'S SUGGESTING THAT I WOULD SAY SUGGEST THAT'S TRUE AT THIS TIME.OH, YOU DON'T WANT TO TAKE DR.
I WOULDN'T EITHER F WERE YOU
SCIENTISTS AT COLUMBIA AND HARVARD UHOH,
IS THAT TRUE? I MEAN, IF, UM, SO THE STUDIES THAT WERE DONE HAD SAMPLE SIZES THAT WERE TOO SMALL, SO IT WAS 21 PEOPLE IN COLO AT COLUMBIA AND 18 PEOPLE AT HARVARD, UM, WHO RECEIVED THE NEW BOOSTERS AND COMPARE THEM TO THOSE WHO RECEIVED THE OLD VACCINE AS THEIR FOURTH SHOT.
SO AGAIN, THE COMPARISONS WERE NOT THE SAME.
UM, SO I CAN'T SPEAK ON WHETHER WHAT THEY, WHAT THEY HAVE, UM, POSTULATED IS, IS TRUE OR NOT, BECAUSE THE COMPARISONS REALLY WERE NOT THE SAME.
YEAH, IT'S ONLY TRUE FOR THE PEOPLE THAT THEY SAW, BUT THE SAMPLE SIZE IS NOT, NOT LARGE ENOUGH TO MAKE GENERALIZATIONS.
THE FDA ENCOURAGES PEOPLE TO GET BOOSTED AHEAD OF THE WAVE OF COVID-19 THAT APPEARS TO BE COMING PER FDA PETER MARKS YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS? Y'ALL BEEN SAYING THAT ALL ALONG? WE'VE BEEN SAYING THAT AND WE, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THESE RESPIRATORY VIRUSES.
SO YOU'RE SAYING COVID FLU, WE HAVE, WE HAVE RHINOVIRUS, WE HAVE ENTEROVIRUSES, WE HAVE RXV.
OFTEN THESE COULD BE SELF-LIMITING.
YOU CAN BE AT HOME, TAKE MEDICATION, YOU'RE GONNA RECOVER.
BUT WE ALSO ARE SAYING, BUT SOME OF THESE INDIVIDUALS WILL FIND THEMSELVES INTO HOSPITALS, AND WE HEAR THAT OUR HOSPITAL PARTNERS, OUR CLINIC PARTNERS ARE CHALLENGED WITH RESOURCES.
AND SO THAT'S ANOTHER MISSED OPPORTUNITY FROM AN EQUITY PERSPECTIVE THAT IF, YOU KNOW, YOU DIDN'T GET A CHANCE TO GET BOOSTED, BUT YOU NEED A HOSPITAL BED AND THERE'S NOT A BED IN THIS AREA, AND YOU HAVE TO BE TRANSFERRED OUT OF THIS AREA, THERE'S SO MANY DOWNSTREAM CONCERNS.
UM, SO THE SAFEST RECOMMENDATION IS WE WANT YOU TO GET BOOSTED VETERANS AFFAIRS STUDY, FIND PAXLOVID REDUCES THE RISK OF LONG COVID.
UH, SO I, I THAT'S A STATEMENT I GUESS.
SO, UM, THAT PAXLOVID HAS BEEN SHOWN TO, UM, UM, REDUCE SOME RISK, UH, OF HOSPITALIZATION AND DEATH, UM, AND, UM, POTENTIALLY SOME RISK OF, OF LONG COVID.
NOW THE, THE VA RESEARCHER STATED, UM, PATIENTS TAKING PAXLOVID WITHIN FIVE DAYS OF TESTING, UM, HAD DECREASED RISK.
UM, I'M NOT SURE OF THAT SPECIFIC STUDY WHETHER IT ACTUALLY SHOWED THAT, BUT THERE, THERE HAS BEEN SOME STUDY TO SHOW THAT IT CAN DECREASE THE RISK OF LONG COVID, DID PANDEMIC STRESS CHANGE WOMEN'S PERIODS? AND THEN THEY HAVE WASHINGTON POST AND PARENTHESIS.
I MEAN, THEY HAD A ARTICLE IN WASHINGTON POST THAT REALLY LOOKED AT THE QUESTION ABOUT WHAT COULD THE PANDEMIC STRESS DO WITH REGARDS TO WOMEN'S MENSTRUAL CYCLES? AND IT WAS ABOUT 300 WOMEN BETWEEN 18 AND 45, AND THEY FOUND THAT THERE WERE CHANGES IN THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE.
UM, AND THE CONCERN WITH THAT THOUGH IS THERE'S, YOU KNOW, IF WOMEN ARE REALLY IN A, A CHRONIC STATE OF STRESS, NOT ONLY IS YOUR MENSTRUAL CYCLE MAYBE BEING ALTERED, BUT IT COULD BE THYROID DISEASE, IT COULD BE OTHER HORMONAL CHANGES, UM, INFECTIONS, YOU KNOW, CONCERNS ABOUT PREGNANCY.
AND SO THERE'S SOME CONCERN THAT THERE, AGAIN, IS AN EQUITY QUESTION ABOUT HOW WOMEN ARE EVALUATED WHEN THEY HIT SORT OF THE CLINIC AND HOSPITAL EVALUATION DOORS.
AND ARE WE BEING TAKEN SERIOUS WHEN WE SAY OUR, OUR MENSIES SEEMS DIFFERENT? UM, AND SO THE QUESTION, THE, THE, THE, THE ARTICLE BEGS TO SAY, YOU KNOW, WE WANT PROVIDERS TO TAKE WOMEN SERIOUSLY TO HEAR THE CONCERNS AND NOT TO MINIMIZE THOSE CONCERNS BECAUSE THERE COULD BE OTHER, UM, MEDICAL RISK THAT GO WITH THAT SORT OF CONCERN ABOUT MY MENSTRUAL CYCLE.
THEY ALSO SAID THAT THEY REALLY HAVEN'T DONE LARGE SCALE COVID STUDIES TO ACTUALLY ASK, IS THAT ONE OF THE SYMPTOMS? THEY LOOKED AT A LOT OF SYMPTOMS AND THEY'VE NOT REALLY INCLUDED THAT.
SO THEY'RE SOUNDING THE ALARM AGAIN ABOUT REPRODUCTIVE HEALTHCARE CONCERNS WITH WOMEN.
AND THIS SHOULD BE A QUESTION THEY PROBABLY SHOULD START ASKING IN STUDIES, UM, WITH REGARDS TO, UM, WOMEN'S MENSTRUAL CYCLES.
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT LONG COVID, UH, VACUOUS, I CAN'T PRONOUNCE THE WORD VASCULITIS.
VASCU VASCULITIS AND THE USE OF LONG-TERM ANTICOAGULATION? YES.
SO THERE ARE SOME STUDIES, UM, UM, AND SOME AUTOPSY FINDINGS THAT SHOW THAT, UM, UM, THERE IS ASSOCIATION BETWEEN COVID AND THROMBOEMBOLIC DISEASE.
UM, JUST BY THE NATURE OF, OF WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT TREATING THROMBOEMBOLIC DISEASE, THERE WOULD PRE BE PRESUMED AN ASSOCIATION, UM, BETWEEN THAT AND ANTICOAGULATION.
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UM, SO STUDIES ARE ONGOING, BUT PAST, JUST KNOWING WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THROMBOLIC THROMBOEMBOLIC DISEASE AND HOW TO TREAT IT, UM, THERE'S A POTENTIAL ASSOCIATION THERE.ONE FRIEND ENDED UP WITH LONG COVID WITHIN 90 DAYS OF HAVING A VIRUS, ANOTHER GUY THAT IMMEDIATELY WHAT IS TYPICAL? CAN YOU, CAN YOU REALLY DEFINE IT AS DIAGNOSE? YEAH, SO POST, YEAH, GO AHEAD.
POST COVID CONDITIONS ARE, YOU KNOW, A WIDE RANGE OF HEALTH CONCERNS AND PROBLEMS THAT PEOPLE EXPERIENCE AFTER BEING INFECTED.
AND SO MOST PEOPLE WILL SAY, FOR LONG COVID, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO WAIT ABOUT FOUR WEEKS BEFORE YOU, AFTER YOU HAVE AN INFECTION, BEFORE WE CAN SAY, WE WANNA START CALLING YOU A POST COVID CONDITION.
SO ANYONE WHO'S BEEN AFFECTED CAN EXPERIENCE POST COVID CONDITIONS.
SO, UM, WE JUST ARE STILL LEARNING MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE RECOVERY STUDY THAT WE HAVE HERE LOCALLY.
AND AT UTMB, REALLY, WE WERE ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO SORT OF PUSH INTO THAT.
THE ELECTION OF NOVEMBER 8TH, 2022 EXCEEDED ALL THE WILDEST PREDICTIONS.
WITH THOSE VOTING, WHAT IS THE ECONOMIC, MEDICAL, AND POLITICAL IMPACT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR? COULD FUNDING GO DOWN? YES, IT COULD, BUT WE REALLY DON'T KNOW THE IMPACT YET.
ONE THING I SHOULD ALSO SAY IS, YOU KNOW, EVERY TIME WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY, AS YOU'VE SEEN IN THIS PANDEMIC, SOMEHOW OUR, OUR FOLKS COME THROUGH.
ALTHOUGH THAT FUNDING DOESN'T NECESSARILY, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY, UH, UH, I, I THINK INGRAINED IN THE LONG TERM, AT LEAST FOR THE SHORT TERM, WE SEEM TO GET SUPPORT TO DO WHAT WE NEED TO DO.
HOW SHOULD WE PREPARE FOR THE HOLIDAYS IN GENERAL? ANY THOUGHTS ABOUT WHEN WE SHOULD CONSIDER TESTING RAPID TESTS, ET CETERA? SO PREPARATION FOR THE HOLIDAYS ABSOLUTELY INCLUDES VACCINATION FOR COVID, VACCINATION FOR FLU.
UM, IT INCLUDES GOOD HAND HYGIENE, UH, ALWAYS GREAT HAND WASHING.
UM, CERTAINLY IF YOU HAVE, UM, PEOPLE WHO ARE AT RISK, YOUR, UH, ELDERLY, YOUR BABIES, YOUR, UH, IMMUNOCOMPROMISED CONSIDER, UH, WEARING A MASK.
CERTAINLY IT IS TIME FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS RECOGNIZING THAT WE, WE ARE, UM, COMING OUT OF A VERY LONG PANDEMIC, UM, AND PEOPLE WANNA BE ABLE TO CELEBRATE WITH THEIR LOVED ONES.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY THOUGH I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH, IF YOU ARE SICK, PLEASE DO STAY HOME, UM, UM, AND HAVE PEOPLE PERHAPS COME AND CHECK ON YOU OR SEE IF IT CAN BE POSTPONED.
YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE LATE CHRISTMAS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, OR LATE THANKSGIVING.
UM, BECAUSE WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PROTECTING EVERYBODY, ESPECIALLY OUR MOST VULNERABLE, OUR ELDERLY GRANDPARENTS, AUNTIES AND UNCLES AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
NOT EVERY COUNTRY IS DILIGENT ABOUT ENCOURAGING BASIC SAFETY MEASURES.
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR FAMILIES TRAVELING SOON? REALLY ESSENTIALLY THE SAME THING, WOULDN'T YOU SAY? EXACTLY, EXACTLY.
HOW DO WE DETERMINE, FOR EXAMPLE, WITH FATIGUE, WHAT IS LONG COVID VERSUS OTHER REASONS LIKE OVERWORK, AGE, AGE, LACK OF SLEEP AND STRESS? I MEAN, IT, IT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A VERY DIFFICULT, DIFFICULT QUESTION AND CURRENTLY, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE REALLY HAVE TO WORK WITH THEIR PROVIDER, WITH THEIR DOCTOR.
I THINK THEY HAVE TO STAY ENGAGED.
AND IF THEY'RE FEELING A SYMPTOM THAT DON'T MINIMIZE THAT SYMPTOM.
BUT, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WE AS PROVIDERS, WE, WE SORT OF WHAT WE CALL RULE OUT OTHER THINGS.
WE'LL RULE OUT THYROID, WE'LL RULE OUT DIABETES.
WE HAVE TO KEEP RULING THINGS OUT.
AND AS WE START THINKING AND PULLING BACK, YOU KNOW, THE ONION SORT OF, SO TO SPEAK, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA KEEP COVID ON THE TOP OF THE DIFFERENTIAL THOUGH TO SEE IF THAT'S CONTRIBUTING TO THE SYMPTOMS THAT YOU'RE HAVING.
I WANNA THANK Y'ALL FOR JOINING US FOR COVID-19 TALK WITH LOCAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES.
ERICA BROWN, REPRESENTING HARRIS COUNTY.
UH, STANDING IN FOR DR. DAVID PURSE WAS DR.
JANINA WHITE, REPRESENTING THE CITY OF HOUSTON.
SPECIAL THANKS TO PAST PRESIDENT ROTARY CLUB IN HOUSTON.
KATHY FINNER, OUR PRODUCERS, DAVID CASTILLO AND PRISCILLA KEY.
I'M STEVEN WILLIAMS, THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON HEALTH DEPARTMENT.