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Coronavirus: WHO advises to wear masks in public areas
The World Health Organization changes its guidance saying masks can help stop the spread of the virus.
Health24.com | Loss of smell and taste might be long-term for some Covid-19 survivors
- Even people with mild Covid-19 infections experience loss of smell and taste
- Some patients never entirely recover their sense of smell
- It’s not a cure, but in some cases ‘smell training’ help people regain some of their olfactory ability
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s become clear that many people with the infection lose their sense of smell and taste. And doctors are concerned that some will never get back to normal.
At this point, it’s hard to know how common the symptom is. First, there were anecdotal reports of Covid-19 patients who had lost their ability to smell or taste, said Dr Nicholas Rowan, an assistant professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
And then, he said, studies started to confirm “there’s a lot of truth to it”.
Rowan pointed to one study of patients hospitalised for Covid-19 that used objective tests to detect smell “dysfunction”. Nearly all patients – 98% – showed some loss of smell.
Smell and taste intertwined
But the problem isn’t limited to severely ill patients. It appears to be common, and even a “cardinal” symptom, among people with milder Covid-19 infections. Cardinal symptoms are the key ones from which a diagnosis is made.
For example, in a study of European patients with mild-to-moderate Covid-19, 86% reported problems with their sense of smell, while a similar percentage had changes in taste perception.
As anyone who’s ever had a cold knows, smell and taste are closely intertwined, Rowan said. So the loss of smell – which doctors call anosmia – may be diminishing people’s perception of flavours.
But, Rowan noted, it’s also possible the coronavirus does have some direct effect on the sense of taste.
Respiratory viruses, including cold viruses and the flu, are known to sometimes trigger anosmia.
Fortunately, the issue resolves for most people. “But unfortunately,” Rowan said, “some patients are left with permanent olfactory [smell] dysfunction.”
Infects area of olfactory nerve
That’s what has doctors worried – particularly since these sensory problems appear unusually prevalent in people with Covid-19.
“It does happen with other viruses,” said Dr Daniel Coelho, a professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
“But,” he added, “we’re seeing it a heck of a lot more with this virus.”
It’s not clear why, but Rowan said there’s some evidence that SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes Covid-19 – directly infects the area of the olfactory nerve. That might be how the virus gains entry into the body.
For some people, loss of smell and taste may be the first red flag that they are infected – or even the only symptom, both Rowan and Coelho said.
Coelho and his colleagues have undertaken a nationwide study to track changes in smell and taste related to Covid19. Preliminary results, based on 220 survey respondents, indicated that nearly 40% had loss of smell or taste as a first, or only, symptom of Covid-19.
For some, improvement has been slow.
“We’re assuming that not all of these patients are going to return to their pre-Covid level of function,” Coelho said.
And that’s a concern, Rowan said. “There’s a well-described correlation between anosmia and depression and anxiety,” he noted.
Smell training supported
Correlation doesn’t mean “cause-and-effect”, he added. On the other hand, Rowan said, there’s no doubt that much of the pleasure in life is related to the sense of smell – from enjoying meals to bonding with other people.
Coelho agreed that anosmia takes a toll on quality of life, and can even be dangerous – if a person can’t smell the smoke from a house fire, for example. “We really tend to take our sense of smell for granted,” he said.
As for treating lingering anosmia, the options are “not great”, according to Rowan. But some evidence supports smell training, he said. It works like other types of rehabilitation, where a person relearns a diminished ability – in this case by spending time each day sniffing essential oils or other scents.
“It’s not a cure, and it doesn’t work for everyone,” Rowan said. “But it’s a viable option and basically no-risk.”
As for people who develop a new problem with smelling ability, take it seriously, Rowan advised. “It might be the first sign of Covid-19,” he said.
Coelho echoed that point. “Presume you’re positive,” he said. “Then self-isolate and call your doctor about what to do next.”
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Health24.com | Coronavirus morning update: President calls for responsible drinking, and latest on schools
The latest number of confirmed cases is 43 434.
According to the latest update, 908 deaths have been recorded in the country, after 60 more Covid-19 related deaths were reported.
There have been 23 088 recoveries.
So far, 850 871 tests have been conducted, with 30 196 new tests – the second consecutive report where more than 30 000 tests were conducted.
READ MORE | All the confirmed cases of coronavirus in SA
Latest news:
President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on South Africans not “to drink so much they injure others” – and put undue pressure on the national health system.
This, after reports this week alcohol-related injuries had spiked almost immediately after the restriction on its sale was lifted on Monday under Level 3 lockdown.
The president was speaking in Brackenfell, Cape Town, where he was inspecting a “Red Dot” transport initiative whereby 6 000 healthcare workers are transported safely in special taxis in the Western Cape.
When alcohol sales were legalised on Monday, “we suddenly saw a spike in the utilisation of hospital beds” due to alcohol-related harms, Ramaphosa said.
“It was always going to be a risk,” he added.
Ramaphosa said the government was not contemplating re-banning alcohol, “as yet”.
But he called on “all South Africans to behave in a manner that would take into account the rights of other people … we hope that message will sink in”.
READ MORE | Ramaphosa calls for responsibility: ‘Don’t drink so much that you injure others’
The coronavirus will be with South Africa for at least 18 months to two years, and governments should never be found wanting in securing essentials such as emergency beds.
This was the blunt warning by President Ramaphosa to South Africa on Friday as he officially opened a massive 862-bed “Hospital of Hope” in the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC).
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde echoed Ramaphosa, saying: “Yes, Covid-19 is going to be a marathon.”But the president also called the Covid-19 crisis a “war”.
Ramaphosa said: “We are at war. A life-and-death war. Saving lives must remain the main issue. This is a war we must win,” he urged.
And he promised Winde a lack of funds would not be the obstacle towards ensuring enough testing kits, hospital beds, staff and budgets to pay for “all the tools” required to fight Covid-19.
Speaking of the need for more beds, Ramaphosa said: “We must always be ahead of the curve. We must never be found wanting. We must pull out all the stops.”
He added the Western Cape was being watched “extremely closely” as it led South Africa in Covid-19 cases by far.
The Constitutional Court on Friday denied Mmusi Maimane’s One South Africa movement direct access, on an urgent basis, to challenge government’s decision to reopen schools.
It ruled that it had considered the application, but had concluded that the applicant did “not make out a case for direct access”. It was dismissed, as it was “not in the interests of justice to hear it as this stage”.
The apex court decided not to award costs.
OSA spokesperson Dipolelo Moime said the movement was consulting its legal team to consider its options, and not ruling out approaching the high court to seek an order to suspend the reopening of schools for 60 days, during which government must provide, under direct supervision of a court, proof of the existence of a comprehensive readiness and implementation plan which must preced the opening of any grade.
“We shall not back down in fighting for schools to be safe for students, for teachers and for support staff,” he said.
“This particular department must be held to account at every step.”
He said the movement respected the Constitutional Court’s decision.
Staff protested outside Tygerberg Hospital in Cape Town on Friday morning, asking for it to be closed and disinfected.
Since April, four staff members have died at the Western Cape’s largest hospital after contracting Covid-19.
Nurses, some still in their scrubs, stood outside the facility with placards to protest their working conditions.
They said management was not supporting them after staff complained about personal protective equipment (PPE).
Thina Bombi, who has been a nurse for 13 years, told News24 she feared for her life.
“We don’t have proper PPE and we are being exposed to the virus. We are fearing for our lives because we can be like our colleagues that have passed away,” she said.
WATCH | ‘We are losing colleagues’: Tygerberg nurses protest for better working conditions
A day after lawyers wrote to the state attorney to raise concerns about “contradictory statements” the Minister of Defence made about an army investigation into Collins Khosa’s death, her ministry has admitted that she got it wrong.
In a statement released on Friday, the ministry said that when the minister, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, told Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Defence that, in her opinion, there was no finalised report, she did so because she understood “that the investigation had been referred back by the chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and might be reopened for further investigation”.
“This understanding has turned out not to be correct as the SANDF will not be reopening the board of inquiry for further investigations.
“The minister regrets any confusion that might have been caused by her address to the Joint Standing Committee on Defence and by the subsequent public reporting of her address to the Joint Standing Committee,” read the statement.
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE REST OF THE WORLD
Cases update:
For the latest global data, follow this interactive map from Johns Hopkins University & Medicine.
Late on Friday night, positive cases worldwide were more than 6.71 million, while deaths were close to 394 000.
The United States had the most cases in the world – more than 1.89 million, as well as the most deaths – closing in on 109 000.
READ MORE | All the confirmed cases worldwide
Latest news:
More than four months after identifying its first coronavirus case, Taiwan has reported less than 450 infections. Only seven people of the country’s 24 million have died.
Part of that success in fighting the virus was Taiwan’s quick response: The state began to monitor incoming travelers from Wuhan for signs of respiratory illness on December 30, after Chinese ophthalmologist Li Wenliang warned fellow doctors about a possible outbreak resembling SARS. Then in January, Taiwanese officials began isolating every infected patient and tracing their contacts.
But a second key element of Taiwan’s strategy was communicating with citizens through humorous stunts and digital campaigns. The state hired comedians to help craft viral memes, adopted animal mascots to inform the public about important safety information, and even used teddy bears to encourage social distancing at restaurants.
Audrey Tang, Taiwan’s digital minister, said at the TED 2020 conference that her mantra is “humour over rumour.” So Tang developed a strategy for delivering information about the virus in a fast, fair, and fun manner.
LATEST HEALTH NEWS
As fabric masks are now mandatory when you exercise outside, buy groceries or work outside your house, you might find that you are still struggling getting used to them.
Not only do those who wear glasses complain that their masks make their lenses fog up, or runners struggle to breathe with masks while out running, but there is another side-effect that a lot of us are starting to experience – skin woes.
Our skin is delicate and can suffer from breakouts or rashes if we don’t take good care of it. Add a fabric mask to the equation, and there are several reasons why our skins could suffer. Here are some of the most common reasons why your skin might be acting out as a result of wearing a mask.
According to Dr Ian Webster, a dermatologist from Cape Town, wearing a cloth mask occludes your skin, causing a build-up of moisture, mainly because of constant warm breath on your skin. The skin’s top layer (stratum corneum), when exposed to relentless moisture, may result in blocked pores, resulting in an acne breakout. The increased temperature or moisture can also cause rosacea, a red inflammatory rash, to flare up.
READ MORE | Covid-19: Masks and your skin – what you should know
When South Africa moved to lockdown level 3 on 1 June 2020, the exercise window was extended to 18:00, allowing more time to exercise outdoors.
Runners and walkers now have more time to enjoy the fresh air, but wearing a mask outside is still mandatory. Unfortunately, it can take a while to get used to this. You may notice that your breathing is more laboured than usual (and this is not only because you lost fitness during lockdown level 5) and that you struggle to reach your usual pace.
Your face might also feel hot and the mask or buff might become damp during your run, leading to discomfort and even skin issues.
While the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection remains greater indoors, especially in an area without proper ventilation, keeping your distance from others and covering your mouth and nose while out running are still encouraged.
READ MORE | Running with a mask – what you should know, and how to choose the right one
HEALTH TIPS (as recommended by the NICD and WHO)
• Maintain physical distancing – stay at least one metre away from somebody who is coughing or sneezing
• Practise frequent hand-washing, especially after direct contact with ill people or their environment
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth, as your hands touch many surfaces and could potentially transfer the virus
• Practise respiratory hygiene – cover your mouth with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. Remember to dispose the tissue immediately after use.
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Coronavirus: Care home residents face steep hike in fees
Fee rises of more than £100 a week add “insult to injury” after the wave of infections, says Age UK.
Coronavirus: Fully reopening schools ‘could cause second wave’
Scientists are concerned the test-and-trace system is not effective enough to prevent this.
Terahertz radiation can disrupt proteins in living cells
Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics, Tohoku University, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology, Kyoto University, and Osaka University have discovered that terahertz radiation, contradicting conventional belief, can disrupt proteins in living cells without killing the cells. This finding implies that terahertz radiation, which was long considered impractical to use, may have applications in manipulating cell functions for the treatment of cancer, for example, but also that there may be safety issues to consider.
Terahertz radiation is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum between microwaves and infrared light, which is often known as the “terahertz gap” because of the lack so far of technology to manipulate it efficiently. Because terahertz radiation is stopped by liquids and is non-ionizing — meaning that it does not damage DNA in the way that x-rays do — work is ongoing to put it to use in areas such as airport baggage inspections. It has generally been considered to be safe for use in tissues, though some recent studies have found that it may have some direct effect on DNA, though it has little ability to actually penetrate into tissues, meaning that this effect would only be on surface skin cells.
One issue that has remained unexplored, however, is whether terahertz radiation can affect biological tissues even after it has been stopped, through the propagation of energy waves into the tissue. The research group from RAP and the National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology recently discovered that the energy from the light cold enter into water as a “shockwave.” Considering this, the group decided to investigate whether terahertz light could also have an effect like this on tissue.
They chose to investigate using a protein called actin, which is a key element that provides structure to living cells. It can exist in two conformations, known as (G)-actin and (F)-actin, which have different structures and functions, as the (F)-actin is a long filament made up of polymer chains of proteins. Using fluorescence microscopy, they looked at the effect of terahertz radiation on the growth of chains in an aqueous solution of actin, and found that it led to a decrease in filaments. In other words, the terahertz light was somehow preventing the (G)-actin from forming chains and becoming (F)-actin. They considered the possibility that it was caused by a rise in temperature, but found that the small rise, of around 1.4 degrees Celsius, was not sufficient to explain the change, and concluded that it was most likely caused by a shockwave. To further test the hypothesis, they performed experiments in living cells, and found that in the cells as in the solution, the formation of actin filaments was disrupted. However, there was no sign that the radiation caused cells to die.
According to Shota Yamazaki, the first author of the study, published in Scientific Reports, “It was quite interesting for us to see that terahertz radiation can have an effect on proteins inside cells without killing them cells themselves. We will be interested in looking for potential applications in cancer and other diseases. He continues, “Terahertz radiation is coming into a variety of applications today, and it is important to come to a full understanding of its effect on biological tissues, both to gauge any risks and to look for potential applications.”
New identification of genetic basis of COVID-19 susceptibility will aid treatment
The clinical presentation of Covid-19 varies from patient to patient and understanding individual genetic susceptibility to the disease is therefore vital to prognosis, prevention, and the development of new treatments. For the first time, Italian scientists have been able to identify the genetic and molecular basis of this susceptibility to infection as well as to the possibility of contracting a more severe form of the disease. The research will be presented to the 53rd annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics, being held entirely on-line due to the Covid-19 pandemic, today [Saturday].
Professor Alessandra Renieri, Director of the Medical Genetics Unit at the University Hospital of Siena, Italy, will describe her team’s GEN-COVID project to collect genomic samples from Covid patients across the whole of Italy in order to try to identify the genetic bases of the high level of clinical variability they showed. Using whole exome sequencing (WES) to study the first data from 130 Covid patients from Siena and other Tuscan institutions, they were able to uncover a number of common susceptibility genes that were linked to a favourable or unfavourable outcome of infection. “We believe that variations in these genes may determine disease progression,” says Prof Renieri. “To our knowledge, this is the first report on the results of WES in Covid-19.”
Searching for common genes in affected patients against a control group did not give statistically significant results with the exception of a few genes. So the researchers decided to treat each patient as an independent case, following the example of autism spectrum disorder. “In this way we were able to identify for each patient an average of three pathogenic (disease-causing) mutations involved in susceptibility to Covid infection,” says Prof Renieri. “This result was not unexpected, since we already knew from studies of twins that Covid-19 has a strong genetic basis.”
Although presentation of Covid is different in each individual, this does not rule out the possibility of the same treatment being effective in many cases. “The model we are proposing includes common genes and our results point to some of them. For example, ACE2 remains one of the major targets. All our Covid patients have an intact ACE2 protein, and the biological pathway involving this gene remains a major focus for drug development,” says Prof Renieri. ACE2 is an enzyme attached to the outer surface of several organs, including the lungs, that lowers blood pressure. It serves as an entry point for some coronaviruses, including Covid-19.
These results will have significant implications for health and healthcare policy. Understanding the genetic profile of patients may allow the repurposing of existing medicines for specific therapeutic approaches against Covid-19 as well as speeding the development of new antiviral drugs. Being able to identify patients susceptible to severe pneumonia and their responsiveness to specific drugs will allow rapid public health treatment interventions. And future research will be aided, too, by the development of a Covid Biobank accessible to academic and industry partners.
The researchers will now analyze a further 2000 samples from other Italian regions, specifically from 35 Italian Hospitals belonging to the GEN-COVID project.
“Our data, although preliminary, are promising, and now we plan to validate them in a wider population,” says Prof Renieri. “Going beyond our specific results, the outcome of our study underlines the need for a new method to fully assess the basis of one of the more complex genetic traits, with an environmental causation (the virus), but a high rate of heritability. We need to develop new mathematical models using artificial intelligence in order to be able to understand the complexity of this trait, which is derived from a combination of common and rare genetic factors.
“We have developed this approach in collaboration with the Siena Artificial Intelligence Lab, and now intend to compare it with classical genome-wide association studies in the context of the Covid-19 Host Genetics Initiative, which brings together the human genetics community to generate, share, and analyse data to learn the genetic determinants of COVID-19 susceptibility, severity, and outcomes. As a research community, we need to do everything we can to help public health interventions move forward at this time.”
Chair of the ESHG conference, Professor Joris Veltman, Dean of the Biosciences Institute at Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, said: “We are very excited to have this work on the genetics of COVID19 susceptibility presented as one of our late-breaking abstract talks at the ESHG. Our Italian colleagues present the first insight into the role of genetic susceptibility influencing the severity of the response to a COVID19 infection. It needs to be expanded to encompass much larger populations, but it is impressive to see the speed at which research on this virus has proceeded in just a few months’ time.”
Eclipse data illuminate mysteries of Sun’s corona
Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi Institute for Astronomy (IfA) have been hard at work studying the solar corona, the outermost atmosphere of the sun that expands into interplanetary space. The properties of the solar corona are a consequence of the Sun’s complex magnetic field, which is produced in the solar interior and extends outward into space.
IfA graduate student Benjamin Boe conducted a new study that used total solar eclipse observations to measure the shape of the coronal magnetic field with higher spatial resolution and over a larger area than ever before. The results were published in the Astrophysical Journal on June 3.
The corona is most easily seen during a total solar eclipse — when the moon is directly between the Earth and Sun, blocking sunlight. Significant technological advances in recent decades have shifted a majority of analysis to space-based observations at wavelengths of light not accessible from the ground, or to large ground-based telescopes such as the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope on Maui. Despite these advances, some aspects of the corona can only be studied during total solar eclipses.
Boe was advised by UH Mānoa Astronomy Professor Shadia Habbal, a coronal research expert. Habbal has led a group of eclipse chasers, the Solar Wind Sherpas making scientific observations during solar eclipses for more than 20 years. These observations have led to breakthroughs in unveiling some of the secrets of the physical processes defining the corona.
“The corona has been observed with total solar eclipses for well over a century, but never before had eclipse images been used to quantify its magnetic field structure,” explained Boe. “I knew it would be possible to extract a lot more information by applying modern image processing techniques to solar eclipse data.”
Boe traced the pattern of the distribution of magnetic field lines in the corona, using an automatic tracing method applied to images of the corona taken during 14 eclipses the past two decades. This data provided the chance to study changes in the corona over two 11-year magnetic cycles of the Sun.
Boe found that there were very fine-scale structures throughout the corona. Higher resolution images showed smaller-scale structures, implying that the corona is even more structured than what was previously reported. To quantify these changes, Boe measured the magnetic field angle relative to the Sun’s surface.
During periods of minimum solar activity, the corona’s field emanated almost straight out of the Sun near the equator and poles, while it came out at a variety of angles at mid-latitudes. During periods of maximum, the coronal magnetic field was far less organized and more radial.
“We knew there would be changes over the solar cycle but we never expected how extended and structured the coronal field would be,” Boe explained. “Future models will have to explain these features in order to fully understand the coronal magnetic field.”
These results challenge the current assumptions used in coronal modeling, which often assume that the coronal magnetic field is radial beyond 2.5 solar radii. Instead, this work found that the coronal field was often non-radial to at least 4 solar radii.
This work has further implications in other areas of solar research — including the formation of the solar wind, which impacts the Earth’s magnetic field and can have effects on the ground, such as power outages.
“These results are of particular interest for solar wind formation. It indicates that the leading ideas for how to model the formation of the solar wind are not complete, and so our ability to predict and defend against space weather can be improved,” Boe said.
Boe is already planning to be part of his team’s next eclipse expeditions. The next one is slated for South America in December 2020.
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