Covid the *** and the final stage.

[Chippy_Tea]

A vaccine to tackle the coronavirus variants could be ready to deploy by the autumn, the team behind the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine says.

Prof Andy Pollard, from Oxford University, said tweaking a vaccine was a relatively quick process and would only need small trials before roll-out.

It comes as the UK announced more than 10 million people had received a ***.

There is still strong evidence existing vaccines work well against the mutations that have emerged.

Although their overall effectiveness may be weakened a little.

Full article - Covid: New Oxford vaccine 'ready by the autumn' to tackle mutations

 

[An Ankoù]

As if Covid were not bad enough, it now seems we've got the national clap to contend with!
God preserve us.

 

[soupdragon]

Well that's my first dose done. Up to now the only thing I've noticed is a slight warmth at the injection site. It's listed as one of the most common things, more than 1 in 10.
Didn't really get a straight answer to why I got mine so early. They did say however that the centre is way ahead of their vaccination target. I've got an INR appointment at my GP next week so I'll see if I can get an answer out of them.
Oh and I didn't feel anything more than a slight pressure on my arm.

Cheers. Tom

 

[Chippy_Tea]

As if Covid were not bad enough, it now seems we've got the national clap to contend with!
God preserve us.

I remember the days when the clap was rife but i wouldn't say it was national
(i must add i never had it)

 

[An Ankoù]

I remember the days when the clap was rife but i wouldn't say it was national (i must add i never had it)

At the age of 15 or 16, I recall, it was something to boast about, whether you had it or not. It's a funny old world.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

 

[Northern_Brewer]

That's what they are reporting

Source? Because from what I'm seeing from virologists, they are cautiously hopeful - but no more than that - that it'll be a bit more durable than that and we probably won't be doing yearly jabs like the flu. It's early days, but most of the reasons why we might need an *** don't seem to apply - the jabs seem to provide long-term protection as far as we can tell, SARS2 doesn't seem to mutate particularly quickly (although the more infections, the more chance for it to mutate, but it's nothing like eg HIV) and the "mutation space" seems quite limited, people seem encouraged that what we're seeing is all the mutants heading down roughly the same path in different countries and that path doesn't seem to break the vaccines too much.

As I say - it's early days, but there are some grounds for optimism. We know it will mutate, but once it's settled down it may be more like eg the tetanus ***, we just need a booster every few years rather than every year.

In other news :
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00277-8A year into the pandemic, the evidence is now clear. The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted predominantly through the air — by people talking and breathing out large droplets and small particles called aerosols. Catching the virus from surfaces — although plausible — seems to be rare

UK vaccination programme continues to do well - at 10 million and 15% of the population we lag only Israel (now close to 60% vaccinated), the UAE and Seychelles (about 30%). According to a "government source" quoted in the Times, "There’s no secret plan to vaccinate everyone by the end of May, but it’s fair to say that summer isn’t seen internally as wildly overoptimistic. " which people have been interpreting as geting everyone done by the end of August.

 

[Druncan]

Have any members had the vaccine, which one did you have and how did it go?

Had the Oxford vaccine last Fri. Partner had hers the day before ( carer worker) She had mild flu, I had a bit of ache and nothing else. No problem! Had a lot of expert opinion on me doing this and all positive. So IMHO go for it if you get the chance!

 

[Northern_Brewer]

A good infographic from the Times showing how outcomes vary with age - and why there's such a push to get the over 70s and then down to the over 50s jabbed ASAP.

 

[soupdragon]

Well that's my first dose done. Up to now the only thing I've noticed is a slight warmth at the injection site. It's listed as one of the most common things, more than 1 in 10.
Didn't really get a straight answer to why I got mine so early. They did say however that the centre is way ahead of their vaccination target. I've got an INR appointment at my GP next week so I'll see if I can get an answer out of them.
Oh and I didn't feel anything more than a slight pressure on my arm.

Cheers. Tom

I don't sleep like a log as I used to but that was a rubbish night's sleep.
Woke up with the chills around 1.30, brain took half a second to tell me though. Took me till about 5.30 before I managed to get a better sleep. Chills went after a paracetamol.
Been decorating during the week and my general aches and pains were heightened too.
Got a headache, 6 out of 10 I'd say. That's not shifted yet. Got a general feeling of being worn out but that has started to ease.

Am I glad I've had the ***? Too right, I just hope the 2nd one isn't as bad

Cheers. Tom

 

[Hop_it]

I don't sleep like a log as I used to but that was a rubbish night's sleep.
Woke up with the chills around 1.30, brain took half a second to tell me though. Took me till about 5.30 before I managed to get a better sleep. Chills went after a paracetamol.
Been decorating during the week and my general aches and pains were heightened too.
Got a headache, 6 out of 10 I'd say. That's not shifted yet. Got a general feeling of being worn out but that has started to ease.

Am I glad I've had the ***? Too right, I just hope the 2nd one isn't as bad

Cheers. Tom

I told myself that despite feeling grotty for a couple of days after my first *** on Saturday that it's worth putting up with the (relatively) short term discomfort for the long term gain. Fortunately I'm healthy, but I'm also >70, so based on best data to date, such as N-B's chart above, the odds are still not good for us ol' farts. Therefore I'm prepared to do whatever it takes.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

The UK's rapid Covid-19 vaccination programme will help the economy bounce back strongly this year, according to the Bank of England.
The economy is expected to shrink 4.2% in the first three months of 2021, amid tighter lockdown restrictions to slow the spread of the virus.
But policymakers expect a rebound this spring as consumer confidence returns.
The Bank also told High Street lenders to prepare for negative interest rates, even as it ruled out an imminent move.

What does this mean for households?
The UK economy is expected to "recover rapidly" in 2021, with a successful vaccination programme supporting a "material recovery in household spending".
Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, described the vaccine rollout as "excellent news" that would speed up a return to normal life.
"We do think that that is going to support a sustained recovery throughout the rest of the year," he said.

Full article - Bank of England: Economy to rebound strongly due to vaccine

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Some data on side-effects from the Pfizer vaccine - just over a third get some local side-effects and one in 7 get whole-body effects, you're a bit more likely to get side-effects from the second *** and having already had Covid doubles the likelihood of having side-effects (boo!).
https://covid.joinzoe.com/post/covid-vaccine-pfizer-effects

 

[Chippy_Tea]

 

[Chippy_Tea]

The UK can meet the target of vaccinating all over-50s by May, the chairman of the vaccines taskforce has said, adding he is "very optimistic".

Dr Clive Dix told the BBC the taskforce has met every target set.

The UK would be "ahead of the game" in terms of anticipating variants of coronavirus and was making "libraries of future vaccines", he said.

He added that the UK would not hoard supplies but would distribute them globally, once the UK target is met.

Downing Street has said everyone in the UK aged 50 and over should have been offered a coronavirus vaccine by May.

Previously, ministers had said it was their "ambition" to vaccinate the first nine priority groups by the spring.

As of Thursday, the UK had given a first *** to nearly 11 million people and is aiming to reach 15 million vaccinations by 15 February.

• Oxford-AZ vaccine 'effective against Kent variant'
• How worrying are the new coronavirus variants?
• Coronavirus variants: The science explained

Dr Dix told the BBC's Today programme: "We will work day and night to ensure we meet whatever the target that's feasible can be met.

"So I'm very optimistic that we will meet the May target."

Questions have been raised around the efficacy of vaccines against variants of the virus - including the one first identified in Kent.

On Friday, Oxford-AstraZeneca said its vaccine gave people good protection against the UK variant.

Variants in South Africa and Brazil have also been identified.

• How many people have been vaccinated so far?
• Will the vaccine work on new variants? And other questions

Dr Dix said the UK was "at the forefront of surveying" the variants, allowing scientists to "second-guess" mutations that have not yet occurred.

They can then make vaccines for those variants, he told the programme.

"We'll make libraries of future vaccines, just small amounts, enough to then, if it does occur, do a quick clinical study to see that it works and then start manufacturing it," he said.


Full article - Coronavirus: Vaccine chief 'optimistic' about over-50s May target

 

[Chippy_Tea]

 

[dad_of_jon]

Lower than the first wave and the lowest since mid September. young kids due to go back in a few weeks. non social distancing parents at the gates waiting for kids to come out will help bump this figure back up. We've all seen people incapable of wearing their masks correctly. Most of the school gates around my area lead onto a narrow pavement there's going to be lots of crowding on the pavement and people catching up

 

[Chippy_Tea]

@dad_of_jon all we can hope is they carry on vaccinating at the rate they are or increase it and eventually the figures should drop like a stone.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

The Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid *** gives limited protection against mild disease caused by the South Africa variant, the firm said early trials had suggested.

It also said it had not yet fully determined whether the vaccine protects against severe disease caused by the more transmissible coronavirus variant.

Annual vaccines or a booster in the autumn could be required to combat variants, the vaccine minister said.

More than 100 cases of the South Africa variant have been found in the UK.

The preliminary findings from a small study of more than 2,000 people have not yet been peer-reviewed.

First reported by the Financial Times, the study suggest the vaccine offers limited protection against mild and moderate disease caused by the variant.

The study is due to be published on Monday.

Full article - Covid: Oxford *** protection against South Africa variant 'limited'

 

[soupdragon]

I wonder if all the party animals/covid deniers who have generally not given a toss about the possibility of spreading the virus by their actions will get the *** when offered?
Cheers. Tom