Category Archives: Corona Virus

A study suggests people who catch covid-19 at least twice have double the risk of dying from any cause and are three times as likely to be hospitalised in the next six months, compared with people who test positive just once

By Michael Le Page

A person waits at a drive-in covid-19 PCR test site in Miami, Florida, in May

Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

You have been vaccinated and recently had covid-19, so you dont have to worry about catching it again, right? Wrong. A large study suggests that every time a person is reinfected, they have additional health risks, both during their immediate illness and in the months afterwards.

Every reinfection is like rolling the dice again, says Ziyad Al-Aly at VA St. Louis Health Care System in Missouri. A second infection is still bad for you.

These findings

Excerpt from:

Covid-19: What are the risks of catching the virus multiple times? - New Scientist

AUSTIN (KXAN) COVID-19 metrics, including hospitalizations, are starting to trend upward again in Austin-Travis County. The local health authority attributed the uptick to the BA.4 and BA.5 offshoots of the omicron variant in a Travis County commissioners court meeting Tuesday.

Those mutations are starting to show up in both wastewater and in variant surveillance locally, according to the health authoritys report. They could be more severe than previous mutations.

With each mutation, it [COVID-19} is becoming adept at evading our immune systems defenses and that is why these two particular variants are starting to become more predominant. Dr. Desmar Walkes said.

As of Monday, Walkes reported there are nearly 100 people in area hospitals with COVID-19, 18 of those people are in intensive care units. Roughly half of the people hospitalized are there primarily for COVID-19.

More people that are requiring oxygen and starting to require life support, Walkes said, noting that research done on BA.4 and BA.5 shows the mutations may impact lung tissue more than previous mutations. She also said for people who had COVID-19 during the winter omicron surge, reinfection with BA.4 and BA.5 could be more severe.

With each subsequent infection, there is an increase in the impact, Walkes said. Reinfection is not benign.

Travis County is presently in the medium level of risk based on the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions risk tracker. Under that level, APH is recommending people at high risk, and people who live with someone who is high risk, wear a mask in public.

For people who had COVID-19 during the original omicron surge, immunity is likely waning. The UT COVID-19 Modeling Consortium talked about that when case numbers started to trend upwards earlier this month.

Its been four or five months after the first omicron wave, where we had so many infections, and so we expect that there will be many people losing immunity at a rapid speed, said Anass Bouchnita, a postdoctoral fellow with the consortium.

People who previously had COVID-19 may also be at greater risk of getting seriously sick if they do catch COVID-19 again, Walkes explained. Staying up-to-date on vaccinations are still the best protection against the virus, she said.

We are still seeing good coverage and protection that is offered to people who are vaccinated from severe illness, hospitalization and death. We are still recommending vaccinations and boosters for those who are eligible, Walkes said.

Continued here:

COVID-19 mutations spreading in Austin-Travis County, reinfections may be more severe - KXAN.com

Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious disease physician at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the original vaccines against the COVID-19 virus did a terrific job keeping people out of the hospital and preventing death, but he said moving forward better vaccines need to be developed.

The current vaccines offer only mild benefit, in terms of infection, against those new variants, said Poland. So, the idea is, and both Moderna and Pfizer both plan no doing this, to devise vaccines that cover the Omicron variant.

Poland told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the goal is to possibly have an updated COVID vaccine by early fall by using part of the original vaccine and the vaccine that was used during the Omicron surge.

But, Poland said the ultimate goal is to develop a so-called Pan-Corona Vaccine which would offer better protection against all of the variants that have emerged with the virus.

The idea that we, and others are working on, is a Pan-Corona virus vaccine. Or, if you will, a universal Corona virus vaccine, said Poland. Thats still a ways off, but thats the goal.

Dr. Peter Bornstein, with St. Paul Infectious Disease Associates, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he agrees with the push by the Food and Drug Administration to come up with a more effective vaccine.

We definitely need better vaccines. How much the virus itself will keep mutating, and have immunological escape from the vaccines, we just dont know yet, said Bornstein.

The FDA met Tuesday to discuss the future of new COVID vaccines, but did not yet offer any recommendations.

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'Better vaccines' needed to cover COVID variants, infectious disease experts say - KSTP

The Omicron BA.2.12.1 subvariant is now the dominant COVID-19 variant in the US, responsible for 58% of recorded new coronavirus cases in the last week alone. "I'm in Connecticut, and it's like 80% of all sequences that we see right now," says Anne Hahn, PhD., postdoctoral researcher at the Yale School of Public Health. Here are the five most dangerous spots to catch COVID-19, according to experts. Read on to find out moreand to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss Already Had COVID? These Symptoms May "Never Go Away".

Indoor gatherings such as weddings and parties are still dangerous, warns the World Health Organization. "In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is no 'zero risk' when it comes to any kind of gathering especially events that bring groups of people together," says the WHO. "Regardless of the size of the event, you are at risk from COVID-19 whenever you get together with people. The virus that causes COVID-19 spreads easily indoors, especially in poorly ventilated settings."

Planning a family cruise this summer? The CDC has lifted its warning on cruise ship travel, but virus experts are still recommending caution. "This means to prepare for the cruise, all four of you should be fully vaccinated and boosted," says Jessica Justman, infectious diseases specialist and epidemiologist at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, who recommends travelers make sure their ship has opted into the CDC's Covid-19 Program for Cruise Ships. "I suggest completing all booster doses a few weeks, and at least one week, before the trip starts. I would also be interested in how many inpatient beds and medical personnel are on the cruise and compare that to the number of passengers. One might confirm that the cruise follows guidelines such as the cruise ship health care guidelines from the American College of Emergency Physicians."

Buffets are risky due to close contact with both customers and staff. "While common utensils theoretically could lead to transmission of COVID from hand to spoon to hand, we actually don't have any good examples in clusters of COVID illnesses that surfaces really matter as much as people all standing close to each other does," says Benjamin Chapman, Ph.D., professor and food safety specialist in the department of Agricultural and Human Sciences at North Carolina State University. "Managing social distancing and line-ups is really the hardest part. Or in situations where staff will serve patrons from a buffet, the staff and patron interaction is the riskiest part."6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Indoor gyms are still highly problematic in terms of catching the virus, experts warn. "If you're not willing to get COVID don't go," says Dr. Michael Klompas, a hospital epidemiologist and infectious disease physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital. "At a time like now, when there's a lot of COVID around, it is a high risk proposition."

Social distancing is practically impossible in airports, with people standing next to each other in check in and security lines and sitting close together on planes. "Avoid common-touch surfaces, hand hygiene wherever possible, masks, distancing, controlled-boarding procedures, try to avoid face-to-face contact with other customers, try to avoid being unmasked in flight, for meal and drink services, apart from when really necessary," says David Powell, physician and medical adviser to the International Air Transport Association. "The greatest protection you can give yourself is to be vaccinated and boosted."

Follow the public health fundamentals and help end this pandemic, no matter where you liveget vaccinated or boosted ASAP; if you live in an area with low vaccination rates, wear an N95 face mask, don't travel, social distance, avoid large crowds, don't go indoors with people you're not sheltering with (especially in bars), practice good hand hygiene, and to protect your life and the lives of others, don't visit any of these 35 Places You're Most Likely to Catch COVID.

Ferozan Mast

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The 5 Most Dangerous Spots You Can Catch Coronavirus Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That

AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) COVID-19 cases are rising across the Amarillo area, Texas, and the nation.

The city of Amarillo is seeing more than 800 more active cases than we had this time last month.

Dr. Rodney Young, Regional Chair of Family & Community Medicine at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center said what is causing the rise in new cases is a new subvariant.

It started with the Omicron, then with the BA.2 and now there is a subvariant of BA.2, said Dr. Young.

He said cases are likely to continue to rise as July 4th draws near and families gather.

When you have occasions to gather, that is the way it spreads very easily person to person, said Dr. Young.

Dr. Young added as cases do continue to rise, an upside is that they have not seen a rise in hospitalization the way they did in the earlier stages of the pandemic.

He said patients with the subvariant are not presenting with severe COVID-19 symptoms, some are presenting with a little cough, runny nose, and watery eyes.

A number of the cases that we are diagnosing now that werent COVID a few weeks ago, tend to be folks they are feeling like they are having flares in allergy symptoms or cold type symptoms, said Dr. Young.

Dr. Young said that those who are vaccinated and who get subvariant COVID illnesses are less likely to get less severe forms of the illness or experience long covid.

Dr. Young added the virus is here to stay and it will always be a part of the disease landscape to some extent and added what the medical community hopes to happen is that it moves from a pandemic to an endemic.

Some years or some times are worse than others, but hopefully there is enough immunity around and enough measures that we can take to help mitigate the spread within a community, said Dr. Young.

Dr. Young said he doesnt have an exact answer to when that could happen, but he said its possible we could be seeing the early stages of that now.

Dr. Young reiterates that the best way to keep yourself protected from these rising cases is social distancing, good hygiene practices, and getting boosted if you havent done so already.

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Coronavirus cases on the rise once again - KAMR - MyHighPlains.com

COVINGTON, Ky.Just months ago, the parking lot at Gravity Diagnostics in Covington was filled as people waited hours to get tested for COVID-19. Now, the site is shutting down as fewer people look for in-person tests.

Kelly Theurer stopped by the site one day before closing to get tested and say goodbye.

"I'm terribly sad," Theurer said. "I've been coming here since they set up shop in this parking lot. I travel a lot for work ... and it's literally the only place in the Tri-State where I can come, drive-thru, get a quick test and get the results back really fast."

Jeff Wellens, director of field services for Gravity Diagnostics, said they are closing because their partnership with the city is ending and the number of people getting tested continues to decrease.

"Last January, we were hitting about 2,000 a day and that was sustained for a good number of weeks after the holiday and at the present time we are just under about 10% of that now about 200 tests a day between the site here and the Florence Mall," Wellens said.

Ashley Auciello with the Health Collaborative said the overall number of tests in the Tri-State has dropped. Dr. Stephen Feagins, medical director for Hamilton County Public Health, said that doesn't mean the positivity rate is lower than before.

"Right now, it feels like things are kind of normal, but yet the positive rate for Southwest Ohio was like 1.6% this week last year, and it's almost 12% this week this year," Feagins said.

Feagins said that number is partly because testing is less frequent, but noted COVID has not become endemic.

"Endemic really isn't that term because endemic really means that you can predict when the flu season is going to start, you know kinda what's it going to be like, you know when you need to vaccinate for the flu each year," Feagins said. "You're not sure about that with COVID yet."

Theurer said she isn't sure where she'll go to get tested in the future. Aucielle recommended visiting TestAndProtectCincy.com to find COVID testing locations.

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Gravity Diagnostics closes COVID-19 testing sites as fewer in the Tri-State get tested - WCPO 9 Cincinnati

In the last two years, COVID-19 has followed a predictable, if painful, pattern: When coronavirus transmission has rebounded, California has been flooded with new cases and hospitals have strained under a deluge of seriously ill patients, a distressing number of whom die.

But in a world awash in vaccines and treatments, and with healthcare providers armed with knowledge gleaned over the course of the pandemic, the latest wave isnt sticking to that script.

Despite wide circulation of the coronavirus the latest peak is the third-highest of the pandemic the impact on hospitals has been relatively minor. Even with the uptick in transmission, COVID-19 deaths have remained fairly low and stable.

And this has occurred even with officials largely eschewing new restrictions and mandates.

In some ways, thats what is supposed to happen: As health experts get better at identifying the coronavirus, vaccinating against it and treating the symptoms, new surges in cases shouldnt lead to excessive jumps in serious illnesses.

But todays environment is not necessarily tomorrows baseline. The coronavirus can mutate rapidly, potentially upending the public health landscape and meriting a different response.

The one thing that is predictable about COVID, in my mind, is that its unpredictable, said UCLA epidemiologist Dr. Robert Kim-Farley.

While its too soon to say for certain, there are signs the current wave is starting to recede. Over the weeklong period ending Thursday, California reported an average of just over 13,400 new cases per day down from the latest spikes high point of nearly 16,700 daily cases, according to data compiled by The Times.

By comparison, last summers Delta surge topped out at almost 14,400 new cases per day, on average.

And more than 8,300 coronavirus-positive patients were hospitalized statewide on some days at the height of Delta almost three times as many as during the most recent wave.

The difference in each surges impact on intensive care units has been even starker. During Delta, there were days with more than 2,000 coronavirus-positive patients in ICUs statewide. In the latest wave, however, that daily census has so far topped out at around 300.

That gap in hospitalizations illustrates how the pandemic has changed.

At the very beginning of the pandemic, we noted right away the game-changers were going to be vaccines, easy access to testing and therapeutics and now we have all those things, said Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

It doesnt say the pandemics over. Thats not what weve accomplished, she stressed. What weve accomplished is weve reduced the risk, but we havent eliminated the risk.

And though hospitalizations have been lower, in the aggregate, during the latest wave, Ferrer noted that each infection still carries its own dangers not just severe illness, but the chance of long COVID, as well. Taking individual action to protect yourself, she said, carries the added benefit of helping safeguard those around you, including those at higher risk of serious symptoms or who work jobs that regularly bring them into contact with lots of people.

For me, it makes clear that layering in some protection is still the way to go while enjoying just about everything you want to enjoy, she said.

Californias most restrictive efforts to rein in the coronavirus ended almost exactly a year ago, when the state celebrated its economic reopening by scrapping virtually all restrictions that had long provided the backbone of its pandemic response.

Roughly a month later, with the then-novel Delta variant on the rampage, some parts of the state reinstituted mask mandates in hopes of blunting transmission.

Toward the end of the year, another new foe would arise: the Omicron variant. This highly transmissible strain brought unprecedented viral spread, sending case counts and hospitalizations soaring and prompting officials to reissue a statewide mask mandate for indoor public spaces.

The fury with which those two surges struck left some fearing, and others advocating for, the return of the stringent orders that restricted peoples movements and shut down broad swaths of the economy. However, both waves came and went without California officials resorting to that option.

And during this latest wave fueled by an alphanumeric soup of Omicron subvariants, including BA.2 and BA.2.12.1 such aggressive action seems off the table.

I think, deep in my heart, unless we see a new variant that evades our current vaccine protection, we are not going to need to go back to the more drastic tools we had to use early on the pandemic when we didnt have vaccines, when we didnt have access to testing, when we didnt have therapeutics, Ferrer said in an interview.

During both Delta and the initial Omicron surge, California carefully evaluated the unique characteristics of each variant to determine how to best handle the changes in the behavior of the virus, and used the lessons of the last two years to approach mitigation and adaptation measures through effective and timely strategies, according to the state Department of Public Health.

These lessons and experiences informed our approach to manage each surge and variant. In addition, there were more tools available for disease control during each subsequent surge, including the Delta and Omicron surges, the department wrote in response to an inquiry from The Times. So, rather than using the same mitigation strategies that had been used previously, CDPH focused on vaccines, masks, tests, quarantine, improving ventilation and new therapeutics.

The state has also eschewed its previous practice of setting specific thresholds to tighten or loosen restrictions in favor of what it calls the SMARTER plan which focuses on preparedness and applying lessons learned to better armor California against future surges or new variants.

Each surge and each variant brings with it unique characteristics relative to our neighborhoods and communities specific conditions, the Department of Public Health said in its statement to The Times.

Chief among those, the department added, are getting vaccinated and boosted when eligible and properly wearing high-quality face masks when warranted.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends public indoor masking in counties that have a high COVID-19 community level, the worst on the agencys three-tier scale. That category indicates not only significant community transmission but also that hospital systems may grow strained by coronavirus-positive patients.

We certainly are not at a level at these numbers where you would say, OK, its now, quote, endemic, and we just go about business as usual, Kim-Farley said. I think, though, it is probably indicative of what we might see in the future going forward, that we will see low levels in the community, people can relax and let their guard down a bit. But there will then be other times when we might see surges coming in. ... Thats a time when we mask up again. So I think there may be some on and off a little bit, and hopefully these surges become fewer, more spread out and less intense as we go forward.

As of Thursday, 19 California counties were in the high community level Alameda, Butte, Contra Costa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Fresno, Kings, Lake, Madera, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Placer, Sacramento, San Benito, Santa Clara, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo. However, only Alameda County has reinstituted a public indoor mask mandate.

Ferrer has said Los Angeles County would do the same should it fall in the high COVID-19 community level for two consecutive weeks.

L.A. County, like the state as a whole, continues to strongly recommend residents wear masks indoors in public. But Ferrer acknowledged its a very tough needle to thread and said an unintended consequence of years of health orders might be that people dont grasp the urgency of a recommendation.

People are now assuming if we dont issue orders and require safety measures then its because its not essential, and thats not what we meant, she said. We have always benefited from having folks that are able to listen, ask questions and then, for the most part, align with the safety measures. And I think because its been such a long duration, because theres so much fatigue at this point and desperation in some senses to get back to customary practices, people are waiting for that order before they go ahead and take that sensible precaution.

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This new California coronavirus wave isn't sticking to the script: Big spread, less illness - Los Angeles Times

With recent UK data suggesting that the BA.4 and BA.5 Covid variants are kicking off a new wave of infections, experts answer the key questions about reinfection and prevention.

Though rare at the start of the pandemic, reinfections have become increasingly common as the months and years wear on particularly since the arrival of Omicron, which prompted a 15-fold increase in the rate of reinfections, data from the Office for National Statistics suggests.

In part, this is because of a decline in protective antibodies triggered by infection and/or vaccination over time, but the virus has also evolved to evade some of these immune defences, making reinfection more likely.

The original Omicron BA.1 variant was itself massively immune-evasive, causing a huge breakthrough caseload, even in the vaccinated, said Danny Altmann, a professor of immunology at Imperial College London. It is also poorly immunogenic, which means that catching it offers little extra protection against catching it again. On top of that, theres now further evidence of the very marginal ability of prior Omicron to prime any immune memory for BA.4 or 5, the sub-variants that seem to be driving the latest wave of infections.

The virus has also evolved to become more transmissible, meaning even fleeting exposure to an infected person means you may inhale enough viral particles to become infected yourself.

There are definitely a lot of people who got Covid at the start of the year who are getting it again, including some with BA.4/5 who had BA.1/2 just four months ago, who thought they would be protected, said Prof Tim Spector, who leads the Zoe Health Study (formerly known as the Zoe Covid Study).

We still dont have enough data to work out exactly when the susceptible periods [for reinfection] are, which is one reason why we need people to keep logging their symptoms. We do know its still quite rare within three months, and it used to also be rare within six months, but thats not the case any more.

According to unpublished data from Denmark, which looked at reinfections with the BA.2 Omicron sub-variant within 60 days of catching BA.1, such reinfections were most common among young, unvaccinated people with mild disease. Other studies have similarly suggested that Covid-19 vaccination provides a substantial added layer of protection against reinfection by boosting peoples immune responses.

However, Omicron infection in itself appears to be a poor booster of immunity, meaning that if you were infected during earlier pandemic waves, your immune response is unlikely to have been strengthened by catching it again earlier this year.

In general, infections should be less severe the second, third or fourth time around, because people should have some residual immunity particularly if theyve also been vaccinated, which would further raise their levels of immune protection. However, there are always exceptions to this. Anecdotally, some people are getting it for longer this time around than they did the last time, Spector said.

It is also too early to know about the risk of long Covid associated with BA.4/5, he added.

As the UK heads into a period dominated by BA.4 and 5, the potential for reinfection seems high. Were in quite a serious situation due to a convergence of factors: a country where a moderately successful third booster campaign is now long past, with immunity waned and successive large waves of Omicron through to the emerging dominance of BA.4/5, said Altmann.

The bottom line is that we should all consider ourselves essentially unprotected, except perhaps from intensive care unit admission and death, and then, as before, with the risks increasing with age.

Face masks and ventilation continue to provide important additional layers of protection especially in crowded settings. I still wear a mask, but not a cheap mask I wear a proper FFP2 or 3 mask, said Spector. These new variants are still very much airborne and you need an even smaller amount to get infected, so I think a mask is definitely a good idea when as many as one in 30 people have it again.

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Covid reinfections in the UK: how likely are you to catch coronavirus again? - The Guardian

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS: Director of the Dutch RIVM (Center for Infectious Disease Control) Jaap van ... [+] Dissel. (Photo by Niels Wenstedt/BSR Agency/Getty Images)

The Dutch RIVM (Center for Infectious Disease Control - CDC counterpart in the Netherlands) is conducting a long-term study on long Covid. The agency released interim results on Tuesday, June 21st, which show that approximately 50% of patients enrolled in a large ongoing study still have one or more symptoms three months after becoming infected with the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In addition, among adults under the age of 65, researchers detected no difference between those who are vaccinated and unvaccinated in terms of most long Covid symptoms, except for sense of smell and taste. Vaccinated adults reported less loss of smell and taste than than those who were unvaccinated.

Long Covid is a hotly debated subject. In particular, some experts have worried about lack of clarity around long Covids characterization, and causal inferences which arent necessarily well established. And so, the key questions become, what exactly are long Covid symptoms, and how likely is it that a coronavirus infection caused them?

There isnt a firm consensus on long Covids precise definition, and causality is still being analyzed by clinical researchers. Yet, since fairly early in the pandemic, a broad set of symptoms we now refer to as long Covid the literature used to label sufferers as long-haulers has been very well documented. The Dutch RIVM, in particular, has meticulously collected data on long Covid, both to characterize the syndrome and attempt to figure out whats causing symptoms.

Its evident that many people who contract the coronavirus struggle for months with lingering Covid-19 symptoms which can be debilitating. Patients exhibit shortness of breath, extreme fatigue, intermittent fevers, cough, concentration issues, chest pressure, headaches, and heart palpitations, among other symptoms.

There is a very wide range in estimates of long Covid prevalence among those who recover from a symptomatic coronavirus infection. A University of California Davis study found that 10% of Covid-19 patients suffer from long Covid symptoms. In a CDC-sponsored study, it was estimated that around 20% of adults under 65 who recover from Covid-19 experience at least one health condition that could be considered long Covid. Here, CDC researchers identified persistent health problems in different organs of the body, including the heart, lungs, and kidneys. Yet another study suggested that 30% develop at least one long Covid symptom over time.

Fatigue, shortness of breath, brain fog, and loss of smell are particularly common long-term effects of Covid-19. This is apparent from the studies mentioned above, but also the interim results of the RIVM's study released on June 21st. For some, symptoms are relatively minor. For others, however, they can be disabling and life-altering.

The preliminary findings from the RIVM investigation refer to data gathered from May to December 2021. As such, they concern people who became infected with the Alpha or Delta variants of the coronavirus.

The results derive from a health survey questionnaire taken by a total of 14,572 participants. 9,166 people took the survey shortly after testing positive for SARS-CoV-2. The control group consisted of 5,406 people who tested negative for the coronavirus and applied to take part in the survey or were invited by letter from the general population. RIVM requested that all survey participants fill out questionnaires about their health at intervals of three months.

Around 33% of study participants who became infected with coronavirus still suffer from fatigue three months later. Persistent shortness of breath occurs in 16% of respondents, 15% have ongoing brain fog, and 12% have chronic loss of their normal sense of smell and taste for at least three months after their initial infection.

Whats striking is that these reported symptoms are 1.5 times more common among Covid-19 patients than among those who have had other (non Covid-19) respiratory infections.

The Dutch research also demonstrates that fully vaccinated people under 65 years of age who contracted coronavirus have fewer problems with smell and taste after three months. For other symptoms, however, no difference was found between vaccinated and unvaccinated people.

The RIVM will continue to follow up with study participants for at least one year. And, the agency will eventually include results from those who became infected with the Omicron variant.

The Dutch investigation not only shows that a large percentage of Covid-19 patients continue to have symptoms after recovery from the acute, initial coronavirus infection, but also suggests that the constellation of long Covid symptoms is much more common in these patients than in people in the general population, and in patients who experienced other (non Covid-19) respiratory infections.

While there continue to challenges regarding how to precisely define long Covid and how to determine cause and effect, ignoring or downplaying the long Covid syndrome isnt going to make it go away. Its vital that more research is carried out to determine causality and to find therapies that work for long-haulers.

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Dutch Research On Long Covid Shows 50% Of Study Participants Have 1 Or More Symptoms 3 Months After Becoming Infected With Coronavirus - Forbes

Mike Stucka USA TODAY NETWORK| The Gaston Gazette

North Carolina reported 24,464 new cases of coronavirus in the week ending Sunday, down 8.7% from the previous week. The previous week had 26,785 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.

North Carolina ranked 10th among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States decreased 0.7% from the week before, with 730,572 cases reported. With 3.15% of the country's population, North Carolina had 3.35% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 15 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.

Gaston County reported 443 cases and two deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 450 cases and 11 deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 67,978 cases and 865 deaths.

Across North Carolina, cases fell in 55 counties, with the best declines in Wake County, with 3,831 cases from 4,879 a week earlier; in Durham County, with 1,165 cases from 1,348; and in Cumberland County, with 740 cases from 922.

>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases

Within North Carolina, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Mitchell County with 454 cases per 100,000 per week; Jones County with 372; and Durham County with 362. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.

Adding the most new cases overall were Wake County, with 3,831 cases; Mecklenburg County, with 2,708 cases; and Guilford County, with 1,260. Weekly case counts rose in 41 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Onslow, Cleveland and Haywood counties.

In North Carolina, 46 people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, 434 people were reported dead.

A total of 2,823,979 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 25,140 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 86,246,101 people have tested positive and 1,013,413 people have died.

>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States

USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, June 19.

Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:

Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:

Hospitals in 29 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 25 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 31 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.

The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.

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Gaston County reported 443 additional COVID-19 cases this week - Gaston Gazette