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The global sub-woofer market is expected to grow from US$ 834. 77 million in 2021 to US$ 1,132. 62 million by 2028; it is estimated to register a CAGR of 4. 5% during 2021-2028. A sub-woofer is used for various applications such as home audio, cinema sound, car audio, sound reinforcement, outdoor entertainment, and others.

New York, June 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Sub-Woofer Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Application and End-user" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06232610/?utm_source=GNW The requirement for sub-woofers is growing with the increasing number of public meetings, stand-up comedy shows, and cinema halls.

Shifting preferences and changing consumer lifestyle toward using on-board infotainment systems in ride-hailing services is anticipated to create promising opportunities in the sub-woofer market.

The sub-woofer market is segmented into application, end-user, and geography.Based on application, the sub-woofer market is segmented into car audio, home audio, cinema sound, sound reinforcement, and others.

In 2020, home audio segment held the largest share in the market.In terms of end-user, the sub-woofer market is segmented into residential and commercial.

In 2020, the commercial segment accounted for a larger share.Geographically, the market is broadly segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), the Middle East & Africa (MEA), and South America (SAM).

In 2020, Asia Pacific accounted for a significant share in the global market.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the sub-woofer industry came to a halt due to minimal resources.The temporary shutdown of the manufacturing units has negatively impacted the growth of the sub-woofer market across the globe and has created many uncertainties in the stock market, decline in the supply chain, falling business confidence, and growing panic among consumers.

Due to the unusual coronavirus outbreak, the production and supply chain procedures have been halted.Also, the research and development (R&D) exercises of key players have been halted across the globe.

The sale of sub-woofer has been decreased during the Covid-19 outbreak due to the operational constraints on sales channels such as specialty stores and e-commerce platforms. Nonetheless, certain manufacturing firms have restarted their plans and prepared to owe to the rests imposed on the restrictions, by the government bodies, in several regions.

In 2020, the US witnessed most severe impact of COVID-19.Sub-woofer manufacturers and service providers were affected due to nationwide lockdowns, travel restrictions, shutdown of production facilities, and shortage of employees.

The pandemic led to health and economic crises in the US.Moreover, it led to disruptions in the consumer electronics industry, impacting various aspects such as supply chain, manufacturing, and sales.

The pandemic has directly and indirectly affected the sub-woofer market, and it is expected to witness growth with decreasing COVID-19 cases.

The overall sub-woofer market size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources.Extensive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market.

The research also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast of the sub-woofer market with all the segments.It also offers an overview and forecast of the market based on the segmentation provided concerning five major regionsNorth America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and South America.

Also, primary interviews were conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate data and gain more analytical insights into the topic. The participants of the research include VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managersalong with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leadersspecializing in the sub-woofer market.

Dynaudio A/S, K-Array, Harman International, Sony Corporation, SV Sound, Pioneer India Electronics Pvt. Ltd., Paradigm Electronics Inc., LW Speakers professional sound systems, Klipsch Group Inc., and JVC Kenwood Holdings Inc are among the few companies operating in the global sub-woofer market.Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06232610/?utm_source=GNW

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Sub-Woofer Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Application and End-user - Yahoo Finance

New York, June 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Automotive Backing Plate Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Brake Types, Brake Material Type, and Vehicle Type" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06279418/?utm_source=GNW However, air enters the compressor via an air filter and is sent to the reservoir by an unloader valve. It then enters the brake chamber via a brake valve, which is used to adjust the amount of braking. Most automobiles include servo braking systems meant to increase the amount of pressure the driver delivers to the brake pedal. The system uses a vacuum in the intake manifold to create the excess pressure necessary for the brake to work. Furthermore, the mechanisms are only functional when the engine is turned on.

When an EV driver releases the accelerator pedal during regenerative braking, the power flow from the battery to the motor is discontinued.However, the spinning component of the engine (the rotor) continues rotating in tandem with the wheels of the still-moving automobile.

Without a constant supply of electricity from the battery, the motor transforms into a generator, transferring kinetic energy from the spinning rotor to the battery, while resistance to the rotor slows the vehicle.Regenerative braking is a new technique that has been in use for over a century, although research continues to improve its efficiency.

Improvements to batteries will enhance the amount of energy that regenerative braking can store.Supercapacitor advancements will also improve braking efficiency.

Regenerative braking is most effective at higher speeds and on long downhill since more kinetic energy is available to be converted. Continued research on regenerative braking system can reduce the energy loss in the braking process to make electric vehicles more efficient, economical, and environmental-friendly. The continuous advancements in regenerative braking systems provide lucrative opportunities for the growth of the automotive backing plate market during the forecast period.

When a driver rapidly applies the brakes to a moving automobile, the wheels are likely to become stuck owing to the sudden braking force and slide on the road.Even if the driver acts swiftly, the automobile will be out of the drivers control.

The anti-braking system (ABS) keeps the wheels from locking and instead applies intermittent braking power to allow the wheels to spin slightly.This significantly improves the cars braking effectiveness and enables the driver to guide the vehicle away from the obstacle while braking strongly.

Electronic brake-force distribution (EBD) ensures that brake force is distributed to the wheels as per road conditions and the drivers needs.Speed sensors are used to detect the velocity of the wheels and automobile.

The data is transmitted into the ECU, continually comparing the two numbers. When it detects slippage caused by the wheels higher speed than the cars speed, it transmits the instruction to apply a slight braking force to the sliding wheel. This function determines which wheel requires more braking force and delivers it to that wheel independently. These features lead to the growth of the automotive backing plate market.

An automated braking system is a vital component of car safety technology.It is a powerful system specifically designed to either prevent or limit the speed of a moving vehicle before a collision with another vehicle, a pedestrian, or any other barriers.

These systems employ sensors, such as radar, video, infrared, or ultrasonic, to identify potential objects in front of the vehicle and then use brake control to avoid a collision if the item is identified.An automated braking system can also communicate with a vehicles GPS and utilize its database of stop signs and other traffic data to apply the brakes in time if the driver fails to do so.

For instance, Subarus EyeSight system uses video input in the form of two-color cameras mounted at the top of the windshield to look for contrast with the background and vertical surfaces when scanning the area.The software can then recognize different images, including pedestrians, motorcycles, and rear ends of other vehicles.

These advantages of the automatic braking system will propel the automotive backing plate market.

The automotive backing plate market across the globe continues to grow year-on-year, exhibiting a steady growth rate.The region is concentrated with leading automakers and tier 2 & small vehicle manufacturers.

The economic rise in the region positively impacts the consumption pattern of passenger cars.The automotive backing plate market for premium cars is constantly increasing in North America, owing to steady economic progression.

Due to the increasing demand from North American consumers, the automakers in the region are increasing their production lines.The automotive backing plate market is rising as automakers must comply with strict emission norms.

For instance, the US Department of Energy has approved more than ~US$ 8 billion in loans to support the automobile sector through the advanced technology vehicles manufacturing (ATVM) program, which has assisted firms in redesigning their vehicle parts for improved fuel efficiency, owing to the growth of automotive backing plate market in the region.

Key companies in the automotive backing plate market include Super Circle, NUCAP, MAT Foundry Group Ltd., INDUS Marmara Auto Components Pvt Ltd., Dorman Products, Ridex GMBH, ORTLINGHAUS-WERKE GmbH, Sparex, RSB Tech Solution, and ACDelco. The report also comprises secondary research on other companies that hold a significant share of the automotive backing plate market.

The overall size of the automotive backing plate market has been derived using both primary and secondary sources.To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the automotive backing plate market.

The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast for the automotive backing plate market with respect to all the market segments.Also, multiple primary interviews have been conducted with industry participants to validate the data and gain more analytical insights into the automotive backing plate market.

The participants of this process include industry experts such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managersalong with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leadersspecializing in the automotive backing plate market.Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06279418/?utm_source=GNW

About ReportlinkerReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

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Automotive Backing Plate Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis By Brake Types, Brake Material Type, and Vehicle Type -...

LONDON (AP) The number of new coronavirus cases and deaths are still falling globally after peaking in January, the World Health Organization said.

In its latest weekly assessment of the pandemic, the U.N. health agency said there were more than 3.7 million new infections and 9,000 deaths in the last week, drops of 3 percent and 11 percent respectively. COVID-19 cases rose in only two regions of the world: the Americas and the Western Pacific. Deaths increased by 30 percent in the Middle East, but were stable or decreased everywhere else.

WHO said it is tracking all omicron subvariants as variants of concern. It noted that countries which had a significant wave of disease caused by the omicron subvariant BA.2 appeared to be less affected by other subvariants like BA.4 and BA.5, which were responsible for the latest surge of disease in South Africa.

WATCH: What you should know about rapid antigen tests

Salim Abdool Karim, an infectious diseases expert at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, said it appeared that South Africa had passed its most recent wave of COVID-19 caused by the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants; the country has been on the forefront of the pandemic since first detecting the omicron variant last November.

Karim predicted that another mutated version of omicron might emerge in June, explaining that the large number of mutations in the variant meant there were more opportunities for it to evolve.

Meanwhile in Beijing, authorities in the Chinese capital ordered more workers and students to stay home and implemented additional mass testing Monday as cases of COVID-19 continue to rise. Numerous residential compounds in the city have restricted movement in and out, although lockdown conditions remain far less severe than in Shanghai, where millions of citizens have been under varying degrees of lockdown for two months.

China is vowing to stick to a zero-COVID policy despite the fact that the WHO describes the policy as unsustainable, given the infectious nature of omicron and its subvariants.

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WHO says COVID-19 cases are falling globally, except in the Americas - PBS NewsHour

San Diego Countys latest coronavirus numbers show that a persons chances of getting infected this Memorial Day weekend will be much greater than they were one year ago.

Daily case counts updated Thursday afternoon show that there were 1,897 new cases reported Wednesday, nearly 26 times the 73 reported on the same day in 2021. COVID-19-related hospitalizations are also increasing, though at a much slower pace than was the case during the Delta variant surge last summer.

Last year, the states reopening system was still in effect for what is traditionally seen as the start of the summer vacation season. Masks were still required, and some types of businesses and entertainment venues were still closed.

This year, its just the opposite. Everything is open, and masks are not required, even on planes and other forms of shared transportation.

The differences were an unspoken part of a coronavirus-themed news event Thursday organized by county Supervisor Nathan Fletcher and San Diego Councilmember Jennifer Campbell.

While many hours have been spent counseling the public to wear masks and avoid crowds over the last two and a half years of the pandemic, nobody reiterated those messages during Thursdays prepared remarks.

There seemed to be a tacit understanding among the politicians and health care experts who took the podium that the public is going to do what its going to do over the next few days. Those planning to attend parties are not likely to cancel their plans over coronavirus. Those who have remained concerned likely have already limited their social calendars and are already wearing masks when in public places.

But with coronavirus spreading as readily as it has been, it appears inevitable that further increases in new infections will be likely in the coming weeks and months, especially as new variants first spotted overseas appear on the West Coast.

Those who do end up getting sick, experts said, need to understand that they can significantly improve their odds of having a mild coronavirus encounter if they understand and seek out drugs shown to greatly reduces the chances of hospitalization and death if they are taken early enough in the course of illness.

County treatment centers currently offer two different medications capable of preventing the virus from replicating itself after it enters the body, greatly reducing the chances of severe COVID-19 consequences.

Paxlovid, an antiviral medication made by Pfizer, is in pill form and must be taken within five days of symptoms appearing while monoclonal antibody Bebtelovimab must be administered intravenously within seven days.

Treatment is effective and its available, said Dr. Jennifer Tuteur, the countys deputy chief medical officer. If youre at risk of getting severe complications from COVID, please access treatment for yourself and your loved ones.

These drugs remain available only to those said to be at an elevated risk of severe COVID-19 complications. Anyone age 65 years and older is eligible as is anyone with a compromised immune system or a chronic disease such as diabetes, chronic kidney, liver or heart disease, mental health disorders such as depression or schizophrenia, and neurologic conditions such as dementia.

Current and former smokers are also included as is anyone with a body mass index of 30 or greater (180 pounds for a person who is five feet, five inches tall). A full list of qualifying conditions is available from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, though Tuteur urges anyone who thinks they might qualify to discuss the situation with their doctor first.

Appointments are available seven days per week by calling 619-685-2500 or visiting coronavirus-SD.com.

Campbell said she recently became quite ill with a coronavirus infection and received a monoclonal treatment, avoiding progression of the disease.

Whether you have been infected after you were vaccinated and boosted, or whether you were not vaccinated, it doesnt matter, you can still come in and get treatment, Campbell said.

Overall, daily new-case totals have remained over 1,000 in six of the past seven days, according to county records, falling from the 1,578 new cases reported on Tuesday, May 18, to only 917 Tuesday before jumping back up to 1,897 Wednesday.

Total local hospitalizations fell below 100 on May 1 but have gradually risen over the past month, reaching 180 Wednesday.

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COVID-19 numbers 26 times higher than going into last Memorial Day weekend - The San Diego Union-Tribune

COVID-19 transmission in Connecticut appears to be slowing, state numbers show, following several months of steady increase.

As of Thursday, the state averaged 1,137 daily cases over the past week, down from nearly 1,600 at one point earlier this month, though still much higher than immediately before the current wave. The states seven-day positivity rate, meanwhile, has decreased from 14.2 percent last week to 11.8 percent as of Thursday.

Though both case counts and test positivity rate are likely skewed by the popularity of at-home tests, most of which are never reported to authorities, experts say the metrics can still be useful in assessing broad trends.

Additionally, traces of COVID-19 in New Haven wastewater appear to have plateaued or even decreased slightly, data from Yale researchers shows, offering another sign that transmission in Connecticut has reached a peak, at least for now.

As of Thursday, Connecticut had 379 patients hospitalized with COVID-19, down slightly from Wednesday, when hospitalizations hit their highest level since February. Hospitalizations have continued to increase in recent days but not as sharply as earlier this month.

Over the last two weeks, weve seen at least some stabilization in terms of COVID hospitalizations, which we can track, and community transmission, which we can roughly estimate with the current data, said Dr. David Banach, hospital epidemiologist at UConn Health. So Im optimistic, with some caution, for the coming weeks.

Since March, Connecticut has been mired in a COVID-19 spike, which experts have attributed to the BA.2 subvariant. What was initially expected to be a relatively small uptick has instead caused a substantial increase in cases and hospitalizations, lasting more than two months.

Coronavirus-linked deaths have not particularly spiked during the recent wave, which may owe to the fact that deaths lag cases and hospitalizations but may also be a product of vaccine protection, strains of virus that are somewhat less deadly, and improved treatment protocols, including antiviral pills.

Connecticut on Thursday reported 19 COVID-19 deaths over the past week, bringing its total during the pandemic to 10,941.

In terms of severity of the hospitalized patients, we are seeing a smaller number with an intensive-care level of illness, Banach said. I think thats encouraging.

Still, even as Connecticuts case count and positivity rate have dipped slightly in recent days, transmission in Connecticut remains high, with tens of thousands of new infections (both reported and unreported) likely occurring each week.

Dr. Ulysses Wu, chief epidemiologist at Hartford HealthCare, said Thursday that hes not yet ready to celebrate any improvement in the state numbers.

We are at a place where we shouldnt be at all, Wu said. Whether its 383 [hospitalizations] yesterday or 379 today, both numbers are equally bad.

Connecticuts recent COVID-19 uptick, which came almost immediately on the heels of the states devastating omicron-driven winter surge, has led some infectious disease experts to fear the state will see high levels of transmission indefinitely, with new variants emerging one after another.

Already, the state has identified several cases of BA.4 and BA.5, subvariants that caused a dramatic COVID-19 uptick in South Africa.

Wu said recent trends in Connecticuts numbers have not changed his relatively pessimistic outlook about the months to come. As he sees it, Connecticut could return to lower viral levels by the end of June but could also see cases rise again at any time.

With a population that has apathy and doesnt care, whats going to happen is were going to see wave after wave after wave, Wu said. We are going to see a downturn at some point, but it really depends how prolonged that downturn is and then what is the depth of that downturn.

Even as Connecticuts cases decrease, Wu said, they are unlikely to return to the lows recorded last summer.

Its like coming down from Everest to the Tibetan pleateau, he said. Youre still pretty frickin high up in the Tibetan plateau.

Banach offered a slightly more optimistic view, arguing that summer weather, which facilitates outdoor activity, should help Connecticut keep its numbers lower than they have been.

As he sees it, Connecticuts recent decrease in cases and positivity rate could be the start of a lower-risk period.

We still need to be aware that COVID is around us, but here in Connecticut warmer weather, spending more time outdoors is beneficial in reducing the risk of spread, he said. So I think we can maintain some cautious optimism for the next few weeks.

alex.putterman@hearstmediact.com

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At least for now, COVID-19 transmission in Connecticut appears to be slowing - CT Insider

"In a world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic with rapidly mutating variants emerging ever so often, it is a race for the scientific community to develop new therapies in a timely manner."

"We are excited to announce that our research and development efforts have paid off at a fast pace with our single B cell technology that's shown neutralizing efficacy against the world's most common and deadly Omicron variant", shared Juz-Hsiang Chiu, M.D., AcadeMab CEO.

Despite high vaccination rates worldwide, vaccines are only part of the system of treatments to deal with the scourge of COVID-19.

The Omicron variant has been proven to show remarkable resistance to most of the earlier immunotherapies developed, such as Bamlanivimab developed by Eli Lilly and antibody cocktail of Casirivimab and Imdevimab developed by Regeneron pharmaceuticals.

As a result, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has revoked or limited the emergency use authorizations (EUAs) for most therapeutic antibodies.

Studies conducted by AcadeMab have found high efficacy of their human monoclonal antibodies against the Omicron variant within 4 months.

In one of their studies, it was found that one human antibody showed the best neutralization ability (IC50 = 11.4 and 4.3 ng/ml) in both Omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2 respectively.

"We've also seen broad-spectrum activity in our treatment against multiple circulating variants of concern (VOCs) announced by the World Health Organisation."

"Aside from its neutralizing efficacy against Omicron, this means it shows great potential to be a therapy of choice for patients infected with other COVID-19 variants aside from Omicron", said Pao-Yin Chiang, Ph.D., the lead scientist of single B cell platform at AcadeMab.

The development of AcadeMab's cutting-edge technology using Single B cell technology will be of immense benefit to a segment of high-risk people who cannot benefit fully from mere vaccination alone.

They include those who are moderately to severely immunocompromised and lack adequate immunity responses despite COVID-19 vaccinations. It is estimated that about 2.7% of adults (or, 7 million) in the U.S population are immunocompromised.

This groundbreaking treatment will also be beneficial to those who have a documented history of severe adverse reactions to existing COVID-19 vaccines or their components, and as such, are unable to be vaccinated.

Parties interested in establishing partnership and learning more about AcadeMab's research may contact:

PR NAME: Miles Yeh, Ph.D., Director of Product DevelopmentCONTACT NUMBER: +886-2789-1212 ext. 810EMAIL: [emailprotected]

SOURCE AcadeMab Biomedical Inc.

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Taiwan's AcadeMab develops groundbreaking therapy for COVID-19 Omicron variant with potent neutralizing efficacy - PR Newswire

When telogen effluvium occurs, the hair loss is rapid. We all lose about 100 hairs per day on average, but in the case of telogen effluvium, youre suddenly losing way more than that, Dr. Bhanusali says. He adds that people tend to notice it when they see large clumps in their hands after washing their hair, see lots of hair in the shower drain, or notice that their brush or comb is filling up much faster than normal. This isnt a gradual type of hair loss or subtle hair thinningits an acute, intense, sudden shedding that can leave your hair feeling less full overall and often manifests as noticeable thinness and sparseness along the sides of the temples.5

Its unclear if hair loss after COVID-19 correlates with any other specific symptoms of the virus or how sick you get. The American Academy of Dermatology has a COVID-19 registry and we hope over time we will be able to extrapolate some data to find associations, but so far there are no clear relationships, Dr. Kuhn says. I have seen severe shedding following a mild case of COVID, and mild shedding following severe illness.

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How long does hair loss after COVID-19 last?

Telogen effluvium, whether its caused by COVID-19 or another trigger, usually isnt permanent. Shedding can occur, however, for three to six months before it stops, Dr. Kuhn says. With telogen effluvium the hair growth cycle eventually normalizes and, because there is no damage to the scalp or hair follicles, all of the hair should grow back.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, your hair will likely regain normal fullness after telogen effluvium within six to nine months. Although Dr. Kuhn says, in her experience, it often takes even longeranywhere from one to two yearsfor someones hair to reach its pre-shed status.

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Have any of the COVID-19 vaccines been linked to hair loss?

Theres no research to indicate that the COVID vaccines trigger hair shedding, Dr. Kuhn says, adding that, in her experience, she hasnt seen any people dealing with hair loss postvaccine. Dr. Bhanusali underscores the fact that theres currently no direct data to connect the two.

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How to stop hair loss after COVID-19

Most importantly, be patient. Though losing hair can be scary, I always reassure patients that they wont go bald from COVID-related shedding, Dr. Kuhn says. Typically, the best thing to do is simply wait it out. In the meantime, practicing healthy hair habits is paramount.

You want to make sure that youre doing everything you can to minimize the risk of losing any more hair, Dr. Bhanusali notes. That means avoiding heat styling and/or using the lowest temperature whenever you do, minimizing intense chemical processes such as highlighting and straightening, and avoiding tight hairstyles that put tension on the hair.

You can also consider getting tested for nutrient deficiencies to ensure thats not exacerbating the situation. If you are, in fact, lacking in a certain vitamin or mineral thats associated with hair healthDr. Bhanusali notes that vitamin D and iron deficiencies are commontalk to your doctor about how to incorporate more of it into your diet and/or if youll need to try a supplement (and if so, what the dosage should be).

And while its always easier said than done, lowering your stress levels may also help. Practicing self-care and engaging in things such as meditation and breathing exercises can be helpful as you deal with COVID-related hair loss, Dr. Ziering suggests. Breaking long-term stress can be helpful in helping normal hair function resume more consistently. That said, lowering stress levels may feel nearly impossible given whats going on in the world or in your personal life, so if self-care isnt cutting it, consider talking to a therapist if youre able.

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Hair Loss After COVID-19: Why It Happens and How to Treat It - Self

Spallanzani infectious disease hospital Director Francesco Vaia talks to reporters at the end of a news conference Friday in Rome. Andrew Medichini/AP hide caption

Spallanzani infectious disease hospital Director Francesco Vaia talks to reporters at the end of a news conference Friday in Rome.

The recent headlines about a sudden emergence of an unusual disease, spreading case by case across countries and continents may, for some, evoke memories of early 2020.

But monkeypox is no COVID-19 in a good way.

Health officials worldwide have turned their attention to a new outbreak of monkeypox, a virus normally found in central and west Africa that has appeared across Europe and the U.S. in recent weeks even in people who have not traveled to Africa at all.

But experts say that, while it's important for public health officials to be on the lookout for monkeypox, the virus is extremely unlikely to spin out into an uncontrolled worldwide pandemic in the same way that COVID-19 did.

"Let's just say right off the top that monkeypox and COVID are not the same disease," said Dr. Rosamund Lewis, head of Smallpox Secretariat at the World Health Organization, at a public Q&A session on Monday.

For starters, monkeypox spreads much less easily than COVID-19. Scientists have been studying monkeypox since it was first discovered in humans more than 50 years ago. And its similarities to smallpox mean it can be combated in many of the same ways.

As a result, scientists are already familiar with how monkeypox spreads, how it presents, and how to treat and contain it giving health authorities a much bigger head start on containing it.

Here are some of the other ways the public health approach to monkeypox is different from COVID-19:

Monkeypox typically requires very close contact to spread most often skin-to-skin contact, or prolonged physical contact with clothes or bedding that was used by an infected person.

By contrast, COVID-19 spreads quickly and easily. Coronavirus can spread simply by talking with another person, or sharing a room, or in rare cases, being inside a room that an infected person had previously been in.

"Transmission is really happening from close physical contact, skin-to-skin contact. It's quite different from COVID in that sense," said Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, an infectious disease epidemiologist with the WHO.

The classic symptom of monkeypox is a rash that often begins on the face, then spreads to a person's limbs or other parts of the body.

"The incubation from time of exposure to appearance of lesions is anywhere between five days to about 21 days, so can be quite long," said Dr. Boghuma Kabisen Titanji, an infectious disease physician and virologist at Emory University in Atlanta.

The current outbreak has seen some different patterns, experts say particularly, that the rash begins in the genital area first, and may not spread across the body.

Either way, experts say, it is typically through physical contact of that rash that the virus spreads.

"It's not a situation where if you're passing someone in the grocery store, they're going to be at risk for monkeypox," said Dr. Jennifer McQuiston of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a briefing Monday.

The people most likely to be at risk are close personal contacts of an infected person, such as household members or health care workers who may have treated them, she said.

"We've seen over the years that often the best way to deal with cases is to keep those who are sick isolated so that they can't spread the virus to close family members and loved ones, and to follow up proactively with those that a patient has contact with so they can watch for symptoms," McQuiston said.

With this version of virus, people generally recover in two to four weeks, scientists find, and the death rate is less than 1%.

One factor that helped COVID-19 spread rapidly across the globe was the fact that it is very contagious. That's even more true of the variants that have emerged in the past year.

Epidemiologists point to a disease's R0 value the average number of people you'd expect an infected person to pass the disease along to.

For a disease outbreak to grow, the R0 must be higher than 1. For the original version of COVID-19, the number was somewhere between 2 and 3. For the omicron variant, that number is about 8, a recent study found.

Although the recent spread of monkeypox cases is alarming, the virus is far less contagious than COVID-19, according to Jo Walker, an epidemiologist at Yale School of Public Health.

"Most estimates from earlier outbreaks have had an R0 of less than one. With that, you can have clusters of cases, even outbreaks, but they will eventually die out on their own," they said. "It could spread between humans, but not very efficiently in a way that could sustain itself onward without constantly being reintroduced from animal populations."

That's a big reason that public health authorities, including the WHO, are expressing confidence that cases of monkeypox will not suddenly skyrocket. "This is a containable situation," Van Kerkhove said Monday at the public session.

Monkeypox and smallpox are both members of the Orthopox family of viruses. Smallpox, which once killed millions of people every year, was eradicated in 1980 by a successful worldwide campaign of vaccines.

The smallpox vaccine is about 85% effective against monkeypox, the WHO says, although that effectiveness wanes over time.

"These viruses are closely related to each other, and now we have the benefit of all those years of research and diagnostics and treatments and in vaccines that will be brought to bear upon the situation now," said Lewis of the WHO.

Some countries, including the U.S., have held smallpox vaccines in strategic reserve in case the virus ever reemerged. Now, those can be used to contain a monkeypox outbreak.

The FDA has two vaccines already approved for use against smallpox.

One, a two-dose vaccine called Jynneos, is also approved for use against monkeypox. About a thousand doses are available in the Strategic National Stockpile, the CDC says, and the company will provide more in the coming months.

"We have already worked to secure sufficient supply of effective treatments and vaccines to prevent those exposed from contracting monkeypox and treating people who've been affected," said Dr. Raj Panjabi of the White House pandemic office, in an interview with NPR.

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Monkeypox and COVID-19 are different in a good way - NPR

The global excess mortality associated with COVID-19 was 14.91 million in the 24 months between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2021, representing 9.49 million more deaths than those globally reported as directly attributable to COVID-19.

The impact of the pandemic has been over several waves with each characterized by unique regional distributions, mortality levels and drivers. Twenty countries, representing approximately 50% of the global population, account for over 80% of the estimatedglobal excess mortality for the January 2020 to December 2021 period. These countries are Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Germany, India, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Italy, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, the Russian Federation, South Africa, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United States of America (USA). We are able to observe the evolution of the pandemic over these 24 months as different regions and countries were impactedby and responded to the threat of COVID-19.

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Global excess deaths associated with COVID-19, January 2020 - December 2021 - World Health Organization

They were the words everyone has been waiting to hearthat the COVID-19 pandemic is dialing down from the five-alarm fire that flared up in 2020 to a somewhat lesser conflagration. On April 27, the U.S.s chief medical advisor, Dr. Anthony Fauci, described the country as in a transitional phase, from a deceleration of the numbers into hopefully a more controlled phase and endemicity in an interview with the Washington Post.

His comments come almost two years to the day after pharmaceutical manufacturers shipped the first batches of their COVID-19 vaccines for early testing. Fauci noted that those vaccines, as well as drug treatments that can control the virus in infected people, are largely responsible for the fact that the initial urgency of the pandemic as a public health threat is over. But COVID-19 itself isnt quite finished with us. The virus continues to mutate, and the latest variations being reported out of South Africanew subvariants of Omicron including BA.4 and BA.5are sobering reminders that the virus isnt standing still.

Although we may be out of the urgent pandemic phase, were not quite ready to call COVID-19 endemic, which would mean the virus is still among us but relatively under control, similar to influenza.

And its not clear when that will happen. And even if it does, health experts may not all agree about the transition. There are no hard and fast definitions for pandemic and endemic, and no thresholds for case numbers or deaths that mark a shift from one to the other. The World Health organization considers a pandemic to be an epidemic occurring worldwide, or over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries and usually affecting a large number of people. Experts have noted that these parameters say nothing about how quickly the outbreak is spreading, how much disease its causing, or what role immunity in the population plays.

But those are the factors that are critical for public health experts and political leaders as they manage a pandemic. There are no metrics for determining when to dial down an initial urgent response, or to pull back on drastic measures such as lockdowns and mask mandates.

Thats what the world is grappling with nowfiguring out whether the risk of SARS-CoV-2 is now at a point where we can treat it more like influenza, by protecting ourselves as much as we can with immunization and basic hygiene such as washing our hands and covering our coughs, or whether we still need to manage SARS-CoV-2 as a serious enough threat for most people that we should maintain public health measures such as mask-wearing and social distancing.

Read more: Most Americans Have Had COVID-19. That Doesnt Mean They Wont Get It Again

Fauci argues that we are somewhere in between those two situations, describing our current status as a controlled pandemicnot quite the urgent threat of a pandemic, but again not quite ready for the ease of mind that comes with being in an endemic phase of an outbreak. And the numbers support that: Since the beginning of the year, cases in the U.S. have dropped dramatically, from an average of 700,000 to 800,000 a week to 30,000 to 50,000 a week. About 66% of the U.S. population is now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and deaths from the disease have declined steadily since January. We are clearly not in the same vulnerable place we were in 2020. The vaccines have provided some barrier to the virus, and that counts for a lot. But that immunity still isnt enough to declare COVID-19 over.

Nevertheless, those numbers encouraged a push to loosen public health restrictions that have been in place since 2021federal mandates that people wear masks in indoor settings, and on public transportation including subways, buses, trains and planes, as well as requiring proof of vaccination for certain gatherings at sports and entertainment complexes. In April, a U.S. District judge in Florida struck down the federal mask mandate, declaring that it was unlawful and that the Centers for Disease Control had overstepped its authority in imposing it. The Biden Administration is appealing the ruling, but in the meantime, airlines and most public transit systems no longer require passengers to wear masks.

That coincided with an uptick in cases of COVID-19theres no direct way to prove one caused the other, but the coincidence is hard to ignore. After remaining at about 24,000 to 25,000 new infections a week in early April, cases started to inch upward again at the end of the month to nearly 50,000 a week on average. Hospitalizations are also creeping upward, although those trends lag behind case rates.

Those trends suggest that it may be too early to relax our vigilance over COVID-19, which remains a potent threat for a number of reasons. First, no vaccine is 100% effective in protecting against infection or disease, and the COVID-19 shots are no exception. While highly effective in warding off the worst COVID-19 symptoms from the original virus strain emerging from China, the shots are less effective in protecting against newer variants of SARS-CoV-2. And the virus continues to mutate, with each version appearing to improve on the last strains ability to infect quickly and efficiently. Fortunately these changes havent led to a more virulent strain so far, but they could veer in that direction, and cause more serious disease on top of being more transmissible. If that happens, the vaccines and drug treatments currently available might provide little, if any, protection at all.

That leads to the second reason that COVID-19 isnt fading into the background any time soon. Despite the effectiveness of the vaccines, scientists still dont know exactly what it takes to fully protect someone from COVID-19. That question actually breaks down into two related queries: What does it take to prevent infection in the first place, and what level of immunity is needed to protect against serious illness? Even into the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, scientists still dont have solid answers for either.

Read more: Many Americans Are Celebrating the End of COVID-19. Heres What It Feels Like When Youre Not

While the mRNA shots in particular are effective at curbing COVID-19 disease, reducing the rates of COVID-19 symptoms by more than 90% among people who were immunized, the vaccines have been less effective in protecting people from getting infected in the first place. Thats not unusual for a vaccine, since the best way to block infection is with a pre-existing store of antibodies that can stick to the virus and interrupt them from infecting cellsand before getting immunized, most people in the world didnt have any antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. And even after getting vaccinated, antibody levels drop after a few months, which is why health officials have recommended booster doses. Those boosters have been slightly better at reducing risk of infection for this reason, but the vaccines are still not designed as a powerful way to stop infection.

They are far better at preventing serious COVID-19 disease. But even there, its still not clear exactly how much of an immune response, or what type, is enough to stop severe COVID-19 symptoms that can lead to hospitalization and even death. Studies of people who have been vaccinated, as well those involving people who have been naturally infected with SARS-CoV-2, are trying to shed some light on this, but scientists still cant point to exactly what kind of immune reaction will be essential to finally push SARS-CoV-2 back.

Such knowledge about what scientists call the correlates of immunity could go a long way toward shaping U.S. policy on booster shots in the fall. For now, the Food and Drug Administration and other public health experts are relying on antibody level data as a proxy to gauge how well vaccines work and what type of immunity is needed. But in a recent meeting of the FDAs vaccine advisory committee, the experts raised concerns about how reliable the current metrics of antibody levels are in serving as surrogates for these correlates of immunity. Until further research reveals how much immune protection is enough, its not likely that the world will move past seeing COVID-19 as a continuing pandemic threat, albeit, as Fauci proposed, one that is under better control now than when it first emerged in 2020.

Thats why the White House, with the support of the CDC, is pushing back on lifting the federal mandate for mask-wearing on public transit, and stressing that while the hospitalization and death numbers are trending in the right direction, the virus is far from gone and is still a threat to public health.

Its not likely that there will be consensus any time soon on when the pandemic shifts from even Faucis so-called controlled phase into becoming endemic. In the meantime, rather than waiting on broad declarations on whether the pandemic is over, some health experts are urging people to start making their own informed decisions about which behaviors and situations feel safe to them. If they have underlying chronic conditions that can put them at higher risk of severe COVID-19, such as diabetes or asthma, for example, or if they have compromised immune systems, it makes sense for them to continue wearing masks even on planes and trains where they arent required. Or if people live in households with elderly people or with children under six years old who arent eligible to get vaccinated yet, then continuing to wear masks in certain indoor settings and avoiding crowded situations might be wise.

Government and global health organization statements about the pandemic are critical for helping nations to navigate responses and allocate resources for addressing public health, but once those tools are in place, its up to us as individuals to use them in the combination and frequency that provides us with the most protection in our specific circumstances. Even if SARS-CoV-2 becomes endemic like the flu, it will remain a threat for certain groups, just as influenza does. For those people, it will be important to maintain all the behaviors that protect them from infection. For those who are less vulnerable, easing some of those protection measures might make more sense. While mandates have served as guides for the best way to battle the pandemic, going forward it will likely fall increasingly on individuals to rely on those guides to forge their own path forward as each of us learns to live with COVID-19, in whatever form it takes.

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Why COVID-19 Isn't the Endemic Phase in the US Yet - TIME