Alex2507

Alex2507

Audioholic Slumlord
I tested positive for Covid-19 this morning. I used one of those quick antibody-type tests.

My wife & I had visited my son, wife, & 1½ year-old daughter over the weekend. We tested negative before going there. On Sunday afternoon we saw some of his friends at an out-door gathering, and we drove home the next day.

I was fine until yesterday, when I got a headache, severe body aches, fatigue, mild sniffles & cough, and a mild fever, 99-100°F. Late last night I heard from my son & wife that one couple at that picnic has tested positive. That's when I realized I was sick, and I wasn't surprised when I saw the test results. My wife is negative, so far.

I called my doctor and she prescribed a 5-day course of Paxlovid. I'm eligible because of my age alone. I also have an auto-immune disease, ankylosing spondylitis, for which I take two immune suppressing drugs, Humira and methotrexate.

My wife is going now to pick up the Rx. Only one pharmacy in the entire county in the Maryland suburbs of Washington has this drug. It's about 20 minutes away, so it isn't a big problem. Still, I'm surprised it isn't more widely available.

So now I have to isolate from my wife for 5 days (today is day 2), and if things improve, I can be around her if I wear a mask all the time.

By now, most of you know me well enough to expect me to make my Covid-19 a teachable moment. And, you'd be right ;).
  • I've taken ibuprofen (one 200 mg tablet) roughly every 4 hours. It seems to work well at treating my symptoms.

  • I take a drug called Lipitor, also known as atorvastatin. It lowers cholesterol production. During my 5-day Paxlovid treatment, I must stop the Lipitor. Not a problem.

  • I was also warned that some people experience gastrointestinal distress with Paxlovid, often diarrhea. If it gets intolerable, I'll quit the Paxlovid. But if it isn't terrible, I do plan to tough it out for 5 days.

  • About a year ago, I bought one of those no-touch forehead fever thermometers. I hadn't used until today. It's been real handy.
That f^%&ing blows.
 
cpp

cpp

Audioholic Ninja
I tested positive for Covid-19 this morning. I used one of those quick antibody-type tests.

My wife & I had visited my son, wife, & 1½ year-old daughter over the weekend. We tested negative before going there. On Sunday afternoon we saw some of his friends at an out-door gathering, and we drove home the next day.

I was fine until yesterday, when I got a headache, severe body aches, fatigue, mild sniffles & cough, and a mild fever, 99-100°F. Late last night I heard from my son & wife that one couple at that picnic has tested positive. That's when I realized I was sick, and I wasn't surprised when I saw the test results. My wife is negative, so far.

I called my doctor and she prescribed a 5-day course of Paxlovid. I'm eligible because of my age alone. I also have an auto-immune disease, ankylosing spondylitis, for which I take two immune suppressing drugs, Humira and methotrexate.

My wife is going now to pick up the Rx. Only one pharmacy in the entire county in the Maryland suburbs of Washington has this drug. It's about 20 minutes away, so it isn't a big problem. Still, I'm surprised it isn't more widely available.

So now I have to isolate from my wife for 5 days (today is day 2), and if things improve, I can be around her if I wear a mask all the time.

By now, most of you know me well enough to expect me to make my Covid-19 a teachable moment. And, you'd be right ;).
  • I've taken ibuprofen (one 200 mg tablet) roughly every 4 hours. It seems to work well at treating my symptoms.

  • I take a drug called Lipitor, also known as atorvastatin. It lowers cholesterol production. During my 5-day Paxlovid treatment, I must stop the Lipitor. Not a problem.

  • I was also warned that some people experience gastrointestinal distress with Paxlovid, often diarrhea. If it gets intolerable, I'll quit the Paxlovid. But if it isn't terrible, I do plan to tough it out for 5 days.

  • About a year ago, I bought one of those no-touch forehead fever thermometers. I hadn't used until today. It's been real handy.
take it easy, rest and get well.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
That f^%&ing blows.
I thought the same thing this morning. But I've risen to the occasion. My symptoms, so far, have been mild to moderate. The body aches were the worst. They felt like a dozen elves snuk up during the night, with ball peen hammers, and did their worst. In the navy, that was described as 'feeling like hammered dog sh!t'. Ibuprofen made that a whole lot better.

I already had my first dose of the anti-coronavirus drug Paxlovid. You take one dose (3 pills) every morning & again every night, for 5 days total. A nice surprise, it was already paid for by Uncle Sam. That must be why there was only one store with it in the entire county. I took it with food, milk & chocolate chip cookies that my wife also got for me on the Paxlovid run. One dose down – nine to go. We'll definitely need more cookies.
 
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GO-NAD!

GO-NAD!

Audioholic Spartan
I thought the same thing this morning. But I've risen to the occasion. My symptoms, so far, have been mild to moderate. The body aches were the worst. They felt like a dozen elves sneaked up on me during the night, with ball peen hammers, and did their worst. In the navy, that was described as 'feeling like hammered dog sh!t'. Ibuprofen made that a whole lot better.

I already had my first dose of the anti-coronavirus drug Paxlovid. You take one dose (3 pills) every morning & again every night, for 5 days total. A nice surprise, it was already paid for by Uncle Sam. That must be why there was only one store with it in the entire county. I took it with food, milk & chocolate chip cookies that my wife also got for me on the Paxlovid run. One dose down – nine to go. We'll definitely need more cookies.
I'm glad you're not doing too badly and hope your recovery is swift.

It turns out that my co-worker had a false positive rapid test. He had a followup PCR test that was negative. So, that was a bit of a relief.
 
M

Mr._Clark

Audioholic Samurai
I thought the same thing this morning. But I've risen to the occasion. My symptoms, so far, have been mild to moderate. The body aches were the worst. They felt like a dozen elves snuk up during the night, with ball peen hammers, and did their worst. In the navy, that was described as 'feeling like hammered dog sh!t'. Ibuprofen made that a whole lot better.

I already had my first dose of the anti-coronavirus drug Paxlovid. You take one dose (3 pills) every morning & again every night, for 5 days total. A nice surprise, it was already paid for by Uncle Sam. That must be why there was only one store with it in the entire county. I took it with food, milk & chocolate chip cookies that my wife also got for me on the Paxlovid run. One dose down – nine to go. We'll definitely need more cookies.
Sorry to hear you got the virus, but glad to hear you were able to get a Paxlovid prescription.

I've seen quite a few news reports about Paxlovid not being used very much, even though there's no shortage of it. This is just one example:

>>>Even the most highly recommended treatments are going unused. Hundreds of thousands of doses of sotrovimab are sitting in refrigerated storage — this monoclonal antibody infusion treatment is nearly 80% effective at preventing hospitalization from COVID-19 for high-risk people. Likewise, hundreds of thousands of courses of Paxlovid, a highly effective pill that cuts the risk of getting hospitalized with COVID by nearly 90%, are gathering dust on pharmacy shelves. For both these treatments, less than half of the distributed courses have been reported as used.

HHS's Eisnor, speaking to health care providers in mid March, said he was troubled by reports that some pharmacies had asked if they could trash their remaining supplies of unexpired COVID pills. "We ask that you utilize any and all resources to facilitate [redirecting supply], maybe moving product outside to a neighboring state or jurisdiction or territory if they have a need," he said.<<<

 
Dan

Dan

Audioholic Chief
So I had lunch with Swerd on Wednesday and got his news. Got tested right away and my own $&@@& hospital promised results by two am today but so far nothing. Supposed to go to Nawlins Saturday for a conference. Grrrrrr. Feel better bro glad you got the antivirals.

3 pm update PCR is negative s I'm good to go. Hope I don't get sick down there,
 
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Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
Only one pharmacy in an entire county in the Maryland suburbs of Washington has this drug. It's about 20 minutes away, so it isn't a big problem. Still, I'm surprised it isn't more widely available.
I learned today that I was wrong about that. There are many more pharmacies that offer what is called 'Test to Treat'. This is important for anti-viral drugs like Paxlovid because it is meant for people who are in the first 5 days of Covid-19 infection. With Paxlovid, speed matters.

Yesterday, I called my primary care doctor's office, and later that day I spoke to one of the docs in that practice. I told him the details I knew, and he sent in a prescription for Paxlovid, telling me that a Walgreen's pharmacy, about 20 minutes away from me, was the only place I could get it. Maybe that's true if an MD sends in a prescription.

The Test to Treat drug stores give you a rapid Covid-19 test and they also provide treatments, such as Paxlovid. Today, my wife started getting symptoms very similar to my own. She tried calling her primary care doc, but it's late Friday afternoon, and she never heard back. So, she got busy with Google.

She found that many CVS drug stores in our area, among others, offer Test to Treat. She got an appointment, online, for tomorrow morning at a place roughly 11 minutes away.

So, in case anyone else needs this, Google for Test to Treat in your area, or use this web site.

https://aspr.hhs.gov/TestToTreat/Pages/default.aspx

Click on View Locations… and see this next page:

https://covid-19-test-to-treat-locator-dhhs.hub.arcgis.com/

Type in your Zip code, pick a distance to drive, and see the results for your area. With my Zip code, it showed a map with 67 locations, within 10 miles.
 
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M

Mr._Clark

Audioholic Samurai
I learned today that I was wrong about that. There are many more pharmacies that offer what is called 'Test to Treat'. This is important for anti-viral drugs like Paxlovid because it is meant for people who are in the first 5 days of Covid-19 infection. With Paxlovid, speed matters.

Yesterday, I called my primary care doctor's office, and later that day I spoke to one of the docs in that practice. I told him the details I knew, and he sent in a prescription for Paxlovid, telling me that a Walgreen's pharmacy, about 20 minutes away from me, was the only place I could get it. Maybe that's true if an MD sends in a prescription.

The Test to Treat drug stores give you a rapid Covid-19 test and they also provide treatments, such as Paxlovid. Today, my wife started getting symptoms very similar to my own. She tried calling her primary care doc, but it's late Friday afternoon, and she never heard back. So, she got busy with Google.

She found that many CVS drug stores in our area, among others, offer Test to Treat. She got an appointment, online, for tomorrow morning at a place roughly 11 minutes away.

So, in case anyone else needs this, Google for Test to Treat in your area, or use this web site.

https://aspr.hhs.gov/TestToTreat/Pages/default.aspx

Click on View Locations… and see this next page:

https://covid-19-test-to-treat-locator-dhhs.hub.arcgis.com/

Type in your Zip code, pick a distance to drive, and see the results for your area. With my Zip code, it showed a map with 67 locations, within 10 miles.
That's very useful information. Thanks for posting.

If (when?) I get infected, I'm planning to get a prescription for Paxlovid as quickly as possible (if possible). The restrictions on who is eligible for a prescription seem to be excessively high right now given that a lot of it is apparently just sitting on shelves.
 
Verdinut

Verdinut

Audioholic Spartan
That's very useful information. Thanks for posting.

If (when?) I get infected, I'm planning to get a prescription for Paxlovid as quickly as possible (if possible). The restrictions on who is eligible for a prescription seem to be excessively high right now given that a lot of it is apparently just sitting on shelves.
Paxlovid may have serious side effects and cannot be prescribed to anyone. Moreover, I understand that it is a very expensive medicine.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
Paxlovid may have serious side effects and cannot be prescribed to anyone. Moreover, I understand that it is a very expensive medicine.
You are correct that it shouldn't be prescribed to anyone without knowing what other medications a person takes on a regular basis. I was told to stop taking Lipitor (atorvastatin) during the 5-day course of Paxlovid. That's not a problem. There is a large list of other meds that should be avoided during Paxlovid, but I don't know them. That's why it requires a consult with an MD.

In the USA, Paxlovid costs nothing, right now. Some 20 million doses (if I remember correctly) were purchased by the US government to provide to infected people at no cost. This is the same reason why all those vaccination doses were purchased.

I've taken my 3rd Paxlovid dose earlier this evening – 7 more to go. The regimen is 10 doses in 5 days. No side effects, so far. Also no major improvement in my mild to moderate symptoms. I don't have a headache or fever, but I still feel general malaise and fatigue, like I have a bad cold.
 
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Verdinut

Verdinut

Audioholic Spartan
An article which CBC News referred to today:
SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell epitope repertoire in convalescent and mRNA-vaccinated individuals:
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
I started coughing during the weekend, then the stuffy head and sore throat kicked in. I was tested on Tuesday and got a negative result, but I'm generally staying at home, or at least avoiding people. The only thing I can think of that may have contributed is from when I went into a grocery store that didn't have many people inside, so I left the mask in my van as I wasn't going to be there for long. As I walked around a corner, a weapons-grade A-hole coughed up a lung when I was only a few feet away. I may have made a comment that could cause him to take umbrage, but I don't care- if someone is coughing that way, they need to stay the eff home or at the very least, wear a mask.

Aside from the cough, sneezing and occasional sore throat, I feel fine. If I felt the way I did the first time, I would probably be sleeping.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
An article which CBC News referred to today:
SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell epitope repertoire in convalescent and mRNA-vaccinated individuals:
This morning, I read that paper and came up with a short digest, so non-scientists might understand it better.

ABSTRACT
Continuously emerging variants of concern (VOCs) sustain the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. The SARS-CoV-2 Omicron/B.1.1.529 VOC harbours multiple mutations in the spike protein associated with high infectivity and efficient evasion from humoral immunity induced by previous infection or vaccination. By performing in-depth comparisons of the SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell epitope repertoire after infection and messenger RNA vaccination, we demonstrate that spike-derived epitopes were not dominantly targeted in convalescent individuals compared to non-spike epitopes. In vaccinees, however, we detected a broader spike-specific T-cell response compared to convalescent individuals. Booster vaccination increased the breadth of the spike-specific T-cell response in convalescent individuals but not in vaccinees with complete initial vaccination. In convalescent individuals and vaccinees, the targeted T-cell epitopes were broadly conserved between wild-type SARS-CoV-2 variant B and Omicron/B.1.1.529. Hence, our data emphasize the relevance of vaccine-induced spike-specific CD8+ T-cell responses in combating VOCs including Omicron/B.1.1.529 and support the benefit of boosting convalescent individuals with mRNA vaccines.

MAIN
The SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell epitope repertoire has been studied in some detail (1,2,3,4,5,6 (reviewed in Grifoni et al.7); however, comparative in-depth studies of the epitope repertoire targeted by infection- versus vaccine-induced T-cell responses are lacking thus far. Thus, precise prediction of the immune escape potential of emerging VOCs including Omicron/B.1.1.529 from the T-cell response in convalescent individuals compared to vaccinees is hardly possible. In this study, we evaluated SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell responses in convalescent individuals recovered from SARS-CoV-2 infection (n = 19) as well as individuals after 2 (n = 16) and 3 (n = 7) doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccination (Pfizer/BioNTech messenger RNA vaccine).
… …
In conclusion:
  1. Convalescent individuals target a variety of SARS-CoV-2-specific CD8+ T-cell epitopes over the complete SARS-CoV-2 proteome with spike-specific CD8+ T-cell responses being non-dominant.

  2. In contrast to the CD4+ T-cell response, CD8+ T-cell responses in vaccinees are focused on a broader repertoire of highly conserved spike-specific CD8+ T-cell epitopes leading to an increased cross-recognizing potential.

  3. Boosting convalescent individuals with mRNA vaccination results in a broader spike-specific CD8+ T-cell response.

  4. CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell responses in both convalescent individuals and vaccinees target epitopes that are highly conserved between WT SARS-CoV-2 variant B, Omicron/B.1.1.529 and potentially future emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants and thus cross-recognize these variants.
Hence, our data emphasize the relevance of mRNA vaccine-induced spike-specific CD8+ T-cell responses in combating emerging SARS-CoV-2 VOCs including Omicron/B.1.1.529 and support the benefit of also boosting convalescent individuals with mRNA vaccines.

I added a list of vocabulary & abbreviation to help readers understand some scientific jargon used in the paper, as Nature assumes readers have a scientific background. My list is not comprehensive. If other terms baffle you, just ask me, or look them up in Wikipedia.

Vocabulary & Abbreviations
VOC
is an abbreviation for variant of concern of an infectious virus.

Proteome is the entire set of proteins expressed by a genome, cell, tissue, or organism. In the case of a virus infection, it's the set of expressed proteins encoded by the virus mRNA.

Epitopes are small fragments of foreign proteins (not made by the host) that become targets of anti-bodies and T-cells. (How these foreign proteins get detected, get partially digested into epitope fragments, and ultimately become the targets of dedicated immune cells is complex and fascinating. I can’t state it simply.)

Humoral immunity is caused by antibody proteins in circulating blood and lymphatic fluid. Antibody proteins are produced by immune system B-cells. Antibodies bind tightly to virus particles circulating inside an infected person, preventing them from entering other cells, and making more virus particles. These antibodies, bound to virus particles, are cleared from the blood, getting destroyed and eliminated in the process.

Cellular immunity is immunity from T-cells. In contrast to antibody proteins, some T-cells detect and kill host cells that have been infected by virus. It stops the manufacture of more virus particles. Unlike antibodies, which can be used once, T-cells work repeatedly.

CD4+ T-cell is a T-cell sub-type, also known as a Helper T-cell. It detects virus-infected cells, and secretes signals to other immune system cells (both B-cells and T-cells). These signals can stimulate the development of immature B- and T-cells, and can alert mature B- and T-cells to become active.

CD8+ T-cell is a T-cell sub-type, also known as a Killer T-cell. It detects virus-infected cells, and directly kills them.
 
cpp

cpp

Audioholic Ninja
A friend of my wife's, had Covid back in Oct of last year. Took her 13 days o get rid of it. But !, she has been having some shortness of breath issues ( shes a runner and a health nut) so she went to her doctor. It appears she has what is called as 'long covid" which is long term effects from people that could impact people that have recovered from covid. She was diagnosed after a CT scan with ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) .In ARDS fluid builds up in the tiny air sacs of the lung called alveoli, limiting the ability to exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen. Before Covid she had just completed a 10 mile run event, and she finished 3, no issues all. So Covid can impact you at times long after you recover.
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
A friend of my wife's, had Covid back in Oct of last year. Took her 13 days o get rid of it. But !, she has been having some shortness of breath issues ( shes a runner and a health nut) so she went to her doctor. It appears she has what is called as 'long covid" which is long term effects from people that could impact people that have recovered from covid. She was diagnosed after a CT scan with ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) .In ARDS fluid builds up in the tiny air sacs of the lung called alveoli, limiting the ability to exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen. Before Covid she had just completed a 10 mile run event, and she finished 3, no issues all. So Covid can impact you at times long after you recover.
My resting pulse during COVID was higher than usual and I was short of breath the whole time but I could tell it was 'breaking' when my pulse started to return to normal. I still didn't have much endurance, but resting pulse was normal. After I got the negative test results, my endurance improved, but I still coughed occasionally and deep breaths weren't so deep. When I started having symptoms of something last week, my lung congestion improved and I can now take deep breaths without having a coughing fit- those continue, but without the restriction.

I bought a massage gun to treat my knee and have used it to treat the chest congestion- it works well and I started doing this because I remembered seeing a program showing this treatment for Cystic Fybrosis patients.
 
panteragstk

panteragstk

Audioholic Warlord
A friend of my wife's, had Covid back in Oct of last year. Took her 13 days o get rid of it. But !, she has been having some shortness of breath issues ( shes a runner and a health nut) so she went to her doctor. It appears she has what is called as 'long covid" which is long term effects from people that could impact people that have recovered from covid. She was diagnosed after a CT scan with ARDS (Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome) .In ARDS fluid builds up in the tiny air sacs of the lung called alveoli, limiting the ability to exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen. Before Covid she had just completed a 10 mile run event, and she finished 3, no issues all. So Covid can impact you at times long after you recover.
I'd guess it took me 4 months to get over the cough and feeling of my lungs not working as well as they normally do.
 
cpp

cpp

Audioholic Ninja
I'd guess it took me 4 months to get over the cough and feeling of my lungs not working as well as they normally do.
It seems unlike the flu and colds Covid just hits certain people with so many different after effects.
 
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