South Korea reports more recovered coronavirus patients testing positive again

[snoop1130]

South Korea reports more recovered coronavirus patients testing positive again

By Josh Smith

 

FILE PHOTO: A general view shows an outdoor gym which has been cordoned off as part of efforts to avoid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Seoul, South Korea, April 7, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

 

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea reported on Monday that at least 116 people initially cleared of the new coronavirus had tested positive again, although officials suggested they would soon look at easing strict recommendations aimed at preventing new outbreaks.

 

South Korea reported only 25 new cases overall on Monday, but the rise in “reactivated” patients has raised concerns as the country seeks to stamp out infections.

 

Officials are still investigating the cause of the apparent relapses. But Jeong Eun-kyeong, director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), has said the virus may have been reactivated rather than the patients being re-infected.

 

Other experts said faulty tests may be playing a role, or remnants of the virus may still be in patients’ systems but not be infectious or of danger to the host or others.

 

The 116 cases is more than double the 51 such cases South Korea reported a week earlier.

 

South Korea plans to send 600,000 coronavirus testing kits to the United States on Tuesday in the first such shipment following a request from U.S. President Donald Trump, a Seoul official told Reuters on Monday.

 

Government leaders, meanwhile, called on South Koreans to continue to follow guidelines and restrictions on social gatherings, but hinted that such measures could soon be eased.

 

South Korea has called on residents to follow strict social distancing until at least April 19, but as cases have dropped and the weather has improved, a growing number of people have been flouting the guidelines.

 

At a meeting on disaster management on Monday, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said the government would soon be looking to loosen the guidelines, which call for people to stay at home, avoid social gatherings of any type, and only go out for essential reasons.

 

“Later this week, we plan to review our intensive social distancing campaign that we have carried out so far and discuss whether we will switch to routine safety measures” he said.

 

Some local governments have imposed stricter measures, including closing bars and nightclubs, banning large demonstrations, and limiting church services.

 

Chung cautioned that even when the restrictions are eased, the country will not return to life as before the outbreak.

 

“We need a very cautious approach because any premature easing of social distancing could bring irreversible consequences, and have to ponder deeply about when and how we switch to the new system,” he said.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-04-13

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[Justgrazing]

25 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

, but the rise in “reactivated” patients has raised concerns as the country seeks to stamp out infections

There are also some reports of new cases bubbling up in CCP but not clear if they are new infections or " reactivated " as they say ..

Just about the last thing we need ..

[Tug]

That adds a whole new level to this pandemic do the relapsesers have the capacity to infect others? Yeiks!

[Deli]

14 hours ago, Tug said:

That adds a whole new level to this pandemic do the relapsesers have the capacity to infect others? Yeiks!

You better ask Dr. No

[Pedrogaz]

The seeds of the next pandemic. Bats, pangolins and recovered patients. This is serious stuff. 

Edited April 14, 2020 by Pedrogaz

[dunroaming]

19 hours ago, Tug said:

That adds a whole new level to this pandemic do the relapsesers have the capacity to infect others? Yeiks!

We need an effective vaccine and the sooner the better

[daveAustin]

21 hours ago, Justgrazing said:

There are also some reports of new cases bubbling up in CCP 

With a bit of luck it'll rip through the politburo. 

[Krataiboy]

Herd immunity through exposure is historically the way to defeat a pandemic. This means letting children return to school as soon as possible in order to spread the current virus.

 

The vast majority of youngsters who become infected will likely suffer only mild symptoms or none at all - as will the most of the adults they pass the germ on to.  This, unfortunately, does not apply to the vulnerable elderly they may bump into, who account for around eighty percent of C-19 fatalities worldwide.

 

So the problem boils down to keeping the generations apart. This is obviously easier in care homes than the countless thousands of the multi-generational households in Thailand.

 

As an old guy with a youngish wife and teenage daughter, I am frankly flummoxed at what to do for the best when school re-starts and the virus may well have transformed the light of my life into the equivalent of a suicide bomber. I'm guessing I'm not the only guy in this situation.

 

If push comes to shove, I suppose I could always take myself off for a month's self-isolation in a luxury hotel with stunning views and healthy Alpine air. Recommendations anyone?

Edited April 14, 2020 by Krataiboy

[balo]

Some people are now comparing COVID19 with the HIV virus,  Should we be worried?  

Covid-19 may attack immune system like HIV

 

Edited April 14, 2020 by balo

[daveAustin]

25 minutes ago, Krataiboy said:

If push comes to shove, I suppose I could always take myself off for a month's self-isolation in a luxury hotel with stunning views and healthy Alpine air. Recommendations anyone?

Bang yourself up and await vaccine. 

[Krataiboy]

1 hour ago, daveAustin said:

Bang yourself up and await vaccine. 

You probably mean well, but the only way they'll get me to take one of Dr Bill's snake-oil remedies is by putting me in a straitjacket first.

[Redline]

I’m worried about this, as I read they don’t sell bats at the suspected Wuhan market.  Reinfection would be odd 

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/14/state-department-cables-warned-safety-issues-wuhan-lab-studying-bat-coronaviruses/?utm_campaign=wp_post_most&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

[Chazar]

18 minutes ago, Redline said:

I’m worried about this, as I read they don’t sell bats at the suspected Wuhan market.  Reinfection would be odd 

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/14/state-department-cables-warned-safety-issues-wuhan-lab-studying-bat-coronaviruses/?utm_campaign=wp_post_most&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

and  if  ever  proven  would  sign  Chinas  death knell

[Stargeezr]

I would Not want to be reinfected, if I had suffered already

from the Corona Virus, immunity weakened, as well as many

body parts. Wow, it would likely kill me the second time around.

Just saying..

Geezer

[unblocktheplanet]

We just don't know yet if those in whom Covid reinfected or reactivated are now vectors of contagion. Herd immunity is only possible with natural infection. Vaccines don't provide that level of immunity. For those whose immune system is already compromised, like diabetics, it would be the vaccine that kills them. 

[yuyiinthesky]

On 4/13/2020 at 6:54 PM, snoop1130 said:

Other experts said faulty tests may be playing a role, or remnants of the virus may still be in patients’ systems but not be infectious or of danger to the host or others.

 

These tests are not 100% reliable, so that is is quite plausible.

[Redline]

22 hours ago, Chazar said:

and  if  ever  proven  would  sign  Chinas  death knell

I guess some countries want an investigation 

[Monomial]

On 4/14/2020 at 5:05 PM, balo said:

Some people are now comparing COVID19 with the HIV virus,  Should we be worried?  

Covid-19 may attack immune system like HIV

 

 

No. It doesn't attack like HIV. HIV actually hides inside the T4 cell and uses it to replicate itself. Covid-19 simply kills the T4 cell outright, destroying itself in the process.

 

The parallel to HIV is made because both viruses attack your immune system. But HIV is orders of magnitude worse because it not only kills your cells, but stays active and continues to replicate. Covid-19 just destroys the cell on a suicide mission.

 

Let's not spread any more rumors than are already out there.

 

 

[thaibeachlovers]

On 4/13/2020 at 11:54 PM, snoop1130 said:

remnants of the virus may still be in patients’ systems but not be infectious or of danger to the host or others.

That's the important thing. If someone tests positive but is not going to get sick and is not infectious it just means they don't have to worry about going back to a normal life.

[Monomial]

11 hours ago, unblocktheplanet said:

We just don't know yet if those in whom Covid reinfected or reactivated are now vectors of contagion. Herd immunity is only possible with natural infection. Vaccines don't provide that level of immunity. For those whose immune system is already compromised, like diabetics, it would be the vaccine that kills them. 

 

I would disagree with the statement that a vaccine can not provide the required level of immunity. That is not true in the general case. You would need to specify the exact conditions under which you make this statement. It is not clear to me why you would say that. Polio, measles, etc... all of them result in herd immunity through vaccination.

 

The most serious question we need to answer is how this reactivation happens, and what effect that has. So much depends on that.  The faster we get to herd immunity, the better off we are. Nobody benefits from destroying the economy through this poorly conceived lockdown.

 

But until we understand what this reactivation means, it throws up all kinds of questions which we can only speculate on.  The only examples we have of a virus reactivating previously are ones that remain dormant and then suddenly flare up again. If that is the case, then this lockdown is even more useless, as "flattening the curve" becomes meaningless if the SIR model itself is invalid.

[thaibeachlovers]

2 hours ago, Monomial said:

I would disagree with the statement that a vaccine can not provide the required level of immunity.

It can, but only if enough people take it. Measles broke out again because enough parents didn't get their children immunised.