File photo

 

Thailand on Thursday (January 6) reported 5,775 new COVID-19 cases, 2,673 recoveries and 11 additional deaths over the past 24 hours. 

 

▶︎ Infections outside prisons: 5,698. Prisons: 77

▶︎ Recoveries: 2,673

▶︎ Total infections since April 1: 2,216,387

▶︎ Total recoveries since April 1: 2,158,076

 

Thursday’s cases bring the total number of COVID-19 infections in Thailand to 2,245,250 with 21,780 deaths.

 

The news comes as Thailand is facing the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic sooner than anticipated, with the curve of infections on a steep rise and body temperature scanners installed in most offices and public venues not catching asymptomatic cases, said Dr. Somsak Akksilp, director-general of Medical Services today (Wednesday).

 

Dr. Somsak was quoting a forecast by Dr. Sunt Srianthumrong, a special lecturer at the Graduate School of Environmental Development Administration of the National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA).

*Thai PBS contributed to this report

 

Discover Cigna’s range of health insurance solutions created for expats and local nationals living in Thailand - click to view

 

 

 

-- © Copyright  ASEAN NOW 2022-01-06

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow ASEAN NOW on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

 

Get your business in front of millions of customers who read ASEAN NOW with an interest in Thailand every month - email [email protected] for more information

https://twitter.com/ThaiNewsReports/status/1478890413356318720

 

https://twitter.com/ThaiNewsReports/status/1478874972500094978

 

https://twitter.com/ThaiNewsReports/status/1478869705037205504

 

Totally expected after the New Year night life, and with government employees now subject to mandatory ATK tests.

At the same time, totally overblown since most cases are asymptomatic.

PCR test positive cases, total of 5,775 official new infections. 11 official covid deaths recorded.

 

Rapid tests positive cases, 1,079 bringing the total of PCR and ATK results to 6,854

https://ddc.moph.go.th/covid19-dashboard/

 

Rolling 7 day average chart (up to 4th Jan)

https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus/country/thailand

5 minutes ago, arithai12 said:

Totally expected after the New Year night life, and with government employees now subject to mandatory ATK tests.

At the same time, totally overblown since most cases are asymptomatic.

 

It is not overblown. Try watching the news where countries actually take care of its citizens with doctors and nurses overwhelmed. Not everyone is spending their time in tropical country being a chief medical officer.

No surprise that the number of positives has jumped so high. Yesterday there were 3,555 positive ATK test results. Looks like most were not false positives!

 

Looks like the old saying is true - 'seek (test) and ye shall find.'

As long as the "new cases" are not related to the total number of tests, the count is useless.

24 minutes ago, webfact said:

body temperature scanners installed in most offices and public venues not catching asymptomatic cases, said Dr. Somsak Akksilp, director-general of Medical Services today (Wednesday).

Temp scanners have always been only a very small part of catching the infected since Delta where fever was/is one of the lesser symptoms. Seems even less for Omicron so they (temp scanners) are pretty much less than useless. 

Again I say it would be very useful to have a Delta/Omicron breakdown.

7 minutes ago, Bkk Brian said:

PCR test positive cases, total of 5,775 official new infections. 11 official covid deaths recorded.

 

Rapid tests positive cases, 1,079 bringing the total of PCR and ATK results to 6,854

https://ddc.moph.go.th/covid19-dashboard/

 

Rolling 7 day average chart (up to 4th Jan)

https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus/country/thailand

There is the upwards climb that Omicron brings and we can expect it to go higher.  The ATK tests however leave a lot to be desired and one has to take them with a grain of salt.  Talked with a friend who had been feeling under the weather, very sore throat and chest congestion, he was taking some over the counter decongestant and thought he might have Strep Throat.  He took a saliva antigen test and was positive after having used a nasal swab ATK kit earlier in the day, a difference of 3 hours between tests.  He then tested again with a nasal swab and was negative, saliva antigen positive.  

 

Been reading some reports on how a throat swab is now being assessed as to being able to detect Omicron. However, these are just written reports and stories with nothing substantiated my scientific means as of yet.

 

https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/fda-issues-testing-guidance-amid-omicron-throat-swab-debate/2721570/

According to the FDA's testing guidance, which was last updated in December, "different tests are authorized to be used with different types of samples," but the most common sample types include nasal or throat swabs and saliva samples.

The FDA warned, however, of potential safety concerns for self-collection of throat swabs "as they are more complicated than nasal swabs - and if used incorrectly, can cause harm to the patient." The agency added that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends throat swabs be collected by a trained health care provider.

No surprise. The next wave is here. Expect deaths to stay low with this variant.

 

Also expect the government's least favourite activities to be 'restricted' again shortly. Of course this will make no difference to the spread as Covid doesn't care about fake puritanism and pompous posturing.

 

Anecdotally, the company I work for tested around 300 employees on Tuesday before allowing us back into the offices/factory and not a single one tested positive. I was amazed, but the general gossip amongst my Thai colleagues was that the test kits that were being used are one of the brands unable to detect Omicron and will be changed for the next round of tests. I didn't bother looking into this to verify it but it makes me wonder if this is the case at many testing venues.

Tip of the iceberg, but stop testing and you'd hardly know that Omicron exists. 

In Pattaya, I personally know of 3 massage shops that are closed due to positive tests.

Driving around, seems other "closed" signs on businesses that were open before with a sign out front  showing opening in a few days.  I assume just more employees positive.

1 minute ago, Capella said:

Tip of the iceberg, but stop testing and you'd hardly know that Omicron exists. 

There are 1,847 people in America who would disagree with you, but they died of Covid yesterday.

6 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

There is the upwards climb that Omicron brings and we can expect it to go higher.  The ATK tests however leave a lot to be desired and one has to take them with a grain of salt.  Talked with a friend who had been feeling under the weather, very sore throat and chest congestion, he was taking some over the counter decongestant and thought he might have Strep Throat.  He took a saliva antigen test and was positive after having used a nasal swab ATK kit earlier in the day, a difference of 3 hours between tests.  He then tested again with a nasal swab and was negative, saliva antigen positive.  

 

Been reading some reports on how a throat swab is now being assessed as to being able to detect Omicron. However, these are just written reports and stories with nothing substantiated my scientific means as of yet.

 

https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/fda-issues-testing-guidance-amid-omicron-throat-swab-debate/2721570/

According to the FDA's testing guidance, which was last updated in December, "different tests are authorized to be used with different types of samples," but the most common sample types include nasal or throat swabs and saliva samples.

The FDA warned, however, of potential safety concerns for self-collection of throat swabs "as they are more complicated than nasal swabs - and if used incorrectly, can cause harm to the patient." The agency added that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends throat swabs be collected by a trained health care provider.

Pardon my ignorance, but I thought the whole idea was to swab the nose and mouth at the same time? A kind of capture all?

 

I certainly dont think ATK kits should be taken with a grain of salt, I know numerous people who displayed symptoms and used them to test, the result was positive and now they are self isolating.

 

I'm recovered now, but that was the route I took. This kits allow people to act responibly without the prospect of being hauled off to the Gulag if they tell someone.

4 minutes ago, sungod said:

Pardon my ignorance, but I thought the whole idea was to swab the nose and mouth at the same time? A kind of capture all?

 

I certainly dont think ATK kits should be taken with a grain of salt, I know numerous people who displayed symptoms and used them to test, the result was positive and now they are self isolating.

 

I'm recovered now, but that was the route I took. This kits allow people to act responibly without the prospect of being hauled off to the Gulag if they tell someone.

Well swabbing the mouth and nose would be fine as they do undertake that for PCR tests, but the ATK test swab instructions do not have you swabbing your throat just your nostrils.

7 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

There are 1,847 people in America who would disagree with you, but they died of Covid yesterday.

Incidental cases, most of those. Omicron is mild. I've had it and I'm in a risk group. 

1 minute ago, ThailandRyan said:

Well swabbing the mouth and nose would be fine as they do undertake that for PCR tests, but the ATK test swab instructions do not have you swabbing your throat just your nostrils.

Must depend on the kit then, my kids school swab both, the kits I have at home allow both.

17 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

No surprise. The next wave is here. Expect deaths to stay low with this variant.

 

Also expect the government's least favourite activities to be 'restricted' again shortly. Of course this will make no difference to the spread as Covid doesn't care about fake puritanism and pompous posturing.

 

Anecdotally, the company I work for tested around 300 employees on Tuesday before allowing us back into the offices/factory and not a single one tested positive. I was amazed, but the general gossip amongst my Thai colleagues was that the test kits that were being used are one of the brands unable to detect Omicron and will be changed for the next round of tests. I didn't bother looking into this to verify it but it makes me wonder if this is the case at many testing venues.

 

For insight into how Thailand's Omicron deaths might play out in reality, as opposed to fantasy, the South African "weekly excess deaths from natural causes" data are useful to consult

 

(Source: https://www.samrc.ac.za/sites/default/files/files/2022-01-05/weekly1Jan2022.pdf )

 

 

1 minute ago, sungod said:

Must depend on the kit then, my kids school swab both, the kits I have at home allow both.

Yes must be the Kit. This is the Roche ATK test kit instructions. This one says Nasal on the test. Maybe yours says Nasal and Throat. Have not seen one of those.  I also have the Saliva antigen kits as well.

14 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

There are 1,847 people in America who would disagree with you, but they died of Covid yesterday.

Did they? Do you know if it was Omicron or Delta? Delta is still active in the US and taking into account the lag between infection and death it's very likely this number represents Delta deaths at least the majority.

18 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

No surprise. The next wave is here. Expect deaths to stay low with this variant.

 

Also expect the government's least favourite activities to be 'restricted' again shortly. Of course this will make no difference to the spread as Covid doesn't care about fake puritanism and pompous posturing.

 

Anecdotally, the company I work for tested around 300 employees on Tuesday before allowing us back into the offices/factory and not a single one tested positive. I was amazed, but the general gossip amongst my Thai colleagues was that the test kits that were being used are one of the brands unable to detect Omicron and will be changed for the next round of tests. I didn't bother looking into this to verify it but it makes me wonder if this is the case at many testing venues.

That depends a bit, yes its less harsh but its like 40 or more times more contagious. So if its 5 times less lethal it would still cause more deaths (simple math)

 

Thing is in Thailand they don't do proper testing so many deaths will go unregistered. Hell i won't test unless I am really sick and even then i home isolate.  (unless it becomes dangerous).

 

Lots of Thais also don't want to go to state quarantine. So the numbers stay low this uptick actually should be multiplied many times to get the real numbers.

 

Anyway stay safe, just anecdotal evidence. My whole family in the Netherlands got omicron. Brother and his wife, daughter and my parents. Dad heart problems and some other nasty stuff, mom chain smoker always sick, brother diabetic and some bowel and other diseases, his wife strong as horse never sick.

 

All of course vaccinated no antivax in my family.

 

Now the ones we worried about the most mom and dad and my bro. Bro.. nothing no symptoms smiling and happy. Dad a 3-4 days feeling sick and bad but over it, mom longer sick more coughing (told her smoking is not great) but recovered. Daughter no problems. The wife, healthy sporty two weeks out of the running breathing problems and all. Now cure d but long covid. No stamina hard to focus. (there are other things then dying to worry about)

 

Dad lost stamina too but not super much, mom has no stamina nothing to lose.

 

But it was totally unexpected that the one we expected to have no problems got it worst and now has long covid, lets hope she gets back to normal soon. It sucks. 

 

Its a big gamble. 

 

 

On the bright side, deaths dropped by almost half.

36 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

There is the upwards climb that Omicron brings and we can expect it to go higher.  The ATK tests however leave a lot to be desired and one has to take them with a grain of salt.  Talked with a friend who had been feeling under the weather, very sore throat and chest congestion, he was taking some over the counter decongestant and thought he might have Strep Throat.  He took a saliva antigen test and was positive after having used a nasal swab ATK kit earlier in the day, a difference of 3 hours between tests.  He then tested again with a nasal swab and was negative, saliva antigen positive.  

 

Been reading some reports on how a throat swab is now being assessed as to being able to detect Omicron. However, these are just written reports and stories with nothing substantiated my scientific means as of yet.

 

https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/fda-issues-testing-guidance-amid-omicron-throat-swab-debate/2721570/

According to the FDA's testing guidance, which was last updated in December, "different tests are authorized to be used with different types of samples," but the most common sample types include nasal or throat swabs and saliva samples.

The FDA warned, however, of potential safety concerns for self-collection of throat swabs "as they are more complicated than nasal swabs - and if used incorrectly, can cause harm to the patient." The agency added that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends throat swabs be collected by a trained health care provider.

Yes difficult to know which ATK is more accurate, the saliva only which are the ones we use or the swab ones. The school my daughter goes to recommends the saliva only but I think that’s for convenience sake for kids testing?

 

I found it very interesting on what Chris Whitty UK Medical officer said in a press briefing a couple of days ago on antigen tests. They need more of the virus present regardless of variant to detect a positive case, the benefit of this is that it also detects that you are at the infectious stage and should be isolating. Whereas the PCR test only requires a tiny amount present to return positive but you may not be infectious.

 

This was the basis for their decisions on self isolation in the UK for ending it with an antigen test and not a PCR.

 

My takeaway on this being that antigen tests have more false negatives but when positive you are certainly infectious and should isolate.

13 minutes ago, Macrohistory said:

 

For insight into how Thailand's Omicron deaths might play out in reality, as opposed to fantasy, the South African "weekly excess deaths from natural causes" data are useful to consult

 

(Source: https://www.samrc.ac.za/sites/default/files/files/2022-01-05/weekly1Jan2022.pdf )

 

 

It seems the South Africa government wants the world to think that Omicron has finished there, and is not testing much.

I am wondering how many Omicron cases, because they keep their mouth shut about it... last update was Tuesday with 2062 cases and yesterday no info and today??? Of course I know it take 3 days, but Sunday cases are known on Wednesday, Monday on Thursday, Tuesday on Friday and so on.. It is not that they not started this week with testing so... why no daily updates?? To many which may cause panick??? 

13 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Yes must be the Kit. This is the Roche ATK test kit instructions. This one says Nasal on the test. Maybe yours says Nasal and Throat. Have not seen one of those.  I also have the Saliva antigen kits as well.

Yes and this is the saliva only one we use weekly.

3 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

It seems the South Africa government wants the world to think that Omicron has finished there, and is not testing much.

Yet their covid deaths keep rising

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/south-africa/

 

5 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

It seems the South Africa government wants the world to think that Omicron has finished there, and is not testing much.

 

I agree.  South Africa has a population close in size to that of the UK, but the highest case number it ever reported during the Omicron wave was c. 37,000.  That's many times lower than the highest UK case number of >200,000.  Doesn't make sense.  Even though SA had been hit by other variants before, it was also under-vaccinated when Omicron came calling.

 

Excess deaths is a much harder figure to massage.