Merging Cultures

Aww just look at him. You're making him sad!

Wishing him and yourself all the best.

We're hoping that the pangolin population gets a bit of a rest. It's the most trafficked mammal, and super cute.

We had a message from the High Commission yesterday, which said if Brits are working in Zambia they should head home now. Fortunately I know people there, so I contacted them and asked what that was about. Apparently it was sent out by mistake. They said that as soon as the flights are full or cancelled people are complaining about not being able to leave countries. I have no sympathy. We are choosing to stay, because this is where we live. But we could have left weeks ago, and I am sure the same with the tourists. It's not like it isn't on the media constantly.

Pot noodles

The Ministry of Health in Zambia has just reported it's first two cases. A man and woman came back from France on 15 March. The two kids are negative.

I mentioned this company a few days ago about how they are treating ARDS, the cause of death for people affected by corona. They have their Shareholders meeting tomorrow, where below is likely to be announced. I am going to try to buy a boatload of shares in the morning! https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/even-coronavirus-survivors-can-be-left-with-lung-damage-that-takes-15-years-to-heal-msh8zmwtb Even coronavirus survivors can be left with lung damage that takes 15 years to heal Jonathan Leake, Science Editor Sunday March 15 2020, 12.01am GMT, The Sunday Times Thousands of coronavirus victims who survive serious illness will suffer damage to their lungs, heart and other organs, needing up to 15 years for recovery, say intensive care specialists. The damage done by the virus directly, plus the intensive medical procedures needed to save desperately ill patients, will leave people with lung scarring, nerve damage and psychological trauma, according to warnings from the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine (FICM), the professional body responsible for training intensive care doctors in the UK. Its analysis of coronavirus cases in China and elsewhere shows that about 17% of people admitted to intensive care develop a condition called acute respiratory distress syndrome (Ards) — one of the most lethal conditions in medicine, with a mortality rate of about 40%. “The impact of coronavirus on intensive care will fundamentally change the way nursing, medical and other staff groups work during the pandemic, and the intensity with which they will work,” said Dr Daniele Bryden, vice-dean of the FICM. In Ards the virus triggers a powerful inflammatory response across the lungs which causes fluids to leak from blood vessels into spaces that should be filled with air — making breathing impossible without medical assistance. Intensive care doctors are familiar with Ards because it can happen in infections such as flu and pneumonia, as well as chest injuries. It accounts for about 10% of intensive care admissions, but coronavirus means the number of Ards patients will surge, creating a critical shortage of intensive care beds. The UK has about 4,000 such beds — far fewer per head than most EU countries — and about 80% are in use for people with other conditions. “Ards kills 30-40% of patients,” said Michael Matthay, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, a world expert on the disease. “There is no specific treatment except to sedate patients and put them on mechanical ventilators to let them recover . . . Survivors have significant exercise limitation and poor physical quality of life . . . related to marked muscle wasting and weakness.” Eileen Rubin, who spent weeks in a drug-induced coma after acquiring Ards through a lung infection and who now runs the US Ards Foundation, said: “Ards is like drowning in air. But even if you recover, the damage lasts for years. Those of us who have had Ards are living in fear of what coronavirus might do to us and to others.” Mark Griffiths, professor of critical care medicine at the National Heart and Lung Institute, London, and one of the UK’s leading Ards experts, said patients could take months or years to recover. “Survivors commonly suffer from muscle weakness and neuropsychiatric problems, such that fewer than 50% have returned to work 12 months after leaving intensive care,” he said in a paper. “[They also had] myriad physical disabilities including . . . joint contractures, tracheal stenosis, and cosmetic concerns related to scarring.” The FICM said that some people could regain “apparently normal” lungs after six months, with minimal symptoms such as reduced ability to exercise, but added: “For some, however, it could take as long as 15 years for their lungs to recover.” It also warned of damage to other organs. “Like many other viral conditions, the effects of coronavirus are not just limited to the lungs. The heart can also be affected, ranging from inflammation (myocarditis) to heart failure.” “For people who are seriously ill with coronavirus the outlook is very serious,” said Nicki Credland, a researcher in critical care at Hull University, who chairs the British Association of Critical Care Nurses. She warned of “tough choices” to come, with doctors potentially having to select whom they should save — a process known as triage. She said: “If we see the kind of numbers we’ve seen in Italy, then we will have to select those who are most likely to survive, and the rest will be in ordinary beds and have to take their chances.” There may, however, be one cause for hope. This week US and UK scientists will announce that a long-running research programme to create the world’s first Ards therapy is to be fast-tracked by US medical agencies including the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. Geoff Bellingan, medical director at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, has been testing the therapy, devised by Athersys, a US biotechnology company. It involves infusing specialised stem cells into the blood of Ards victims to halt the devastating lung inflammation it causes. “The Ards trials are exciting,” said Bellingan. “Our treatment was able to halve mortality, reduce time spent in intensive care and give patients a big improvement in quality of life after they are discharged. With coronavirus threatening us, this could be very important.”

Zambia checking on three potential cases. I am sure it is here already, just not been tested properly for. The hospital responsible is not very good at all. We've just cancelled a conference for businesses from a European country to Zambia. Still supposed to be going to the European country end of April. But I can't see that happening.

The virus can also live in the air for hours. Federally funded tests conducted by scientists from several major institutions indicated that the novel form of coronavirus behind a worldwide outbreak can survive in the air for several hours. A study awaiting peer review from scientists at Princeton University, the University of California-Los Angeles and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) posted online Wednesday indicated that the COVID-19 virus could remain viable in the air "up to 3 hours post aerosolization," while remaining alive on plastic and other surfaces for up to three days. https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/487110-tests-indicate-coronavirus-can-survive-in-the-air

Chelsea have cancelled training after coronavirus scare. https://theathletic.com/1671855/2020/03/12/chelsea-coronavirus-training-cancelled-cobham/?amp#click=https://t.co/kVTmvEawIr

Just symptoms though right? Or have they confirmed they have it?

Time to suspend the league

Barnes!!??????!!!!!

Mendy?! Nice cameo

Nice goal!