Dr Niman Q & A

[khs]

Hi Dr @niman

I have a few questions I would like to ask you regarding the various techniques nations are using to battle this virus.

Having witnessed this virus take hold of the planet and the various solutions the nations have come up with, I legitimately don't know which country is doing it best.

Here in the UK, the government are slowing down the spread of coronavirus (flattening the curve), rather than trying to stop it outright. They seem to think that the public will build up 'herd immunity' which will act as a buffer to help prevent further infections throughout the country. I have read a few pieces outlining why this is a bad idea [1] [2].

Completely isolating people seems to only work for the length of the isolation and as soon as people are released, reinfections occur and the country is back to square one. Especially in this globalized world where country borders are basically porous. Singapore appears to have effectively 'flattened the curve', but for how long do they need to keep operating on this level? Their numbers are still going up.

Some questions:

How can we create a vaccine or expect herd immunity when ADE [2] is an issue?

How can a nation expect to defeat the virus by putting their entire economy and people into lock down when as soon as they're released there will be outbreaks again? (as is reported in China)

Thanks

Karl

1) “Flattening the Curve” is a deadly delusion https://medium.com/@joschabach/flattening-the-curve-is-a-deadly-delusion-eea324fe9727

2) Molecular Mechanism for Antibody-Dependent Enhancement of Coronavirus Entry https://jvi.asm.org/content/94/5/e02015-19

3) Chinese studies link quarantines with coronavirus mutations that may make it more ‘insidious’ https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3074938/chinese-studies-link-quarantines-coronavirus-mutations-may-make

 

Edited March 15, 2020 by khs

[Dimitar]

These are some very interesting questions and I'd also want to know the answers