Basically, sounds like similar protection as AZ (which is the same type of vaccine, so that was expected), which I’m interpreting as “very good but not great.” Much discussion happening about whether those that got J&J should get an mRNA as a booster. Ugh…hard for me to feel good about that with so much of the world completely unvaccinated but living in a household with 2 unvaccinated kiddos…
Also, still watching Gamma (Brazil variant) warily…
Their proportion of pediatric deaths is much higher than the US, but they think that was possibly the case even before that variant emerged?
But Delta is the one gaining proportion in the US.
There’s also the complication that healthcare in Brazil is not great if you’re not part of the 1%. And the poverty rate (and the fact that many live in crowded unsanitary housing) is sky high.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s terrible and I feel horrible for the people who are suffering. I just don’t think we will see that kind of mortality here.
I was thinking more the proportionality of the fatalities being kids being quite different.
Confirmed total fatalities
US 605k
Brazil 520k
Ballpark similar totals.
Per the CNN article:
US confirmed fatalities under 18 ~400
Brazil confirmed fatalities under 10 ~1100
Very much skewed younger.
I thought maybe population make-up could be skewing it (maybe Brazil has a lot younger population?), but I don’t think this age data (from statistica) would account for It?
Eh maybe.
I still think socio economic issues are a big factor. According to an article I read on NYT, the last few epidemics have been deadlier to Brazilian children than adults.
Malnutrition, unsanitary conditions and the fact that many children in Brazil are forced to work in mines, plantations, and fishing boats (not to mention trafficking) to help their families lead to an overall poor standard of living. 60% of the children in Brazil live in poverty.
I noted one of the authors of the article is Dr. Hotez (Baylor College of Medicine). His work is referenced frequently by Dr. Klotman in his Friday BCM briefings so that carries some weight with me.
The article includes this recommendation:
And the United States needs to continue its efforts to vaccinate adolescents and to approve vaccines for younger children and infants. Public health officials must also continue to educate parents about the very real threat that Covid-19 poses to their children and the importance of vaccination. Otherwise, pediatric and infant Covid-19 may become a tragic new reality.
So it sounds like he’s not dismissing the numbers as due to only socio-economic factors.
Oh I don’t think it’s the only reason by a longshot, I just think it is a big one.
I personally think that one of the the reasons certain countries are struggling with covid and have to keep shutting down is because they aren’t making vaccinating the younger people a priority.
Now some countries like Brazil are having trouble getting the vaccine to even the people at most risk, but I meant specifically more affluent nations.
But Americans have been doing normal things for months. And they have variants over there including Delta. I don’t get why things are so bad here, considering our vaccination rates. I agree with what you’ve said previously though, if case rates are soaring but hospitalisations and deaths are low, it is time to get things back to normal. But now it sounds like you don’t think we should?
I think we should be sensible and abandon absolutes. I would not choose to travel on the Tube right now. But I want to be able to make that choice. I would not — actually — fly to Orlando and spend a week at WDW right now. But I want to be able to make that choice, too.
Cases, deaths and hospitalizations continue to fall in my state and county. PA is in the top 10 states for adults immunized. My county is running about the same as the overall country as far as vaccinations for the whole population. I think I read yesterday that that the Delta variant is 1% of the cases in this state. Things are definitely returning to normal here. I have not seen people crowded in like those pictures, but I also don’t live in a big city. I was at a a local minor league baseball game last night with DH. It was not maxed out what so ever. But I saw maybe 2 kids with masks in the whole stadium. (DH and I are vaccinated).
Yet despite our vaccination rates, ours are still rapidly climbing - 10k on 19th June only 2 weeks ago, nearly 27k yesterday. But the vast majority of ours are delta. And the cases are mainly in people too young to be vaccinated (under 18s) and very recently vaccinated with the first dose (under 25s). I think we need to get our 12-17 year olds vaccinated to bring numbers down.
Not just the UK, but yes that was what I was saying. Countries that aren’t making vaccinating younger people a priority seem to be struggling more. Australia, France. Russia is having a terrible time and everyone is eligible to get a vaccine there, but anti vaccine sentiments is so high that 62% of the population is refusing a vaccine, and when you look at the 18-24 set, it’s as high as 75% refusal.
