We are currently in what seems to be Worst Covid-19 summer outbreak in yearsEspecially in the southern United States. According to data from Centers for Disease Control (CDC)All the metrics related to Covid-19 that we should be concerned about – not just cases, but also hospitalizations and deaths.
Even if we are no longer in the depths of an epidemic, and we have treatments to reduce its severity and vaccines to protect against it, infection with Covid-19 carries risks. This is especially true for people over age 65, people with comorbidities such as heart disease or lung disease, or those who are immunocompromised. And the lingering health challenges of long-term Covid remain a risk.
The good news is that overall, Americans are much more protected against serious illness than we were before, because most people have been infected, vaccinated, or both. However, it is still important to exercise caution as Covid-19 cases increase In most states across the United States.
Here’s what we know so far about this year’s growth and what you can do to keep yourself and your community healthy.
How do we know we’re in a summer wave?
The Centers for Disease Control found that cases were increasing or likely to increase in 32 states. This follows a seasonal pattern that has started to emerge with Covid. We saw a similar uptick last summer, although according to CDC data, cases have Levels exceeded this time last year.
“It’s not just last summer – even when we had the epidemic, if you look at the graphs, infections were always very high in summer and winter,” said Kizmekia Corbett-HellerAssistant Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases at the Harvard School of Public Health.
“We don’t know exactly why the summer increase occurs,” Corbett-Heller said. Some of this may be due to inherent characteristics of the virus and some due to human behavior, such as increased travel.
right now, Covid hospitalizations and deaths Increasing but still relatively low — the latest data shows that 1.5 percent of deaths in the U.S. are the result of Covid, and 2.3 percent of emergency room visits in the week ending August 3 were diagnosed as Covid-19.
CDC data comes from several sources. But an important source for tracking transmission rates is wastewater testing, which involves tracking the amount of virus in local sewage. Early in the epidemic, before at-home testing was accessible, data from clinical trials was used to track infection rates. Now, however, fewer Americans are testing and reporting their status, making test-based tracking unreliable.
This makes wastewater testing the best available metric for getting a timely picture of disease presence in a community, according to Amesh AdaljaSenior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.
“It’s becoming the way of the future” and being used to test for the presence of other illnesses, including empox, he told Vox.
And is called waste water The United States is in the midst of a surge in infections not seen since last winter, the worst increase since 2022.
What is the variant driving it? And how are they transmitted?
There is no single variant of the virus currently dominant – there is a group of variants referred to as FLiRT, which come from JN.1 variant. D The name is FLiRT The technical names refer to where the mutations causing these variants occurred; In this case, the virus spikes on proteins that help it attach to a cell and infect it.
LB.1, which has many similarities to the FLiRT variant, but has an additional mutation, is also circulating. LB.1 may be more transmissible than other dominant variants, but experts don’t know for sure. And, as a CDC spokesperson told Vox, “there is no data at this time to indicate that this variant causes more severe COVID-19.” Symptoms, the spokesperson said, are similar to other forms.
According to Latest CDC data (From July 21 to August 3, 2024) LB.1 accounts for about 16 percent of US Covid cases. The FLiRT variant, meanwhile, represents more than half of all cases.
In terms of transmission, not much has changed either – you can still get these strains of Covid from an infected person if you’re in close contact with them, especially indoors in crowded or poorly ventilated spaces. Masking and vaccination are the best ways to prevent infection.
When are you contagious if you have covid?
FLiRT is no different from other forms in terms of infectivity — you’re definitely contagious until you test positive in an at-home test.
You can be contagious one to two days before your symptoms appear, however, And that’s when you’re more likely to infect others. Sneezing, coughing, talking, singing, cheering or breathing heavily (as you might during exercise) transmits the virus through aerosol particles, which can stay in a room and infect others even after you leave.
What should I do if I have covid?
Covid-positive people should isolate for at least 24 hours until their symptoms improve and they no longer have a fever. According to the latest CDC guidelines (Which also applies to flu and RSV).
But even if you feel better, you can still be contagious. So if you must break your isolation, it’s important to wear a mask that fits well (Ideally like an N95 or KN95), keep your distance from others and make sure you are in a well-ventilated area for at least the next five days.
Do boosters help protect against the latest variants?
Boosters can help prevent the spread of Covid, but current booster Less likely to be effective against recent variants. Current boosters were formulated to be effective against pre-JN.1 omicron variants, and the latest mutations had not yet occurred when the now available inoculations were released. However, you may consider getting one if you meet the following criteria:
- 65 years of age or older
- Are moderately or severely immunocompromised or have underlying medical conditions
- Living in a long-term care facility
- Has not received any dose of the Covid-19 vaccine
- Pregnant and have not received the 2023-2024 dose – especially those in late pregnancy
The good news is that a new formulation targeting FLiRT variants should be available soon, in preparation for a potential winter surge. The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months of age and older receive an updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available this fall, even though those vaccines have not yet been approved or approved.
Again, although most Americans have a baseline level of immunity to the virus, the new version of the vaccine will, at the very least, help prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death, especially for vulnerable populations such as the elderly and the immunocompromised.
CDC continually updates its recommendations for growth; The latest can be found on his website.
It’s impossible to know exactly how protective the new vaccine will be against infection: “The last two updates missed the mark in preventing infection, but we know they protect against serious disease and death,” Adalza said.
Even if new vaccines are not as effective as we hope, several tools are available to treat at-risk populations, including paxlovide and a monoclonal antibody called Pemgard. which can be used as a prophylactic for the severely immunocompromised.
Amid the wave, perhaps the most important thing to remember is that Covid “is always going to be a threat,” Adalja said. “It’s an endemic respiratory illness that’s part of the human condition.”
This summer wave makes that very clear.
