June 8th 2020
Recent updates:
1) Cases are increasing slowly in certain states including North Carolina. We are in phase 2 of an economic reopening of businesses and activity which puts the pressure back on the healthcare system as hospitalizations are increasing. So far, the hospitals have capacity and are dealing well with the cases identified. Protective gear also appears to be fully available locally. The graph on this CDC page shows how clearly the death rate has plummeted nationally.
2) Sadly, North Carolina has had its first death in a child. An 8 year old female patient died of complications following
COVID19 infection that included brain swelling and seizures according to published reports. As of June 3rd, there have been 20 deaths attributed to COVID nationally in children between 0 and 15 years of age. (CDC data)
3) Some Individuals are experiencing viral persistence in certain cell types like neurons in the brain. This is different than the primary infection and carries a different set of long term risks for those with dysfunctional immune systems. This persistence event may develop into chronic fatigue type states in susceptible individuals. See the National Geographic article link.
4) It is never too late to begin the process of righting your immune ship. Lifestyle changes as discussed in the past few weeks will go a long way toward protecting you from disease morbidity and reducing long term risk complications as noted above.
Dr. M
Here is the link to the CDC site and pediatric data sets.
