World News: Israel Data Suggest Shot Less Effective

"TEL AVIV -- Data from Israel suggests Pfizer Inc.'s vaccine has become less effective in preventing infection of Covid-19 in recent weeks, although it remains a robust bulwark against serious illness as governments around the world scramble to respond to the spread of a new Delta variant.

The findings, which are preliminary and based on a small sample, suggest that after two shots the vaccine was 39% effective at reducing the risk of infection and 40% effective at reducing the risk of symptomatic disease during a period when the Delta variant dominated cases in Israel, according to the country's Health Ministry. The vaccine was 91% effective at preventing severe illness in the same period between June 20 and July 17, the ministry said.

"It's important to say that in terms of protecting against severe illness, hospitalization and death, the Pfizer vaccine is still very very efficient," said Nadav Davidovitch, a member of the expert advisory panel to the Israeli government on the coronavirus. "We are still not sure about whether the reduction in effectiveness is due to time passed or [a] question of the variant."

Mr. Davidovitch said the data was based on hundreds of cases and should only be considered preliminary.

Pfizer said the company and its partner BioNTech SE are confident in the protection and safety of the two-dose vaccine, which it said prevents severe disease and hospitalizations. Two doses continue "to be highly efficacious in preventing Covid-19, including variants and to date, no variant, including Delta, appears to have escaped the protection of the vaccine," Pfizer said.

Natalie Dean, an assistant professor in the Department of Biostatistics & Bioinformatics at Emory University, said not enough is known to draw firm conclusions from the study. The time from vaccinations in January is not very long, and such a major drop would need to be replicated, Dr. Dean said. "It's just such a striking difference and whenever it's like that you always want to see some other verification."

The study may be limited in its ability to ensure the vaccinated groups are compared with similar unvaccinated people, she said. While the study's investigators consider people's ages, sex and time, factors such as occupation, location and whether they live in congregate settings aren't accounted for.

Israel used the Pfizer vaccine to conduct a world-leading campaign that offered glimpses of how governments might combat the pandemic.

The new Israeli data is likely to fuel debate about how soon vaccines lose potency and whether governments should begin administering boosters. Earlier in July, Israel began offering a third dose to immunocompromised individuals, and health officials are studying whether one is necessary for the wider population.

The Israeli Health Ministry has said it calculates the effectiveness of a vaccine by analyzing the number of infections among the vaccinated compared with those who were unvaccinated in the given period. It also accounts for factors such as the week of infection and age, and whether the person was infected in the past.

The ministry said the latest data might be biased because of where coronavirus tests were conducted. Many were carried out in areas of outbreaks and among the elderly, and only a small number of tests were conducted among younger people who were vaccinated. Older Israelis were the first to be vaccinated; many were fully inoculated by the end of January and currently make up the most of cases of severe illness.

Israel's new data suggests a lower potency for the Pfizer shot than was found by another major U.K. study published this week. Published in the New England Journal of Medicine and sponsored by Public Health England, the study involved nearly 20,000 people and said the vaccine was 88% effective at protecting against symptomatic disease." [1]

Given that many young people with mild illness of  Covid receive long-term Covid, the declining effectiveness of the vaccines is bad news for those young people. We need to go back to wearing masks indoors where there are a lot of outsiders.

1. World News: Israel Data Suggest Shot Less Effective
Jones, Rory; Lieber, Dov. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]24 July 2021: A.8.

Mokslininkai tiria ilgalaikio Covid paslaptį

  „Kai vakcinos sumažina sunkių ligų ir mirties grėsmę nuo „Covid-19“, milijonams žmonių išlieka rizika susirgti daugybe mažiau rimtų, bet galinčių sekinti ilgalaikių šios ligos simptomų, kuriuos mokslininkai vadina ilguoju Covid. 

Daugelis pažeidžiamiausių yra tarp jaunesnių nevakcinuotų žmonių, kurie nėra apsaugoti nuo greitai plintančio koronaviruso Delta varianto, kuris dabar atsako už daugiau nei 80% augančių Amerikos atvejų. 

Ekspertų teigimu, ilgalaikis Covid - tai terminas, reiškiantis simptomus, kurie tęsiasi kelias savaites ar mėnesius po infekcijos, aptinkamus pas nuo 10 iki 30% žmonių, kurie užsikrečia virusu, įskaitant tuos, kurie serga lengvomis ar besimptomėmis infekcijomis. 

Kai kuriais atvejais simptomai išlieka ilgiau nei metus. 

„Net jei tai ir nėra taip ryšku, kaip mirštantys žmonės, jūs ignoruojate tai be reikalo“, - sakė  Altmannas, Londono imperatoriškojo koledžo imunologijos profesorius. "Kalbant apie sveikatos priežiūros naštą ar sveikatos priežiūros išlaidas, mes matome, kad tai mums būtų tokia pat didelė problema kaip reumatoidinis artritas, didžiausia autoimuninė liga pasaulyje". Daugelis amerikiečių lieka neskiepyti arba skiepijami tik iš dalies. Ligos, kylančios, kai valstybės sušvelnina apribojimus ir plinta labai perduodamas „Delta“ variantas. Dėl padidėjusio vakcinacijos tarp seniausių ir pažeidžiamiausių žmonių šis padidėjimas nesukels tiek rimtų ligų ar mirties, kiek buvo ankstesnėse bangose. Tačiau tai gali sukelti dešimtis tūkstančių naujų ilgo Covido atvejų. „Ilgalaikis Covid yra tikras“, - sakė Priya Duggal, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg visuomenės sveikatos mokyklos epidemiologijos profesorė. "Dabar turime visą grupę asmenų, išgyvenusių Covidą, kurie patenka į lėtinę [ilgalaikę] būseną, kuri, greičiausiai, bus su mumis tikrai ilgai". 

Šio klausimo mastas paskatino vyriausybes skirti dideles sumas ilgojo Covido tyrimams. Nacionaliniai sveikatos institutai per ketverius metus skyrė 1,15 milijardo dolerių, kad ištirtų būklę, o JK kolega kol kas skyrė beveik 54 milijonus dolerių tyrimams, tyrinėjantiems priežastis, diagnostinius metodus ir galimą gydymą. Ilgalaikis Covid siejamas su gluminančiu galimų simptomų rinkiniu; Londono universiteto koledžo mokslininkų atlikta naujausia žmonių apklausa, kurios metu buvo patvirtintas ar įtariamas ilgas Covid, nustatė daugiau, nei 200, apimančių 

 regėjimo haliucinacijas, 

širdies plakimą ir 

atminties praradimą. 

Vis dėlto tam tikri simptomai atsiranda pakartotinai. Pasak didžiųjų Londono imperatoriškojo koledžo mokslininkų, dauguma žmonių, turintys ilgą Covid, praneša apie 

pavargstančių raumenų skausmus, 

miego sutrikimus ir 

dusulį. 

Kitas, mažesnis pacientų klasteris pranešė daugiausia apie kvėpavimo simptomus, įskaitant dusulį ir krūtinės skausmą ar spaudimą. 

Kiti tyrimai nustatė kognityvines problemas arba „smegenų rūką“. 

Nors sunki infekcija greičiausiai sukelia ilgą Covid, daugybė žmonių, kuriems buvo lengvi atvejai, taip pat patyrė nuolatinius simptomus. 

Imperijos tyrimas, kurio metu buvo ištirta atsitiktinė daugiau nei pusės milijono žmonių iš visos Anglijos imtis, parodė, kad maždaug ketvirtadalis iš 21 454 žmonių, patyrusių lengvą infekciją, pranešė apie bent vieną simptomą, trunkantį 12 ar daugiau savaičių. 

Tiems, kurie patyrė sunkią infekciją, buvo dar didesnė tikimybė patirti bent vieną nuolatinį simptomą, maždaug pusei. 

Tyrimas, paskelbtas „MedRxiv“ išankstinio spausdinimo serveryje, dar nebuvo peržiūrėtas. 

Ilgalaikis Covid iškėlė pavojaus signalą dėl jo polinkio smogti jauniems žmonėms taip, kaip nebuvo sunkių ligų ir mirties atvejais. Imperatoriškasis tyrimas parodė, kad tarp 18–24 metų amžiaus apie 30% tų, kurie žinomai pagavo Covid-19, nurodė bent vieną simptomą, trunkantį 12 savaičių ar ilgiau. 

 Tyrėjai įtaria, kad ilgą Covidą tikriausiai apima kelios sutampančios sąlygos, kurių priežastys yra skirtingos, ir atliekami keli dideli tyrimai, kuriais bandoma išsiaiškinti kai kurias iš jų. Tarp pirmaujančių teorijų yra tai, kad virusas sukelia tam tikrą autoimuninę būklę, kad jis sukelia ilgalaikę fizinę žalą įvairiems organams ir kad virusas užtrunka organizme ilgai po infekcijos.

Nėra įrodyto ilgalaikio Covid gydymo, nors Jungtinės Karalystės mokslininkai pradeda klinikinius tyrimus, norėdami nustatyti, ar galėtų padėti plačiai prieinami vaistai nuo uždegimo, tokie kaip aspirinas, podagros gydymas, kolchicinas ir antihistamininiai vaistai. Tuo tarpu ligoninės steigia specialias klinikas, kurios padėtų žmonėms susitvarkyti. „Aš dažnai sakau pacientams, kad nėra jokios stebuklingos kulkos, kuri juos išgydys“, - sakė Louise King, medicinos direktorė Covid atkūrimo klinikoje, kuriai vadovavo Šiaurės Karolinos universitetas Chapel Hill. „Mes tiesiog nežinome apie tai pakankamai“." [1]

 

 1.    Scientists Investigate Mystery of Long Covid. Roland, Denise. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]24 July 2021: A.1.
 

Scientists Investigate Mystery of Long Covid

 “As vaccines blunt the threat of severe illness and death from Covid-19, millions of people remain at risk of developing an array of less serious but potentially debilitating long-term symptoms of the disease that scientists call long Covid.
Many of the most vulnerable are among younger unvaccinated people who are unprotected against the rapidly spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus, nowresponsible for more than 80% of America's growing caseload.
Long Covid -- a term referring to symptoms that linger for weeks or months beyond infection -- affectsbetween 10% and 30% of people who catch the virus, including those with mild or asymptomatic infections, according to experts. In some cases, symptoms persist for more than a year.
"Even if it's not as striking as people dying, you ignore it at your peril," said Danny Altmann, professor of immunology at Imperial College London. "In terms of healthcare burden or healthcare cost, we're on track for this being as big a problem to us as rheumatoid arthritis, the biggest autoimmune disease in the world."
Many Americans remain unvaccinated or only partially vaccinated. Cases arerising as states relax restrictions and the highly transmissible Delta variant spreads. That increase won't cause as much serious illness or death as in previous waves, thanks to high vaccination uptake among the oldest and most vulnerable. But it could lead to tens of thousands of new cases of long Covid.
"Long Covid is real," said Priya Duggal, professor of epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "Now we have a whole group of individuals who have survived Covid who are going on into a chronic [long-term] state that will likely be with us for a really long time."
The scale of the issue has spurred governments to pour large sums into researching long Covid. The National Institutes of Health has committed $1.15 billion over four years for investigating the condition, while its U.K. counterpart has so far provided nearly $54 million to fund research investigating causes, diagnostic methods and possible treatments.
Long Covid is associated with a bewildering array of possible symptoms; a recentsurvey of people with confirmed or suspected long Covid by researchers at University College London identified more than 200, spanning visual hallucinations, heart palpitations and memory loss.
Still, certain symptoms crop up repeatedly. The majority of people with long Covid report fatigueas the dominant symptomalongside muscle aches, difficulty sleeping and shortness of breath, according to alarge studyby researchers at Imperial College London. Another, smaller, cluster of patients reportedpredominantlyrespiratory symptoms, including shortness of breath and chest pain or tightness. Other studies have identified cognitive issues, or "brain fog."
Although severe infection is more likely to lead to long Covid, large numbers of people who had mild cases have also suffered from persistent symptoms. The Imperial study, which surveyed a random sample of more than half a million people from across England, found that around a quarter of the 21,454 people who had suffered a mild infection reported at least one symptom lasting 12 weeks or more. Those who had suffered severe infection had even higher odds of experiencing at least one persistent symptom, around half. The study, published on the MedRxiv preprint server, hasn't yet been peer reviewed.
Long Covid has raised alarm bells for its tendency to strike the young in a way that severe illness and death haven't. The Imperial study found that among those aged 18 to 24, about 30% of those who had knowinglycaught Covid-19 reported at least one symptom lasting 12 weeks or longer.
Harry Boby, a 23-year-old former member of the British judo team, worked out at the gym five times a week before coming down with a mild Covid-19 infection in September.Now, a few pull-ups can floor him for days.
"I still don't feel myself," said Mr. Boby, adding that even mild exertion can trigger "bone-crushing fatigue." He has also suffered neurological issues ranging from memory loss to episodes where he feels paranoid and sometimes tearful.
He has twice been on sick leave due to his symptoms, for around three months each time.
Researchers suspect that long Covid likely comprises several overlapping conditions, with different causes, and several large studies are under way to try to pin some of those down. Among the leading theories are that the virus triggers some kind of autoimmune condition, that it causes lasting physical damage to various organs, and that the virus lingers in the body long after infection.
There is no proven treatment for long Covid, although researchers in the U.K. are embarking on clinical trials to establish whether widely available anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin, gout treatment colchicine and antihistamines could help. Meanwhile, hospitals are establishing dedicated clinics to help people cope.
"I often tell patients there's nota magic bullet that's going to cure them," said Louise King, a medical director at a Covid recovery clinic run by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "We just don't know that much about it."” [1]

1.    Scientists Investigate Mystery of Long Covid. Roland, Denise. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]24 July 2021: A.1.

If Musk did not spare money and move the whole of Lithuania to Mars, nothing would change in our Universe.

 Lithuania has no effect on life on Earth right now. The Landsbergiai condemned the American-German agreement on the Russian gas pipeline. No one responded to these statements of these Lithuanian rulers. Landsbergiai are flying to Iraq for our money and begging the Iraqi authorities to stop planes carrying illegal migrants from Iraq to Lithuania's vicinity. The Iraqi minister also listened to these statements and promised to increase the number of such planes two times because of demand. Landsbergiai began to moan even louder that what Iraq was doing was getting worse than before. And again, everyone ignores their circus. 

Why? Lithuania lives in ideological schemes at the primary school level. We don’t understand that people have their interests and defend those interests. We do not even understand that Lithuania has its interests and we have long sacrificed those interests for ideological tales. Yes, our gas from a ship is more expensive than German gas from the Russian pipe, but our gas is almost as free as that that escapes through the rear ends of freedom fighters Landsbergiai.

Jeigu Muskas nepagailėtų pinigų ir perkeltų visą Lietuvą į Marsą, niekas nepasikeistų mūsų Visatoje.

  Lietuva neturi jokio poveikio gyvenimui Žemėje jau dabar. Landsbergiai pasmerkė Amerikos ir Vokietijos susitarimą dėl rusų dujų vamzdžio. Niekas nereagavo į šiuos Lietuvos valdančiųjų padejavimus. 

Landsbergiai skraido į Iraką už mūsų pinigus ir maldauja Irako valdžią sustabdyti lėktuvus, vežančius nelegalius migrantus iš Irako prie Lietuvos. Irako ministras išklausė ir šiuos padejavimus ir pažadėjo padidinti tokių lėktuvų skaičių kartais, nes yra paklausa.

G.Landsbergis pradėjo dar garsiau dejuoti, kad tai ką daro Irakas, tampa dar blogiau, negu iki šiol. Ir vėl niekas nepaiso jo padejavimų.

Kodėl? Lietuva gyvena pradžios mokyklos lygio ideologinėse schemose. Mes nesuprantame, kad žmonės turi jų interesus ir tuos interesus gina. Mes nesuprantame net, kad Lietuva turi jos interesus, ir seniai tuos interesus paaukojome dėl ideologinių pasakų. Taip, mūsų dujos iš laivo yra brangesnės, negu vokiečių dujos, bet užtat mūsų dujos yra beveik tokios pat laisvos, kaip tos, kurios išsiveržia per laisvės kovotojų Landsbergių užpakalius.

Critical shortage of skilled labor in Lithuania

 

"According to the representatives of the Lithuanian Employment Service, the shortage of unskilled workers has become simply critical in recent years and has grown to more than double the demand for unskilled workers.  

For Freedom! - business, by not raising wages on time, deliberately forced hundreds of thousands of people to emigrate .... I remember when various governments wanted to barely raise the minimum, it was as opposed to business as it was to the end of the world."

Advice for Lithuanian businessmen: Come to your senses, communist thieves ... 

  

Šalyje – kritinis kvalifikuotos darbo jėgos trūkumas

 "Kvalifikuotų darbuotojų trūkumas, pasak Lietuvos užimtumo tarnybos atstovų, pastaraisiais metais tapo tiesiog kritiniu ir išaugo tiek, kad daugiau nei dvigubai viršijo nekvalifikuotų darbuotojų paklausą.

Už Laisvę! - verslas, laiku nekeldamas algų, TYČIA privertė emigruoti šimtus tūkstančių žmonių.... Atsimenu, kai įvairios valdžios norėdavo nors vos vos pakelti minimumą, tai verslas taip priešindavosi, lyg tai būtų pasaulio pabaiga."

Patarimas Lietuvos verslininkams: susiprotėkite galų gale, komunistų išperos...