Flu shot

Note also that there is often a difference between the vaccine selected and input by the health authorities / planners, and the result output by the common chicken egg mass production method. Apparently certain components don't reproduce well in those eggs, and what comes out is dominated by a slightly mutated version that reproduces much better in that environment. Unfortunately, those slight mutations sometimes render the vaccine far less effective than what the researchers originally selected and ordered. That seems to be one of the problems this year.

Some sort of new mass production method is needed to more faithfully replicate the ordered version.

On top of that, there is also research going in to finding a 'universal vaccine', one that targets proteins on the virus coats that don't mutate rapidly and annually. I don't know how well that is going, but budget cuts to the CDC certainly don't help.

 

The trouble is the rate of type-B samples showing up. The rate is the wrong direction. In contrast, type-A is going the right way.

Bob Wilson

 

Hey, I'm no longer that sporty! Should have read Atlantic..... Not athletic cruise ship.

 

The bleach might just attack the material the wipes are made of.

Diluted down, bleach is an effective wound cleaner, and I've used it in a nettie pot when an infection might be coming on.

 

Uh, I've already done that with a washing machine and now spotted clothes.

Bob Wilson

 

White ones.

Bob Wilson

 

Watch out for the doctor's tie and stethoscope.

 

no ties around here anymore. same with the nurses, everything goes in the wash.

 

I haven't seen a doctor wearing a tie in years, except on some Japanese and Korean medical dramas.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I see doctors at meetings where most wear ties, or at least smart casual. Occasionally I see groups in green scrubs escaping the local Kaiser facility for a local eatery. Last time I saw a doctor in his office he had a lab coat over white shirt and tie. That was 5+ years ago so things may have changed.

 

we can only hope...

 

With local schools closed for Thursday and Friday for cleaning, this makes a lot of sense:
This Special UV Light Could Zap Flu Germs from the Air

. . .
Researchers have known for decades that so-called broad-spectrum UVC light, which has a wavelength between 200 and 400 nanometers (nm), is effective at killing bacteria and viruses. In fact, a "germicidal UVC lamp" is often used to disinfect surgical equipment. However, this UV light is hazardous to human health, and can cause skin cancerand cataracts, Brenner said. [27 Devastating Infectious Diseases]

But recently, Brenner and his colleagues found that a narrow range of UVC light — far-UVC light, around 207 to 222 nm — could kill microorganisms without causing biological damage to exposed skin.
. . .​

Now this makes a lot of sense with one risk, ozone, not discussed. But it makes sense that a robot, UV light pole might make a better answer. The operational scenario:

• clean-up crew handles bulk - stains, floors, trash cans, and paper products
• start a robot or UV pole and leave building - on a timer, the UV light disinfects during a time without people exposed to the generated ozone. It might even be integrated into a separate, overhead light strings.

Bob Wilson

ps. The article title in error calls the flu virus a germ.

 

I think germ in that use is colloquial for any infective organism. In technical use, germ is actually part of a plant seed.

Some of the bio-hoods at work have germicidal UV lamps. They do a number on plastics in the hood, and the paint of nearby cabinets.