Without a doubt, 2020 is one of the most dramatic years of history! The near-first quarter was the way we all expected 2020 to be - another prosperous year filled with joy and success. Unfortunately, that did not last for that long, at least in the US. Although the exact origin of the coronavirus is still unknown, all I can tell is that it appears to have already existed circa 2019. While China was placed on lockdown on January 23, Italy was the first EU country to issue a lockdown on January 31.
The US and most other countries had continued their normal life (or routine) without any hesitation! But exactly a month after getting its name, the WHO had declared COVID-19 a pandemic; this caught the attention of WCASD. New York had already been preparing for this moment by declaring a state of emergency on March 7.
March 13 was the moment in which the reality of life was doubted (at least in my eyes)! At around 4 PM that afternoon, after much consideration, schools decided on a 2 week remote learning period. I was actually confused before then, mostly during the previous night! To be honest with you all, I didn’t imagine this being the last in-person interaction with everyone around me. Around the world, daily life turned almost a complete 180 degrees; schools went to remote, Comic Cons were either postponed, canceled, or remote, and daily routines became dramatically different. Public health officials, governors and their teams, and other adults have worked so hard around the clock to restore a sense of normalcy. Reopenings began in a controlled way, and guidelines and procedures were emphasized and implemented. Workplaces, beaches, restaurants, and movie theaters made plans to reopen and operate safely. Convention centers are still uncertain of their course and choosing to go virtual.
Despite the daily cases of COVID-19, there is always hope to restore the world back to normal. While only 1 year has passed, the info has still been changing consistently as every new day brings new studies. COVID-19 is commonly caused by SARS-CoV-2; everyone must recognize that these 2 are not the same, the latter being the culprit behind the COVID-19! In addition to that, safety guidelines have evolved a little bit through the course of the year. Some guidelines are the basics of keeping safe: social distancing of 6 feet (or 3 feet, all depending on the nature of this virus), wearing a mask in public (no gaiters, vents, or other improper masks), washing your hands for 20 seconds, avoiding hosting large gatherings, and most importantly, being at home if you recognize any symptoms of COVID (even minor ones). Early on in this pandemic, hydroxychloroquine had been claimed by former president Trump, as he had also been using it. Now, the public is advising against the use of hydroxychloroquine because it is harmful. A study of patients involved hydroxychloroquine and a controlled drug. Their study (actually composed of 7 different studies) had shown 44.3% of the patients involved with hydroxychloroquine suffering side effects, compared to the 15.3% patients on a controlled drug. It is also said that people with Type A blood may be more susceptible to infection, taken from a chinese study of 2,173 people. The public must also know that, although the risk of catching COVID-19 increases steadily with age, adults younger than 65 can get sick - especially those with underlying medical conditions. In regards to the temperature warming up recently, one of the conceptions is that the virus will fade away in late spring/summer; however, that is not the case. Summer of 2020 had cases rise, mainly in respect to PA for the July 4th weekend. Even now, I do not know if it’ll be the case this summer.
In July of 2020, both Moderna and Pfizer’s vaccine reached phase 3 clinical trials! Both vaccines are reported to have an efficacy of 94% and 95%, respectively; believe it or not, Pfizer reported to have 100% efficacy when coming to severe cases. When they first jab the vaccine into your arm, you may feel pain in the jabbed arm, along with fatigue, fever, nausea, and chills. But that’s actually a sign that the vaccine is doing what it’s supposed to - creating antibodies so that your body is better prepared next time! With the majority of people, the pain dissipates within 1-2 days.
One of the most complex findings about the COVID-19 is its nature of affecting people. We get some people who only have a few symptoms for a short while, some who require serious hospitalization (even if they are healthy), and some who can die even from just 1 infection! It appears that inadequate interferons are the problem: research shows that up to 14% of people who develop severe symptoms have an inadequate interferon response. Other causes include antibodies malfunctioning and a genetic mutation that hinder production of interferons. Interferons are an important component of the immune system, as they offer protection to your body. Their common functions - signaling cells to guard themselves against invasion, reminding infected cells to die, and activating the immune system to mount a long-term antibody response - offer an explanation. An inadequate interferon response can affect some young people (assuming that they’re healthy), making them sicker than those their age with a different immunity. COVID severity also counts on the immune system. If the immune system doesn't cool down when the virus is controlled, it causes more harm than good; this is called a cytokine storm!
Remember that the fight against the pandemic is not over yet, but we are heading towards the light at the end of the tunnel. One year has gone by and there are still some unknowns. We should be confident that we’ll get back to “normal” soon, perhaps on Independence Day?
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