FIRST
I post this knowing that the usual suspects will come out and say that if I don’t fall into the conventional wisdom then I don’t deserve my medical degree so lets start out with recognizing that. But one thing is for certain, NO ONE knows everything about this pandemic as history has proven. From death numbers, to early treatment protocols(early intubation and no steroids for example) that turned out to be completely wrong. And now we are learning that some of the hopes that vaccination would provide long lasting immunity were misplaced.
So, with Omicron, today we see this article being published….
Thus far, there have been zero deaths worldwide from Omicron. In the US we have had 43 cases and 1 hospitalization. I’ll just say it now to save everyone the trouble. Wait two weeks.
Fair enough. Much is yet unknown and at risk groups almost certainly have not been penetrated yet so there is that.
BUT……if it turns out that omicron is much more contagious and much less deadly, that appears to be a win. Particularly since it could overtake Delta and become the dominant variant.
It seems that the British approach to this seems, perhaps, misguided at best and irresponsible at the worst. I know, they are trying to get ahead of things and be proactive etc…But this constant fearmongering isn’t without consequences. It erodes confidence when prior conventional wisdom is wrong and the constant level of uncertainty, even in the experts, has a deleterious effect on the populace. IMO.
Again, this discussion is hypothetical and to be sure I am not suggesting I know what omicron will bring I am simply alarmed by the public relations boondoggles of Fauci here and other global governments elsewhere. These guys look like they are flailing around hoping to stumble into a viable strategy. We are now two administrations into this thing and the prior suggestions that simply a new administration would solve the pandemic and render COVID irrelevant haven’t borne out.
NEXT
I am for vaccination. Clearly. All my prior posts are clear on this. But, for me individually, I am hesitant to get the booster. Here is my specific reason. And the second half of my post. Some of my fellow medicos are encouraged to chime in . I think these are legit questions without clear answers.
So, setting the stage for the next discussion.
I had possibly the worst side effects from my second shot one could bare, beyond having a serious complication like a CVT one a PE etc. I felt like absolute hell for 3 days. Rigors, sweats, headache, tired for days. All well worth it at the time as it is clear that this was necessary to minimize my chances of hospitalization or death. And since I am over 40 my risks of COVID are higher than some. And my exposures are frequent. In fact at the time I said I would be once of the first to get the vaccine once offered as the benefits of the 2 dose series were clear.
But what we don’t know with this yet, with boosters, is whether someone (that is already at low risk in an unvaccinated scenario) who has now had both Pfizer vaccines and has probably already had COVID early, actually needs to run the risk of 2-3 days of feeling like hell, to avoid omicron to theoretically keep from…….yes……feeling like hell for 2-3 days.
I have scoured the literature thus far, it is certain that vaccination boosters reduce the risk of hospitalization and death amongst high risk groups compared to unvaccinated and prior full vaccination without boosters. But I have seen zero evidence that a booster is necessary in low risk individuals. II don’t think enough data exists yet. If I could receive the vaccination like I do with influenza vaccines and have zero symptoms I would have already had it. But that is not likely to be the case in me. I’d be signing up almost certainly, for 2 days in bed. Like with my second shot.
So there is my dilemma. And now with the emergence of a possibly less deadly omicron I really am torn. I am a scientist. Trained to evaluate data others have gathered. Yet, I cannot find any thgat addresses the issue I have described. So I still sit on the sidelines trying to decide what makes the most sense. And today Fauci is claiming we need to be open to getting boosted every 6 months. Screw that.
Bottom line, anyone that can get the booster and have tolerable symptoms should. Anyone at high risk of death from COVID, immunosuppressed, elderly, obesity, multiple comorbidities should get the booster regardless of severity of typical side effects. Let’s make sure my position there is understood before others chime and and in their typical way, try to redirect the conversation to one that they fell they can win. This isn’t about that. It’s about asking serious questions about the best course with a couple variables being considered.
Some may ask, why am I not asking these questions of my colleagues? Well right now, dissent or doubt is not considered a sign of competence which as sad as fuq. Second, I am also interested in having an actual serious discussion on here to see if it is possible.
I post this knowing that the usual suspects will come out and say that if I don’t fall into the conventional wisdom then I don’t deserve my medical degree so lets start out with recognizing that. But one thing is for certain, NO ONE knows everything about this pandemic as history has proven. From death numbers, to early treatment protocols(early intubation and no steroids for example) that turned out to be completely wrong. And now we are learning that some of the hopes that vaccination would provide long lasting immunity were misplaced.
So, with Omicron, today we see this article being published….
MSN
www.msn.com
Thus far, there have been zero deaths worldwide from Omicron. In the US we have had 43 cases and 1 hospitalization. I’ll just say it now to save everyone the trouble. Wait two weeks.
Fair enough. Much is yet unknown and at risk groups almost certainly have not been penetrated yet so there is that.
BUT……if it turns out that omicron is much more contagious and much less deadly, that appears to be a win. Particularly since it could overtake Delta and become the dominant variant.
It seems that the British approach to this seems, perhaps, misguided at best and irresponsible at the worst. I know, they are trying to get ahead of things and be proactive etc…But this constant fearmongering isn’t without consequences. It erodes confidence when prior conventional wisdom is wrong and the constant level of uncertainty, even in the experts, has a deleterious effect on the populace. IMO.
Again, this discussion is hypothetical and to be sure I am not suggesting I know what omicron will bring I am simply alarmed by the public relations boondoggles of Fauci here and other global governments elsewhere. These guys look like they are flailing around hoping to stumble into a viable strategy. We are now two administrations into this thing and the prior suggestions that simply a new administration would solve the pandemic and render COVID irrelevant haven’t borne out.
NEXT
I am for vaccination. Clearly. All my prior posts are clear on this. But, for me individually, I am hesitant to get the booster. Here is my specific reason. And the second half of my post. Some of my fellow medicos are encouraged to chime in . I think these are legit questions without clear answers.
So, setting the stage for the next discussion.
I had possibly the worst side effects from my second shot one could bare, beyond having a serious complication like a CVT one a PE etc. I felt like absolute hell for 3 days. Rigors, sweats, headache, tired for days. All well worth it at the time as it is clear that this was necessary to minimize my chances of hospitalization or death. And since I am over 40 my risks of COVID are higher than some. And my exposures are frequent. In fact at the time I said I would be once of the first to get the vaccine once offered as the benefits of the 2 dose series were clear.
But what we don’t know with this yet, with boosters, is whether someone (that is already at low risk in an unvaccinated scenario) who has now had both Pfizer vaccines and has probably already had COVID early, actually needs to run the risk of 2-3 days of feeling like hell, to avoid omicron to theoretically keep from…….yes……feeling like hell for 2-3 days.
I have scoured the literature thus far, it is certain that vaccination boosters reduce the risk of hospitalization and death amongst high risk groups compared to unvaccinated and prior full vaccination without boosters. But I have seen zero evidence that a booster is necessary in low risk individuals. II don’t think enough data exists yet. If I could receive the vaccination like I do with influenza vaccines and have zero symptoms I would have already had it. But that is not likely to be the case in me. I’d be signing up almost certainly, for 2 days in bed. Like with my second shot.
So there is my dilemma. And now with the emergence of a possibly less deadly omicron I really am torn. I am a scientist. Trained to evaluate data others have gathered. Yet, I cannot find any thgat addresses the issue I have described. So I still sit on the sidelines trying to decide what makes the most sense. And today Fauci is claiming we need to be open to getting boosted every 6 months. Screw that.
Bottom line, anyone that can get the booster and have tolerable symptoms should. Anyone at high risk of death from COVID, immunosuppressed, elderly, obesity, multiple comorbidities should get the booster regardless of severity of typical side effects. Let’s make sure my position there is understood before others chime and and in their typical way, try to redirect the conversation to one that they fell they can win. This isn’t about that. It’s about asking serious questions about the best course with a couple variables being considered.
Some may ask, why am I not asking these questions of my colleagues? Well right now, dissent or doubt is not considered a sign of competence which as sad as fuq. Second, I am also interested in having an actual serious discussion on here to see if it is possible.
Last edited:
