Thread by @elisaperego78

Ok it's important to take note of the long-term effects of influenza | #longflu. Influenza can be severe. Flu-related complications can kill hundreds of thousands a year globally
Yet, we've clear evidence covid is *massively* more dangerous and severe than influenza
Go figure 🧵

https://twitter.com/zchagla/status/1510285072502566913

My tweet is inspired by the spin covid minimizers are trying, to induce people to accept mass infection and herd immunity with a SARS virus.
First, most people associate the "flu" with the relatively common and, often, fast-resolving effects of para-influenza or cold viruses.

Not so many, especially the young, experience severe influenza-related complications, like pneumonia. Seasonal flu often manifests with self-limiting symptoms or is asymptomatic. Sure, some have severe flu, long-term impact #longflu, or may die | Yet, this DIDN'T bring us Bergamo

Comparing influenza and covid "can be difficult" only if you are not open about reality. Or you didn't note we are in a huge pandemic. Or you didn't see the covid mortality data. Or you missed Bergamo. Or you didn't read the *huge* number of publications now available on covid.

Reducing the burden of influenza and other infections must be a priority in public health. This is especially now that #LongCovid has contributed to bringing viral-onset diseases into the spotlight. We can't accept long-term morbidity | e.g. ME/CFS, lung damage | lightly anymore

We must not accept, at the same time, erroneous comparisons between diseases, like covid and seasonal influenza. This wrong comparison is one reason why we're pushed into the pandemic disaster. SARS-CoV-2 is a SARS virus, not an influenza one. Covid is a hugely dangerous disease

Of course, we have now the covid vaccine. The vaccine is cutting mortality, and, hopefully, morbidity from SARS-CoV-2. Yet, covid remains a severe threat, especially in view of fast-mutating variants, #LongCovid, how easy to spread the pathogen is, and its ability to reinfect

Covid remains, even now with vaccination, much more dangerous than seasonal influenza on a population level. It is also as such, on average, on an individual level. Of course, there might be people who go through covid with little effects, but are more susceptible to influenza.

One first key paper on covid lung in the pandemic | Ackermann et al 2020 in top @NEJM | autopsies from severe covid and influenza patients | it was evident covid has a massive potential for thrombotic and vascular damage, much higher and specific vs flu

nejm.org/doi/10.1056/ne…

Many other scientific papers have compared the effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection on human health and physiology vs. seasonal influenza and common upper respiratory viruses. Covid is proven to be more dangerous on multiple levels. We don't have to accept living with this disease

And, as usual, vaccination doesn't necessarily prevent symptomatic, even severe or fatal disease, especially now with omicron. It's a strong weapon, but covid is not "defanged" = rendered harmless as some pieces in the Guardian have rather unfortunately alleged