Thread by @tmprowell

Well, it was fun while it lasted. And remember that official case counts are just the tip of the iceberg. Most people are being diagnosed via rapid testing at home & never appear in these totals at all. If you aren’t #Boosted, now’s the time. #MaskUp #COVID19

https://twitter.com/medriva/status/1517323437630439426

Let me add that my major reason for concern at this point is less about deaths in the short-term. Though we continue to lose a couple thousand Americans per wk to #COVID19, & it wasn’t mild for any of them, deaths are much lower than they’ve been in a long time. /2

I’m worried about the people we are now seeing with persistent cognitive impairment (like early dementia kind of symptoms), given that we now know #COVID19 can shrink the brain even in otherwise “mild” cases. forbes.com/sites/williamh…

I’m worried about the increased risk of heart disease—which was already our #1 cause of death in the US—after even an otherwise “mild” case of #COVID19. nature.com/articles/d4158… /4

I’m worried about the increased risk of #diabetes after #COVID19, even in people with no prior history of it & an otherwise mild case of #coronavirus. Diabetes is a top cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, & need for amputations. nature.com/articles/d4158… /5

I’m worried about what we don’t know about other late risks. For example, after decades of trying to understand what causes multiple sclerosis, scientists just found that most cases are caused by the Epstein Barr virus (EBV), which you know as “mono.” nytimes.com/2022/02/23/mag… /6

And finally I’m worried about the many—best guess 10-30%—of people who have persistent fatigue, etc lasting for months or yrs even after otherwise “mild” #COVID19. We *think* being #vaccinated ⬇️ risk, but still know little re how to treat #LongCovid. /7 ama-assn.org/delivering-car…

Can you still die acutely after getting #COVID19? Yes. The risk is ⬇️ if #vaccinated & #boosted, but we’ve lost ~200K in 🇺🇸 since #Omicron became the main #COVIDvariant & continue to outpace peer nations in deaths, in part due to fewer #boosted. /8 nytimes.com/interactive/20…

So that’s why I’m worried. And I’m an oncologist, so it’s my literal job to think about & do all I can to protect people who are #immunocompromised & thus at much higher risk of death. If I seem more cautious than others (or you), that’s part of why. #GetVaxxed & 🙏😷 /End