Thread by @jeffgilchrist

Virus update for Ottawa, ON, Canada (Oct 20, 2023)

#Viral indicators continue to increase for #Ottawa, #Canada ( ). #Wastewater levels in Ottawa are now higher than the peak of the first #Omicron BA.1 wave. 🧵1/ covid.gilchrist.ca/Ottawa.html

Unfortunately that means increases in hospitalization as well. Ottawa has had significantly elevated levels of hospitalization *for* COVID-19 during the past 2 months now. 2/

Our youngest children are especially vulnerable to respiratory virus infections. In Ottawa there were 361 respiratory related ED visits the week of Oct. 8th which accounted for 60% of ED visits in the <4 age group, up from 282 the previous week ( ). 3/ottawapublichealth.ca/en/reports-res…

Ottawa MPP Chandra Pasma @ChandraPasma yesterday tabled a private members bill, "Improving Air Quality for Our Children Act" to help address air quality issues in schools to monitor and ensure our children have the best safest learning conditions ( ). 4/

https://twitter.com/ChandraPasma/status/1715048371834994995

Which respiratory viruses are already circulating wildly? Since the symptoms are often very similar or the same, many people think they have a "cold" but will often have COVID-19. 5/

Right now in Ontario there is a similar percent test positivity for COVID-19 and Entero/Rhinovirus while very little of anything else yet ( ). 6/ publichealthontario.ca/en/Data-and-An…

If you have something that feels like a really bad flu, in Ottawa there has been *no* Influenza A or B detected in wastewater in the past 2 weeks, and only very low amounts of RSV, so it is very unlikely to be Flu or RSV at the moment. 7/

In Ottawa you can get free COVID-19 rapid tests (RATs) from Ottawa Public Health at libraries and community centres ( ). 8/

https://twitter.com/C19TestFinders/status/1704606017089114321

What about current variants? More than 60% of sequences are from the EG.5.* [Eris] family with the others at or below 10% but there is still quite a mixture of variants circulating with different immune evasion capabilities. 9/

If you look at individual variants, HV.1 has increased very rapidly and is actually the top variant in Ontario at >15% of sequences. HV.1 is a descendant of Eris (EG.5.1.6) which itself is a descendant of XBB.1.9.2 [Hyperion]. 10/

Unfortunately since there is still so much uncontrolled transmission of the virus, it is constantly mutating to evade immunity built up by previous variants which can lead to some people becoming reinfected again within weeks not months or years ( ). 11/

https://twitter.com/drclairetaylor/status/1713178042149777564

If you have been infected, don't assume you have months of protection before the next infection and increase risky behaviour of exposure thinking you are safe. You might be getting all the damage from the virus and very little protection. 12/

The BA.2.86.* [Pirola] variant which is very different from the other currently circulating variants was found in Ontario in late August and is starting to increase more rapidly now and picking up more immune evasive mutations in its offspring JN.1 (BA.2.86.1.1). 13/

The visualization tool for variants was created by @Mike_Honey_ ( ). 14/app.powerbi.com/view?r=eyJrIjo…

To learn how to see what variants are circulating in your area, please read this guide ( ). 15/

https://twitter.com/jeffgilchrist/status/1647232148397498368

It is long past time to start implementing other ways to reduce transmission and new variants besides relying on a chasing the variants vaccine-only policy ( ). 16/

https://twitter.com/jeffgilchrist/status/1708295686276452783

@threadreaderapp please unroll