Cat in the Hat šŸˆā€ā¬› šŸŽ© šŸ‡¬šŸ‡§ Profile picture
Mum • Lover of nature and clean, fresh air • Passionate about science • ā€œWithout data, you’re just another person with an opinion.ā€
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May 15 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
LONG COVID IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

🚨40% of the undergrad students reported brain fog due to COVID-19.

🚨37 % of the undergraduates exhibited impaired cognition up to 17 months post-infection.

🚨Brain fog appeared to affect the distinct prefrontal haemodynamic patterns. Image This study was conducted by scientists at the University of Otago (NZ) who were looking to investigate the cognitive effects of COVID infection in a population highly representative of young adults: undergraduate university students.

Link to full study:
sciencedirect.com/science/articl…Image
Mar 15 • 11 tweets • 7 min read
Today, in honour of #LongCovidAwarenessDay, I’m sharing a series of short videos from Dr Rae Duncan (@Sunny_Rae1) about the ongoing impact of Long Covid.

1. WHAT IS LONG COVID?

Long Covid is a multi-systemic inflammatory condition that can affect almost every organ of the body. 2. WHAT ARE THE PRINCIPAL MECHANISMS & MANIFESTATIONS OF LONG COVID?

Dr Rae Duncan explains some of the key manifestations of Long Covid, including:

ā–Ŗļøimmune-mediated issues

ā–Ŗļøabnormalities of the autonomic nervous system (the nerves which control things like our heart rate).
Feb 18 • 27 tweets • 13 min read
āš ļø IPC GUIDANCE

Newly-appointed Health Minister @AshleyDalton_MP has just responded to a question from MP @_Chris_Coghlan.

Chris asks when the NHS IPC manual will be updated to reflect the latest science on AIRBORNE transmission.

Let’s take a closer look at Ashley’s reply… Image The key bit is highlighted in yellow here:

ā€œShould new evidence emerge that warrants updates, the guidance will be reviewed & revised accordingly by NHS England & UKHSA to ensure the highest standards of infection prevention & control are maintained across healthcare settings.ā€ Image
Feb 15 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
I wonder why so many people who’ve had Covid might be suffering with ā€˜anxiety’ šŸ¤”

Hmmmm, let me think…

Could it be because Covid infections cause brain inflammation which triggers a plethora of neurological symptoms, including depression, anxiety & cognitive dysfunction? The symptom may be ā€˜anxiety’ but this can often be the first sign of underlying neurological damage caused by COVID infections.

Patients affected may also be struggling with cognitive dysfunction, memory problems, difficulty concentrating etc.

This video helps explain why ā¬‡ļø
Feb 13 • 12 tweets • 5 min read
ā€œWHY ARE YOU STILL MASKING?ā€

The folks at the @TheWHN have put together a really excellent set of science-based answers to various questions about why you’re still wearing a mask.

(Even if you’re not still masking, you might be interested in the answers).

Let’s take a lookā€¦šŸ§µ Image 1. ā€œIsn’t the pandemic over?ā€

Short Answer: The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the emergency phase over, but that doesn’t mean the pandemic itself has ended.

(h/t @TheWHN) Image
Jan 30 • 24 tweets • 10 min read
I’ve been reflecting on this letter from Minister @GwynneMP ā¬‡ļø

The letter which says the government supports Dr Lisa Ritchie’s view that ā€œCovid is not predominantly transmitted through the airborne routeā€.

I suspect there may be a little more to it than meets the eye… 🧐

/1 Image You see, here’s the thing:

Letters like that don’t get written in a vacuum.

Letters like that are usually drafted on behalf of Ministers by a civil servant who has expertise in the subject matter.

So I’m left wondering: who drafted it?

Who is advising Mr Gwynne?

/2
Jan 19 • 10 tweets • 4 min read
UK COVID INQUIRY

In this video, I’ve compiled crucial evidence from expert witness Prof Clive Beggs where he confirms:

šŸ”Ž Covid is airborne
šŸ”Ž Covid is predominantly spread via airborne aerosols (not droplets)
šŸ”Ž Breathing & talking generate significant amounts of aerosols. Here’s a little more detail from Prof Beggs’ testimony where he again confirms that the BULK of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is carried in the small airborne aerosols, NOT in the larger droplets which rapidly fall to the ground.

This is CRUCIAL for infection control purposes.
Jan 14 • 31 tweets • 14 min read
As Module 4 of the @CovidInquiryUK begins, attention turns to the Covid vaccines…

And it just happens that UKHSA’s annual accounts for 2023/24 have recently been published, revealing that a staggering Ā£1.09 BILLION were wasted on unused vaccines during 2023/24.

🧵 Image For me, one of the most shocking things was in Autumn 2023, when the govt bought enough vax doses for ALL over-50s…

…but then decided to restrict eligibility, denying millions of people under the age of 65 the chance to be protected.

theguardian.com/society/2023/a…Image
Jan 9 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
This is the Chief Exec of @NHSEngland ā¬‡ļø

She’s ā€œreally worried about the toll that flu & other viruses are taking on our patients and on services across the NHS.ā€

Yet, despite the fact these viruses are mostly AIRBORNE, there are NO airborne infection controls in hospitals. 🧵 Image Make it make sense!!

The Covid Inquiry module which specifically investigated the impact of Covid on healthcare systems ended just before Christmas and some very clear recommendations emerged…

WHY on earth have these not been made the absolute top priority and implemented?
Jan 8 • 9 tweets • 4 min read
It’s a real shame that comments on this thread ā¬‡ļø have been shut down so I’m not able to respond to the reply from @SpeechAndLangUK about the impact of lockdowns on speech & language for children born during lockdowns.

Here’s what I would have said if I’d been able to reply… 🧵 Image I would have said how pleased I am that the doc they shared from @RCSLT acknowledges the major contribution of Long Covid towards the issue:

ā€œLong COVID needs identified by SLTs included dysphagia, dysphonia, dysarthria, aphasia, cognitive communication disorder & dyspraxia.ā€ Image
Jan 3 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
This situation makes me so angry.

It should NOT be the responsibility of individual NHS Trust CEOs like @Nickhulme61 to have to plead with the public to wear masks in hospitals.

There should be clear national guidance, as advised by the IPC experts at the @covidinquiryuk…

🧵 Image And it shouldn’t just be patients & visitors wearing masks… all NHS staff should be wearing them too.

And not just loose-fitting surgical masks…

…they should be wearing FFP3 masks which are the only class of mask acceptable to HSE for use against infectious aerosols.
Dec 11, 2024 • 10 tweets • 5 min read
[10 Dec 2024] Opening Remarks from @DrTedros at WHO media briefing:

ā€œWe cannot talk about COVID in the past tense.

ā€œIt’s still with us, it still causes acute disease and Long COVID, and it still kills.

ā€œThe world might want to forget about COVID-19, but we cannot afford to.ā€ Link to the full transcript of the WHO Director-General's (@DrTedros) opening remarks at the media briefing on 10 December 2024 can be found here:

who.int/director-gener…
Dec 4, 2024 • 14 tweets • 6 min read
It was announced this week that SIR CHRIS WORMALD has been named as the new Cabinet Secretary & Head of the Civil Service, one of the most powerful jobs in government.

I thought I’d take a look back at what we learned about him from his recent Covid Inquiry appearances…

🧵 In her Closing Statement at the end of module 3, the Counsel for Covid Bereaved Families for Justice UK gave a scathing appraisal of Sir Chris Wormald’s evidence, describing it as:

ā€œā€¦an object lesson in obfuscation, a word salad – so many, many words, so very little substanceā€.
Nov 28, 2024 • 20 tweets • 9 min read
šŸ’š The Green Party have published a new policy calling for urgent action to tackle the ongoing waves of Covid which are causing so much harm to the nation’s health & economy.

Huge thanks to everyone involved in making this happen.

@AdrianRamsay @carla_denyer @ZackPolanski The Green Party are absolutely right.

We cannot continue to ignore Covid.

Covid has not gone away, nor has it settled into a seasonal pattern.

The endless waves continue to batter the nation throughout the year - and even in the dips, remains at a relatively high level. Image
Nov 24, 2024 • 84 tweets • 34 min read
COVID INQUIRY: X Megathread 🧵

As module 3 of the @covidinquiryuk draws to a close, I’ve been looking back at what we’ve learned about how it all went so wrong with infection control guidance for hospitals.

This is a long thread, so please grab a cuppa & make yourself comfy… Image One thing that really stands out from the Inquiry testimonies is just how many professional bodies repeatedly raised the alarm about the inadequate infection control guidance in hospitals…

…and how their concerns were disregarded at every stage, with profound consequences.
Nov 22, 2024 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
COVID INQUIRY CONTRADICTIONS

šŸ”ŽDid supply of PPE influence the IPC guidance?

Matt Hancock testified that the Covid infection control guidance *had* factored in the available supply of PPE, rather than being based purely on what was required to adequately protect NHS staff…

🧵 A similar account had previously been given by Laura Imrie, a member of the IPC Cell (the group responsible for writing the guidance).

She explained how lack of supply & the need for fit testing meant they weren’t in a position to be able to recommend wider use of FFP3 masks.
Nov 18, 2024 • 13 tweets • 8 min read
A Canadian teen is currently critically ill with H5N1 bird flu.

The really concerning thing about this case is that sequencing has revealed several NEW mutations which improve the virus's ability to bind to human receptors & increases its potential to spread between humans…

🧵 You can read a more technical summary of the specific mutations in the H5N1 sequence in the thread below from @HNimanFC.

Lots of interesting (and concerning) comments on the thread also. Image
Nov 15, 2024 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
MHRA have finally approved the updated Novavax (JN.1) formulation for use in the UK…

…HOWEVER…

…Novavax have confirmed that this vaccine will *NOT* be available in the private market for purchase or distribution for the autumn 2024 OR spring 2025 season in Great Britain. Image And the government also confirmed this week that Novavax won’t be offered at all as part of the NHS booster campaign either…

…even though it is now authorised by MHRA.

theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2024…Image
Nov 14, 2024 • 30 tweets • 14 min read
COVID VACCINE ELIGIBILITY šŸ‡¬šŸ‡§,
a thread🧵

JCVI have just advised that, going forwards, eligibility for Covid vaccination will be even more tightly restricted.

But the ā€˜bespoke cost-effectiveness assessment’ upon which this is based is heavily flawed…

gov.uk/government/pub…Image Before I dive into the issues, let’s just recap where we are…

In the UK, if you’re under 65 and not ā€˜at risk’, the last time you were eligible for a Covid vaccination was 2 years ago (Autumn 2022).

For most under 50s, it’s been 3 years since you were eligible (Autumn 2021). Image
Nov 3, 2024 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
.@lukethereporter, did you write this horrendous article?!

It’s packed full of misinformation. Please do better.

Read on and I’ll explain why… 🧵

dailymail.co.uk/health/article…Image In the article, you cite the Cochrane review as proving that masks make ā€œlittle to no differenceā€ to someone's risk of catching Covid.

Were you aware that the Editor-in-Chief of Cochrane confirmed that this is an ā€œinaccurate & misleading interpretationā€?

cochrane.org/news/statement…Image
Nov 1, 2024 • 25 tweets • 12 min read
šŸ”„ Thank you to @mrjamesob for hosting an excellent session on LONG COVID on @LBC this morning.

Featuring @alanbarnard1 @lara_wong @EllaRobertaFdn & more.

You can listen to the full show on catch up (available for the next 6 days):
globalplayer.com/catchup/lbc/uk… In the first clip above, @mrjamesob mentions the headline that HALF of claims on the UK benefits bill will be for sickness by 2029.

This headline is from the Times yesterday (31 Oct).

Read the full article here:
thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar…

(Paywall free: archive.ph/GYeAM) Image