Coronavirus Morning Update: “The Worst” in Gauteng, PPE “Immediate Need” for Healthcare Professionals

What’s happening in SA

Case update:

The latest number of confirmed cases is 603 338.

According to the latest update, 12 843 deaths have been recorded in the country.

There were 500 recovery 102 times.

To date, over 3.5 million tests have been conducted and 24 224 new tests have been reported.

Read more | All cases of coronavirus confirmed by SA

the latest news:

Although Covid-19 infections and hospitalizations in Gauteng continue to decline, state testing for the virus is consistent.

This is according to the Gauteng State Command Council, which made weekly Covid-19 updates on Friday,

“The worst is over,” said Lesiba Malotana, COO of the Gauteng Department of Health.

According to the data, the maximum number of hospitalizations was recorded in mid-July. On July 22, a total of 7 193 patients were hospitalized for the virus, of which 1 863 were on oxygen therapy.

As of August 19, there were 3 311 Covid-19 patients admitted to public and private hospitals throughout the state, of which 922 were on oxygen therapy.

320 patients were ventilated in both private and public hospitals.

Daily Covid-19 infections have consistently decreased since mid-July. On July 9, the state recorded the largest daily increase of 6 531 Covid-19 cases, with 944 recorded by August 19.

Read more | Gauteng Covid-19: “The worst is over,” states health department says

The South African Health Professional Council (HPCSA) is concerned that 240 health workers have died of Covid-19 from the outset.

HPCSA spokesman Priscilla Sekhonyana said health workers endanger their selfless lives and, as a result, are vulnerable to viruses.

“Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is an urgent necessity for healthcare professionals, especially workers. [on] The front line”.

She said it was the duty of the health care professional to ensure that the right PPE was provided at the right level of care.

According to the National Health Service, 27 360 public and private health workers are reported to be infected nationwide.

“It is our duty to protect our assets and work collaboratively to support health care workers so they don’t overwhelm the health care system,” he said.

Read more | PPE is a “urgent need”-HPCSA concerns after 240 health workers die at Covid-19

Covid-19 patients who are considered “at the end of life” may be restricted from visiting by loved ones, according to a new protocol released by some hospitals on Friday.

It requires hospital management permits and is within strict guidelines.

“Regardless of the patient’s Covid-19 status, visits to end-of-life situations will continue to be arranged by the hospital general manager to ensure a compassionate approach,” Netcare said.

“Such visits are subject to certain conditions for discussing with the patient’s family. However, Netcare Hospital will respond to requests as best it can.”

Mr. Melomed said: “We will not visit Covid-19 patients, but we will arrange visits to end-of-life Covid-19 patients. [personal protective equipment] For visitors with strict management measures. ”

Families, nurses, and doctors bother families and love families who cannot visit Covid-19 patients in the hospital.

However, there are new rules when hospitals perform elective surgery and return to treatment of chronic conditions that were ignored due to fear of going to the hospital during lockdown.

Read more | Covid-19: Hospitals that allow visits at the “end of life” stage-but with strict guidelines

What’s happening in the rest of the world

Case update:

For the latest global data, Follow this interactive map from Johns Hopkins University and Medicine..

Early Saturday morning, more than 22.86 million positive cases were reported worldwide, with nearly 798,000 deaths.

The United States has the most cases in the world, with more than 5.62 million and the most fatal cases, more than 175,000.

Read more | All confirmed cases worldwide

the latest news:

The World Health Organization said Friday that the planet hopes to get rid of the coronavirus pandemic within two years-faster than it had due to a Spanish cold.

“We want to end this pandemic within two years,” Tedros Adhanom Gebreyes told reporters at the WHO headquarters in Geneva to tame the new coronavirus faster than the deadly 1918 pandemic. Argued that it should be.

Tedros admits that today’s world is at a disadvantage because of its “globalization, intimacy, connection” compared to that time, which has allowed the new coronavirus to spread throughout the world at an alarming rate.

But he said the world now also has the advantage of far superior technology.

“By making the most of the tools available and hoping to get additional tools like vaccines, I think we can finish it in less time than the 1918 flu. ”

Read more | WHO wants Covid-19’s pandemic to end in “less than two years”

Latest research

Early in the development of Covid-19, Health24 wrote about a new coronavirus and how to use spikes to dock onto the surface of human cells with the help of a receptor called ACE2.

Vaccine developers have been focusing on these spike proteins and the ACE2 receptor. They gained insights on how the virus triggers the human immune response.

German scientists, including experts at the European Institute for Molecular Biology (EMBL) in Heidelberg, the Max Planck Institute for Biophysics, the Paul Erich Institute, and the Goethe University in Frankfurt, focus on surface structures, according to a news release Using viruses to gain insights that can be used to develop vaccines and therapies to treat infected patients.

The team used a combination of cryo-electron tomography, sub-tomogram averaging, and molecular dynamics simulations to analyze the precise molecular structure of spike proteins.

Their data showed that the receptor-binding region is located and the globular portion of the spike protein, which helps the virus bind well to human cells, is actually attached to the flexible stem.

“The stems were expected to be very stiff,” MPI in Biophysics and Gerhard Hammer of the Institute of Biophysics in Goethe University Frankfurt said in a news release. “But in our computer model and in the actual image, we found the stem to be very flexible.”

The researchers were able to confirm that there are three hinges that give the stem flexibility.

“Like a balloon on a string, the spikes appear to move across the surface of the virus, allowing us to search for receptors to dock into target cells,” Paul-Ehrlich-Institut Group Leader said. Explains one Jacomine Krijnse Locker.

Read more | New discoveries explain how a coronavirus may be able to infect cells

As research on Covid-19 progresses, symptomatic loss of smell (anosmia) has officially been added to the Centers for Disease Control and Administration’s list of Covid-19 symptoms. At that stage, it was unclear what caused this phenomenon.

A previous Health24 article explored the potential of odor loss as a neurological indicator of early infection with the new coronavirus.

A new study now shows that Covid-19’s olfactory deficiency differs from similar symptoms caused by other forms of upper respiratory tract infection.

According to researchers whose research was published in the journal Rhinology, the main difference between the loss of odor caused by Covid-19 and that of a cold is the way people breathe. People who lose their sense of smell as a result of Covid-19 are still able to breathe freely through their noses, but with no detectable bitter or sweet taste.

Loss of odor as a result of other infections such as a cold is associated with runny nose or stuffy nose.

Read more | Losing odor from Covid-19 is different from a common cold

Health Tips (Recommended by NICD and WHO)

• Keep physical distance-at least 1 meter away from a person who is coughing or sneezing

• Practice hand washing often, especially after direct contact with sick people and the environment.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth as your hands can touch many surfaces and infect viruses.

• Respiratory hygiene exercises-When coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth with a bent elbow or tissue. Dispose of the tissue immediately after use.

^{Image Credit: Getty Images}