A new Covid syndrome in kids

They’re calling it MIS-C — for Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children. It’s a result of Covid-19, but it’s still in the “mystifying” stage. And it’s affecting kids across the country.

Symptoms of the syndrome can include fever, rash, red eyes or gastrointestinal problems. Those can progress to heart dysfunction, including cardiogenic shock […]. Some patients develop cardiomyopathy, which stiffens the heart muscle, or abnormal rhythm.

It’s rare, percentage-wise, but there have been more than 2,000 cases (and 30 deaths) including more than 50 in Georgia — and scariest of all, most require ICU treatment.

Vaccine delays

If you’re expecting shipments of Covid-19 vaccines, don’t be surprised if they’re late. According to DPH, the vaccine-shipping companies have said to expect “significant delays” because of the crazy weather all over the country. More info will be coming soon, hopefully.

How’s the Georgia rollout going?

Like every other state, slow and bumpy to start, but now moving along well*. DPH even has a new dashboard (updated daily at 3:00pm) showing detailed vaccine progress.

* Not as good as Utah, not as bad as Kansas.

While we were all distracted

Overdose deaths have skyrocketed, what with loneliness, financial troubles, and the stress of the pandemic.

So please, don’t forget to keep an eye on your patients who might need help. It may be harder to get, but it’s still there. (Start with the Georgia Crisis & Access Line: (800) 715-4225, or the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.)

Addiction specialists across the country told STAT the overlapping health disasters — the historic Covid-19 pandemic colliding with a preexisting drug epidemic made deadlier by the potent synthetic opioid fentanyl — have been devastating for their patients. Many have simply disappeared; some have died; others have relapsed.

Herd-immunity roadblock

Many immigrants in the South won’t get immunized because they’ve learned not to trust the government. Unfortunately, that poses a danger to everyone: Vaccines aren’t perfect, new strains of Covid-19 are popping up, and even mild cases can have life-long effects. But for legal and illegal immigrants (and those in the process of immigrating)…

“If they have to risk their immigration status to have the Covid vaccine, they will not have it. I don’t blame them. They go by risk: ‘What is my biggest risk? Being deported or to have Covid?’”

Caffeine, pregnancy, and no clear answers

How much caffeine is safe for pregnant women? The consensus sets the limit at about 200mg per day (figure a cup or two of coffee). Beyond that — roll the dice, because no one can agree. There are some effects on babies (probably), but is it enough to worry about.

This is probably too much.

Reminder: The exchange is open

If you know people who’ve lost their health insurance, remind them that the Healthcare.gov marketplace is open as of Monday and will be open through mid-May. Anyone who is uninsured can get a policy now, with a good chance of federal subsidies.

Speaking of which, Aetna will be returning to the federal Obamacare market for 2022.

No plan survives contact with the enemy*

It was a vaccine entrepreneur’s meeting, and it was held partially in person in late January. Anyone attending live had to have a negative Covid-19 test result 72 hours before arriving. Attendees were giving daily tests while on site.

It was supposed to be a bubble of safety; about 80 people showed up, meeting all the requirements.

Two days after the conference, the first cases were reported. A week later it was 16 people. Eventually it was “dozens” of cases, plus family members who weren’t there.

* “No plan of operations extends with certainty beyond the first encounter with the main hostile force” is the actual quote. The more you know.

Every breath you take

If a phone that counts your steps is old hat, and your smartwatch doesn’t seem so smart, don’t worry. UC San Diego engineers are this close to a wearable health monitor:

…a soft, stretchy skin patch that can be worn on the neck to continuously track blood pressure and heart rate while measuring the wearer’s levels of glucose as well as lactate, alcohol or caffeine.

Sure, they say “This type of wearable would be very helpful for people with underlying medical conditions,” but you know it wouldn’t be long before parents slapped one on their teens’ necks before sending them off to prom.

“I can see your heartbeat, honey. What are you doing?”

Hard to believe

New, ground-breaking research published in the prestigious journal Heart finds that “Drinking, smoking, and drug use linked to premature heart disease in the young.”