Medical Discussion of Coronavirus

[StarTrekDoc]

I'm just getting it done, with regrets. I'm not getting younger, I got boosted last week, Covid isn't going anywhere, vaccinated people transmit as well. Omicron may not be as bad as pi or omega. I have no idea of my risk of colon cancer or any other genetically-related disease so waiting is hard.

Just wish I, and everyone else, had better choices.

So if not above average risk, why not cologuard?
Are you getting an EGD too?
If not,n95 yourself shouldn't be an issue or they refusing to allow you that?

[CordMcNally]

So if not above average risk, why not cologuard?
Are you getting an EGD too?
If not,n95 yourself shouldn't be an issue or they refusing to allow you that?

If they're doing a sedation then I doubt they would be big fans of that. I know I'm not.

[Lordosis]

I'm just getting it done, with regrets. I'm not getting younger, I got boosted last week, Covid isn't going anywhere, vaccinated people transmit as well. Omicron may not be as bad as pi or omega. I have no idea of my risk of colon cancer or any other genetically-related disease so waiting is hard.

Just wish I, and everyone else, had better choices.

Why did it take you so long to get a booster? Doesn't really fit the narrative.


I am on call for our group this holiday weekend. The vast majority of my phone calls are covid positive test that I am relaying to patients. It is somewhat annoying since most of them already have the results. I've called about 25 people so far and every single one of them has either been mild symptoms or already recovered. There have been young people there have been old people there have been people with medical problems vaccinated and unvaccinated. I realize this is just anecdotal but it makes me feel better. I'm really starting to believe that this variant is much less troublesome than its predecessors.

Being on call sucks but I do find it amusing looking through other people's charts and seeing how differently I practice than other family physicians. It is amazing how many people are on stimulants! I must have missed the memo on that one.

[jacoavlu]

Why did it take you so long to get a booster? Doesn't really fit the narrative.

pretty sure it was booster number 2

[snowcanyon]

So if not above average risk, why not cologuard?
Are you getting an EGD too?
If not,n95 yourself shouldn't be an issue or they refusing to allow you that?

I have no idea of my risk, whether it's above or below average. My insurance does not cover cologuard, although I guess I could pay.
I doubt if the they will with sedation. No EGD.
I always wear an N-95 for my patients.

[snowcanyon]

Why did it take you so long to get a booster? Doesn't really fit the narrative.


I am on call for our group this holiday weekend. The vast majority of my phone calls are covid positive test that I am relaying to patients. It is somewhat annoying since most of them already have the results. I've called about 25 people so far and every single one of them has either been mild symptoms or already recovered. There have been young people there have been old people there have been people with medical problems vaccinated and unvaccinated. I realize this is just anecdotal but it makes me feel better. I'm really starting to believe that this variant is much less troublesome than its predecessors.

Being on call sucks but I do find it amusing looking through other people's charts and seeing how differently I practice than other family physicians. It is amazing how many people are on stimulants! I must have missed the memo on that one.

That's my 4th vaccine! Second booster, per what Dr. Peter Hotez and Israel recommended for healthcare workers.

[Tim]

Dr. Peter Hotez, is a very fine physician. I would not recommend taking his vaccine since it has not been approved in the USA.
I hope you are making your own decisions. He is very adapt at promoting his self image. I got tired of seeing him on local TV and the newspapers.
No opinion on his vaccine.

[snowcanyon]

Dr. Peter Hotez, is a very fine physician. I would not recommend taking his vaccine since it has not been approved in the USA.
I hope you are making your own decisions. He is very adapt at promoting his self image. I got tired of seeing him on local TV and the newspapers.
No opinion on his vaccine.

He recommended a 4th dose of mRNA vaccines for healthcare workers. So does Israel.

[Lordosis]

That's my 4th vaccine! Second booster, per what Dr. Peter Hotez and Israel recommended for healthcare workers.

I'm not sure what else you can do to decrease your risk then. Sounds like you are as covered as can be. Depending what region you're in and how bad it is right now maybe timing your procedure for a less infectious month. Just playing the odds.

[Huggy]

Well after all of this time, Covid has finally rained down on my family.

About two weeks ago, vaccinated mother who lives in Northeast got the virus. Did well, isolated ten days and has some lingering lost of taste and smell.

Four days ago, my vaccinated wife started having GI symptoms, nausea vomiting diarrhea, and bad headache tested positive then developed mild cough. She improved after two days and feels great.

I, vaccinated but not boosted, tested on the same day as my wife, negative. But the follow-up day I woke up feeling terrible with fever, cough, sore throat, diarrhea. Tested positive. I’m on day 3 now and continue to feel pretty terrible. Headaches, persistent fevers, cough, very bad sore throat, muscle aches (which have resolved), and last night pretty significant night sweats. I guess I’m supposed to return to work in 2 days though if my symptoms are improving (which some are improving and some are worsening?) Not feeling super comfortable with that plan. Now I’m hearing that fauci expects the CDC to suggest having a negative result prior to returning to work?

This is not fun. Very interesting how different people respond to this virus.

[eyecandy]

Huggy very sorry to hear that. Caught up to me too recently. I’ve been very careful wearing N95 with all patient encounters since March 2020. I’m triple vaxxxed (thank god!) My symptoms were similar to your wife: sore throat, headache, nausea/upset stomach. Cough developed a few days later. No fevers, normal taste/smell the whole time. My area is over 75% omicron so that’s my bet of what I got. Over 2 weeks out I still have the dry cough. Feels like cough will stick around for a while.

[VagabondMD]

Agreed. But they won't, and that's the problem
Actually, I can't- I have no coverage for any facility that requires vaccination. I went through 4 levels of appeals with my insurer to get coverage at a facility that requires vaccination. I called and none near me will do the procedure without in-network coverage.

If it is a screening colon, I would wait a couple months, the Omnicron wave will likely have passed, positivity rate in community lower, hospitals less stressed, etc.

[CordMcNally]

I've also heard that you can poop in a container at home and mail it to your district's house representative and they'll take care of it. You didn't hear this from me, though.

[Tim]

Two mega testing sites opening tomorrow. Capacity of 1000 each. The only problem is with a population of 7m, a little short. Particularly since some employers offered the testing option and more court challenges, another one on New Year's Eve.

https://jonathanturley.org/2022/01/01/the-workaround-is-not-working-federal-judge-enjoins-another-biden-mandate-in-texas/

Mandating vaccines in the head start programs. The dance goes on.

[StarTrekDoc]

One could defer sedation too. A few docs of mine have done this to avoid losing more time and get back to work in the afternoon. Serious workaholics!