All indications from genomic surveillance of the virus, wastewater. and the clinical outcomes that are still being tracked (albeit more limited and less periodicity as time goes on), that we’ve (finally) entered an endemic phase. There are no new SARS-CoV-2 variants that have yet cropped up with a growth advantage over XBB.1.5 (the recombinant with 2 significant mutations added on) which is dominant throughout much of the world, or its cousin, XBB.1.9.1. For all the talk about the convergent “variant soup” that preceded the most recent wave, the XBBs took hold and are not giving way to a long list of Omicron family sub-variants (Table below). Moreover, the XBB.1.5 variant ascent to dominance was not associated with a surge of Covid hospitalizations or deaths in the United States or elsewhere in the world, which might have been predicted based on its properties of enhanced transmissibility and immune evasiveness compared with earlier versions of Omicron.
While the risk of severe, acute Covid that leads to hospitalization or death has decreased during the 3+ years of the pandemic, the primary concern has shifted to the chronic side—winding up with Long Covid. My colleagues and I reviewed Long Covid in-depth earlier this year, but there have been new reports that firm up evidence for 4 ways to reduce the likelihood of chronic sequelae from a Covid infection (or re-infection).
I got Paxlovid, but after reading up on the side effects and the fact that everyone I knew who took it had a resurgence of COVID as soon as the Pax ran out, I decided not to take it. It was a very mild case anyway.
The rebound factor continues to be 100% of everyone I know who took it.
There are a couple studies out that George shared. One that proves ivermectin is of no use, and another that shows famotidine is.
