4 ms·

So.. what's going on in Nigeria? https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%22loss%20of%20smell%22 https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%2

So.. what's going on in Nigeria? https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%22loss%20of%20smell%22 https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%22loss%20...

SpicyLemonZest 6y ago
Exactly what that trend suggests, most likely. Nigeria has 245k (!!) tuberculosis deaths a year, so it's entirely plausible IMO that they could fail to notice an uncontrolled epidemic of a different pneumonia-causing disease.
- bobthepanda 6y ago
  Interestingly enough, Japan is chalking up success in containment of COVID to its contact tracing system originally developed for TB: https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/japans-contact-tracing-method-is-old-but-gold/ https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/japans-contact-tracing-method-...
  - ashtonkem 6y ago
    Not surprising, TB is also a respiratory disease with a long dormancy period. While the details are slightly different (latent TB patients apparently aren’t infectious), one would expect a TB tracing program to be roughly correct for any other respiratory disease. I’m sure the SARS and bird flu outbreaks have given regional governments an opportunity to consider how to prepare as well.
    - zamalek 6y ago
      TB has proven to be a great practice run for COVID. Southern African countries have not messed about with it. I still remember just how strict things became even with minor outbreaks. For something like a decade, Zimbabwe has required Foot and Mouth Disease control at borders - long after the risk has passed. I was temperature screened in an airport sometime in the early 2010s in South Africa for a domestic flight. My friends back there can't leave their home 95% of the time, they can't buy smokes, they can't buy beer. African countries are experts at this, and the comparison to America is depressing (including my own idiotic behavior).
      - perl4ever 6y ago
        The figures I see on the internet for testing in most African countries are not very high. It's become a talking point that more tests produce more cases; couldn't you argue the inverse - fewer tests produce fewer cases? It appears about 3200 tests per million are reported for all of Africa, compared to say Spain at ~110,000 or the US at around 96,000.
        zamalek 6y ago
        Absolutely, maybe I'm wrong. My experience has just been that Africa deeply respects the power of a pathogen.
        perl4ever 6y ago
        Among the top 20 countries with the most new cases at the moment, other than South Africa, Russia, and the US, they seem to all be developing countries outside Africa. So if African countries in general have had a good response, I wonder why it's spreading so rapidly in countries like India, Mexico, Chile, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Peru, Colombia, Iran, etc...do they not respect the power of a pathogen?
- travmatt 6y ago
  They also have a very young population, which may mean they have more asymptotic/mild cases.
albntomat0 6y ago
Loss of smell has been reported in their news, and apparently was trending on Twitter among Nigerians. "Public health physician, Dr Doyin Odubanjo, has reacted to the growing complaints of loss of smell and taste by Nigerians on Twitter, which has since triggered Coronavirus scare." https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/399665-nigerian-govt-identifies-loss-of-smell-taste-senses-as-covid-19-symptoms.html https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/399665-nigerian... http://saharareporters.com/2020/06/16/growing-complaints-loss-smell-taste-nigerians-trigger-coronavirus-scare-expert-reacts http://saharareporters.com/2020/06/16/growing-complaints-los...

So.. what's going on in Nigeria? https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%22loss%20of%20smell%22 https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=NG&q=%22loss%20...

SpicyLemonZest 6y ago

Exactly what that trend suggests, most likely. Nigeria has 245k (!!) tuberculosis deaths a year, so it's entirely plausible IMO that they could fail to notice an uncontrolled epidemic of a different pneumonia-causing disease.

bobthepanda 6y ago
Interestingly enough, Japan is chalking up success in containment of COVID to its contact tracing system originally developed for TB: https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/japans-contact-tracing-method-is-old-but-gold/ https://asiatimes.com/2020/06/japans-contact-tracing-method-...
- ashtonkem 6y ago
  Not surprising, TB is also a respiratory disease with a long dormancy period. While the details are slightly different (latent TB patients apparently aren’t infectious), one would expect a TB tracing program to be roughly correct for any other respiratory disease. I’m sure the SARS and bird flu outbreaks have given regional governments an opportunity to consider how to prepare as well.
  - zamalek 6y ago
    TB has proven to be a great practice run for COVID. Southern African countries have not messed about with it. I still remember just how strict things became even with minor outbreaks. For something like a decade, Zimbabwe has required Foot and Mouth Disease control at borders - long after the risk has passed. I was temperature screened in an airport sometime in the early 2010s in South Africa for a domestic flight. My friends back there can't leave their home 95% of the time, they can't buy smokes, they can't buy beer. African countries are experts at this, and the comparison to America is depressing (including my own idiotic behavior).
    - perl4ever 6y ago
      The figures I see on the internet for testing in most African countries are not very high. It's become a talking point that more tests produce more cases; couldn't you argue the inverse - fewer tests produce fewer cases? It appears about 3200 tests per million are reported for all of Africa, compared to say Spain at ~110,000 or the US at around 96,000.
      - zamalek 6y ago
        Absolutely, maybe I'm wrong. My experience has just been that Africa deeply respects the power of a pathogen.
        perl4ever 6y ago
        Among the top 20 countries with the most new cases at the moment, other than South Africa, Russia, and the US, they seem to all be developing countries outside Africa. So if African countries in general have had a good response, I wonder why it's spreading so rapidly in countries like India, Mexico, Chile, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Peru, Colombia, Iran, etc...do they not respect the power of a pathogen?
travmatt 6y ago
They also have a very young population, which may mean they have more asymptotic/mild cases.

albntomat0 6y ago

Loss of smell has been reported in their news, and apparently was trending on Twitter among Nigerians. "Public health physician, Dr Doyin Odubanjo, has reacted to the growing complaints of loss of smell and taste by Nigerians on Twitter, which has since triggered Coronavirus scare." https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/399665-nigerian-govt-identifies-loss-of-smell-taste-senses-as-covid-19-symptoms.html https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/399665-nigerian... http://saharareporters.com/2020/06/16/growing-complaints-loss-smell-taste-nigerians-trigger-coronavirus-scare-expert-reacts http://saharareporters.com/2020/06/16/growing-complaints-los...