4 ms·

There looks like treatments developing that can reduce the mortality or severity of COVID after contracting it, including possibly reducing long-term scarring f

by hosh 6y ago

There looks like treatments developing that can reduce the mortality or severity of COVID after contracting it, including possibly reducing long-term scarring from it. These treatments are coming out of better modeling and understanding on how COVID spreads in the body and kills people. It isn't so binary or black and white -- vaccinate or risk dying. We're starting to get other options.

sterlind 6y ago
Some of those options, like monoclonal antibodies, are extremely expensive and hard to produce and distribute at scale, plus they only work early in the course of the disease. I'm not aware of any small-molecule drugs that have hopes of great efficacy on the horizon. You're not going to pump out 150K/day doses of MABs. It really is vaccinate or risk dying. The other options are too expensive, too timing-dependent or too ineffective.
bxrxdx 6y ago
Why are you more scared of a vaccine than other new covid treatments?
- hosh 6y ago
  I’m not scared of a vaccine. I am not sure what words I used to give you that impression. I do see a lot of people fixating on vaccines as if it will make everything better. Vaccines will help, but better if there are other treatments as well. I think that if mortality rates and long-term scarring decreases, then people won’t feel like their survival depends upon other people’s cooperation.
- sokoloff 6y ago
  Presumably because any side-effects of new COVID treatments would only affected those who get a serious form of COVID while any side-effects of a vaccine would be applied to the entire population.
macintux 6y ago
The strong asymptomatic spread of this virus, however, makes these decisions more complicated and less individualistic than “what happens to me if I catch it”.
ascorbic 6y ago
Vaccines are the only way we can end the pandemic though. However great a treatment is, it won't stop anyone catching it or spreading it. If we're to be able to go back to anything resembling normal, we need to stop widespread transmission in the population, and the only way to do that without these restrictions is for an effective sterilising vaccine.

by hosh 6y ago

sterlind 6y ago

Some of those options, like monoclonal antibodies, are extremely expensive and hard to produce and distribute at scale, plus they only work early in the course of the disease. I'm not aware of any small-molecule drugs that have hopes of great efficacy on the horizon. You're not going to pump out 150K/day doses of MABs. It really is vaccinate or risk dying. The other options are too expensive, too timing-dependent or too ineffective.

bxrxdx 6y ago

Why are you more scared of a vaccine than other new covid treatments?

hosh 6y ago
I’m not scared of a vaccine. I am not sure what words I used to give you that impression. I do see a lot of people fixating on vaccines as if it will make everything better. Vaccines will help, but better if there are other treatments as well. I think that if mortality rates and long-term scarring decreases, then people won’t feel like their survival depends upon other people’s cooperation.
sokoloff 6y ago
Presumably because any side-effects of new COVID treatments would only affected those who get a serious form of COVID while any side-effects of a vaccine would be applied to the entire population.

macintux 6y ago

The strong asymptomatic spread of this virus, however, makes these decisions more complicated and less individualistic than “what happens to me if I catch it”.

ascorbic 6y ago

Vaccines are the only way we can end the pandemic though. However great a treatment is, it won't stop anyone catching it or spreading it. If we're to be able to go back to anything resembling normal, we need to stop widespread transmission in the population, and the only way to do that without these restrictions is for an effective sterilising vaccine.