I am hoping that the world will have a handle on the latest outbreak.

growstuff

GrannyGravy13

As someone who has been buying and selling protective clothing including many makes/specifications of masks I can confirm that a mask worn incorrectly and/or of the wrong specification for the job/infection involved is as much use as a chocolate teapot.

The kind of masks which protect construction workers aren't designed to stop the wearer from transmitting minute particles.

growstuff you have no idea who/what companies we deal with, what they need protection from etc., etc.,

Feel free to inform me of my business which I know inside out…

People getting too close, not obeying hgiene rules and risking mixing with people when they potentially have viral infections.

It would include you growstuff because you are unaware of the dangers of people, wearing masks but not effectively.

M0nica

People getting too close, not obeying hgiene rules and risking mixing with people when they potentially have viral infections.

It would include you growstuff because you are unaware of the dangers of people, wearing masks but not effectively.

How insulting!

No, it wouldn't include me because I'm very much aware how Covid (and other viruses) are transmitted. I have functioning eyes and can see when people aren't wearing masks correctly and are too close to me. I'm also aware of the dangers of aerosol transmission and won't go into a crowded, enclosed space.

None of the above means that wearing a mask is useless. If I were to know that infection rates in my area were high, I would most definitely wear a mask and keep away from areas where transmission rates are likely to be high.

PS. I wore FFP2 masks throughout the pandemic and still haven't caught Covid.

GrannyGravy13

growstuff

GrannyGravy13

As someone who has been buying and selling protective clothing including many makes/specifications of masks I can confirm that a mask worn incorrectly and/or of the wrong specification for the job/infection involved is as much use as a chocolate teapot.

The kind of masks which protect construction workers aren't designed to stop the wearer from transmitting minute particles.

growstuff you have no idea who/what companies we deal with, what they need protection from etc., etc.,

Feel free to inform me of my business which I know inside out…

My understanding that it is a builders' merchant. Builders need protection from dust and chemicals, etc. They do not need to protect buildings from their own diseases.

growstuff

RosiesMaw

growstuff

Freya5

Pneumonia is mostly spread when people infected, cough ,sneeze or talk, you know the usual method of spreading bacteria, which is a common cause. Children are very susceptible due to their close proximity to each other in schools. The WHO terrifies me, with their draconian lock everyone up that most ountries, including ours, have stupidly signed up to. Or have China been meddling with things they shouldn't.

Sorry, but why are you writing about pneumonia?

Because of this from OP

Reports of hundreds of children hospitalised in China from a serious type of pneumonia . It started in the north and is spreading south.

OK! Thanks for pointing that out.

There are different types of pneumonia, bacterial, viral and fungal. There is a type known as mycoplasma pneumonia which is also caused by a bacterium.

Is this one spreading through China a viral pneumonia, do we know?

maddyone

Jaxjacky

We had a winter surge of strep throats and RSV in children after mask wearing reduced. China only stopped their mandatory mask wearing in April this year.

This may well be very relevant.

Yes, and this may be relevant. There were high incidences of RSV in New Zealand during the pandemic.
It can lead to bronchiolitis in very young children and is quite common.

Callistemon I'm not sure anybody knows:

www.newscientist.com/article/2404643-pneumonia-in-china-everything-we-know-so-far-about-mystery-illness/

growstuff our SME is far more than a builders merchant

I posted at the outset of Covid that we were sourcing and supplying masks and PPE to health workers etc.

growstuff I have combed through evrything I have written on this thread and nowhere in them can I find anywhere where I have described masks as 'useless'

What I said was that 'caution must be exercised' over their effectivenees, which given how carelssly so many people wear masks seems to me to be a reasonable thing to say.

M0nica our staff have to attend training on how to fit and wear masks by the same people that were going into hospitals and fitting masks and training the staff how to wear and when to change filters on the Covid wards.

An ill fitting mask, or even some home made fabric ones are not effective in any way shape or form.

I agree with Bluebell. Chinese wore masks long before Covid as do Japanese. Soon as cold symptoms appear they put masks on to prevent spreading.

growstuff

Callistemon I'm not sure anybody knows:

www.newscientist.com/article/2404643-pneumonia-in-china-everything-we-know-so-far-about-mystery-illness/

I've only skimmed it, but the report says that the pneumonia is probably the type caused by bacteria, some cases possibly by the rarer one I mentioned, mycoplasma.
These types can be treated by antibiotics, unlike viral infections.

It's still a mystery, though.

growstuff

BlueBelle

The Chinese constantly wear masks long before Covid gave us any problems I m sure it’s a cat and mouse game wear masks to stop catching something but if you never catch anything you never have any immunity

You seem to be saying that people become immune by catching a virus.

I'm puzzled by this because it means that people still catch it, but at a different time. Why is that any better? They still catch it!

Apparently Covid immunity, whether from having the disease or from vaccination, is quite short lived. And many people do still catch it but have a less serious illness.

M0nica

growstuff I have combed through evrything I have written on this thread and nowhere in them can I find anywhere where I have described masks as 'useless'

What I said was that 'caution must be exercised' over their effectivenees, which given how carelssly so many people wear masks seems to me to be a reasonable thing to say.

I apologise for misquoting you, MOnica. I looked back, too and realised what I'd done. I made an inference from what you said that might not have been justified.

However, I would still say that the fact that people misuse them is not sufficient reason to doubt their efficacy for the individual.

And I strongly believe that the public health messaging was very poor when masks were made mandatory.

How often do you test?

VioletSky

Those poor children, what a terrifying problem

I am so glad there is one person on here who is thinking of the poor children rather than arguing about immune systems, etc.

I also feel sorry for the parents who must be so worried about their children especially after the Covid crisis. Let's hope this disappears as quickly as it appears to have come and that it doesn't reach epidemic proportions.

I agree GSM and Sago

Good idea !

VioletSky

Those poor children, what a terrifying problem

If it's similar to RSV, which one of my DC had, then there do seem to be outbreaks from time to time and it can be quite frightening.

If bacterial, as stated in reports from China, it is treatable with antibiotics.

China claims it is not a new disease but perhaps the symptoms are different to those of existing infections.

WHO is supposed to be updating us.

It has been announced in the last few days in the UK that there are now several rssv vaccines cleared for general use and they will be available for older, vulnerable and young children next winter.

I am so glad there is one person on here who is thinking of the poor children rather than arguing about immune systems, etc

How ridiculous, unkind and unfair to suggest only one person is thinking about the children.

RosiesMaw

^I am so glad there is one person on here who is thinking of the poor children rather than arguing about immune systems, etc^

How ridiculous, unkind and unfair to suggest only one person is thinking about the children.

Yes, absolutely!
But not unexpected.

RosiesMaw

^I am so glad there is one person on here who is thinking of the poor children rather than arguing about immune systems, etc^

How ridiculous, unkind and unfair to suggest only one person is thinking about the children.

I commented because it was so noticeable that only one person had contributed in that fashion and even then it was totally ignored. There's quite a body of evidence here backing up my statement that arguing about things seemed to be in the forefront of the discussion rather than the children who were suffering! It was an observation of one person's empathy more than anything else but probably worded more strongly than I meant.

Apologies.

It has been happening for several months but little has been reported about it.

Just because sone people-and I do not necessarily mean on this thread alone- are not backward in coming forward, blowing their own trumpet and virtue signalling does not mean the quiet, thoughtful majority do not care, just because they don't make a song and dance about it.
Public "emoting" has become all too common it seems.