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The Race to Creating a Vaccine

We are seeing many countries accelerating Covid-19 vaccine development, a race that has become increasingly fierce. We are seeing many countries accelerating Covid-19 vaccine development, a race that has become increasingly fierce. Many comments, criticisms and praises have been made regarding this endeavor. Social media is also full of knowledgeable opinions. However, many people are also giving praise or criticism without any deep insight on this issue. Let us use a cool head in an attempt to understand the “vaccine race” to control the disease, which is now infecting almost 300,000 people every day. Russian President Vladimir Putin recently announced on 11 Aug. that his country had become the first to successfully develop a vaccine. This vaccine will soon be used for mass immunization in October. Putin claims that the vaccine is safe, and that his own daughter volunteered in the clinical trial.

Early Detection of Silent Hypoxia

The development of Covid-19 has brought forth a new phenomenon that is increasingly challenging. The development of Covid-19 has brought forth a new phenomenon that is increasingly challenging. Three patients in Banyumas reportedly appeared asymptomatic but then suddenly died. According to a statement of Banyumas Regent Achmad Husein, all three of them seemed happy before they died. Unlike other Covid-19 patients, they had not shown any symptoms of cough, flu or fever. However, the oxygen saturation (the percentage of red blood cells that bind oxygen) continued to decline, leading to breathing failure. An examination then confirmed that the three were Covid-19 positive. This is what the public calls the “happy hypoxia” syndrome. This syndrome is reported to have afflicted many Covid-19 patients. Before the pandemic, it has also been seen in other lung infections, atelectasis and intrapulmonary shunts, but it has increased rapidly because of Covid-19.

Being Agile Against the Pandemic

Only a day after declaring the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic (11/3/2020), director general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, sent a letter to President Jokowi. The WHO asked that President Jokowi immediately declare a national emergency; build a laboratory of adequate scale; expand case search, tracking, monitoring and careful data collection; and intensify preventive measures, including by encouraging people to wash their hands frequently. However, this is an “exasperated” response on the part of WHO to see Indonesia’s response, which was considered too relaxed. For more than two months, the Health Ministry boasted a zero status of positive COVID-19 cases. However, on Monday (2/3/2020), two weeks ago, the defense was broken. The President announced that two Indonesian citizens had tested positive for COVID-19. There was a Japanese citizen visiting Indonesia, then continuing to Singapore. A careful examination in Singapore confirmed that the Japanese had tested positive for COVID-19. Tracking was later conducted in Indonesia on someone who made contact with the Japanese citizen. The person was found and tested positive for being infected, then the President announced it.

Hope from Blood Plasma

The super-virus that causes COVID-19 in Indonesia is taking more and more victims and is estimated to have not yet reached its peak. In the midst of this difficulty is some good news, like a light at the end of the tunnel. The Eijkman Institute of Molecular Biology immediately started the treatment of COVID-19 patients using blood plasma from patients who have been declared healthy. This method can be called plasma recovery. On Monday (20/4/2020), head of the Eijkman Institute of Molecular Biology Amin Subandrio said his agency, with the support of the Food and Drug Agency (Badan POM) and the Health Ministry, was ready to implement the plasma recovery method treatment in the coming weeks. On Tuesday (28/4), Kompas reported, state-owned pharmaceutical company PT Biopharma and Gatot Soebroto Army Hospital joined in this fast-moving innovation.

Coronavirus Turns over Immunity into Weapon that Backfires

How does this virus attack the human body, and why can it cause victims to die very quickly – in 4 to 7 days? In patients with HIV/AIDS it generally takes years to become fatal.   Why is this new type of coronavirus so deadly? How does this virus attack the human body, and why can it cause victims to die very quickly – in 4 to 7 days? In patients with HIV/AIDS it generally takes years to become fatal. If HIV/AIDS is like a guerrilla war, Covid-19 destroys victims in a blitzkrieg. The damage caused is described in a video circulating in social media. Doctor Keith Mortman, head of thoracic surgery at George Washington University Hospital, used 3D modeling to show how quickly Covid-19 attacks the lungs, from the stage of flooding the alveoli to the stage where the lungs stop functioning. The whole process from the beginning of the infection up to lung failure only takes a week if the patient has no immunity. “I want people to see this and understand what can be done. People need to take this seriously,” he says in the video.