Cissi

One of the most important forgotten facts about Andes hantavirus: Argentina already experienced a real human-to-human outbreak large enough to trigger lockdown-style public health measures.

Andes Virus is now confirmed to have presymptomatic transmission. 48 hours before start of symptoms. Dr. Gustavo Palacios, a microbiologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, did the 2018 outbreak study Ty @unique_anonym!!

Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario's CMOH, 'Andes Virus can be transmitted 1 day before symptoms....', at any time during the 7 week incubation period. We now only have 16 people being quarantined. 130 are doing home isolation. This one day ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSION is NOT GOOD.

I got in touch with the ship doctor b/c I wanted to figure out if I was wrong about "close contact". The prior outbreak investigation showed clearly there was spread without "prolonged close contact" but official (and unofficial) messaging for the cruise ship outbreak kept reiterating this. I was curious if maybe the on-ship dynamics were truly all "close physical contact", but that's not what I was told.

Hey guys...something cool is happening. The Andes virus discussion is scientific consensus evolving in public. A statement from the International Hantavirus Society and dozens of hantavirus researchers is a great example of science communication in motion. 🧵

Ozempic now has 3,636 active lawsuits as of this month. Most of them are for the same thing. stomach paralysis. Nobody told these people their gut was the most important conversation to have before starting. Here's what ozempic actually does in the gut.🧵

Statement from the International Hantavirus Society ... regarding Andes virus transmission and the current outbreak investigation "the available epidemiological and virological evidence strongly supports the conclusion that human-to-human transmission of ANDV should no longer be regarded as merely hypothetical or unproven. " Current evidence does not support describing Andes virus as ‘barely transmissible’ zenodo.org/records/200954…

@AnuskaChester @1goodtern @stone3Clare And there's also this, which happened in October 2025. cholilaonline.ar/2025/10/argent…

Just like once you've had covid, you're more susceptible to dozens and dozens of other infections. This is not complicated, people. Covid opens the door. The other infections just walk on through.

Hantavirus cases *in humans* nearly doubled in Argentina in the past year. A doubling in a year due to climate change? I doubt it. I suspect the underlying reason is that humans that have caught covid multiple times are *more susceptible to hanta*.

Literally, the same playbook. Again. The issue is not whether or not this will be a pandemic. The issue is: taking this calm-mongering approach pretty much guarantees that that only thing standing between us & the next pandemic is luck. Public health deserves more than PR.

The #WHO advice to only self monitor for symptoms before isolating will likely result infectious people walking around spreading the virus for two days before experiencing symptoms. #badadvice

Most of what we know about how the #AndesHantavirus transmits comes from a NEJM study of an outbreak in Argentina in 2018-19. Here’s an interview I produced with the study’s senior scientist: cbc.ca/9.7192895 People can be infectious for 48 hrs before symptom onset. #WHO

In the 2018-2019 Epuyén outbreak, 34 confirmed cases were linked to one index case. The initial reproductive number was approximately 2.1 before control measures. That is not a virus you wave away with "limited transmission potential."

First correction: calling ANDV "barely transmissible" is not supported by the scientific literature.

The world's top Andes virus (ANDV) researchers just dropped a statement on the cruise ship outbreak. Reading between the lines, they appear to be pushing back hard on the calm mongering from @WHO and the like that does not reflect the science.🧵 zenodo.org/records/200954…

A clear example of this issue of unreliable test results in the first few days of symptoms is the British man who is currently in hospital in Johannesburg: ▪️24 APR: Symptoms start ▪️27 APR: 1st test ➡️ NEGATIVE ▪️2 MAY: Repeat test ➡️ POSITIVE edition.cnn.com/2026/05/08/hea…

Baking soda reduces bone loss. In a 3-month study with 171 people aged 50+, there were 4 experimental groups. The groups were given: Potassium bicarbonate, or Sodium bicarbonate, or Potassium chloride, or Placebo All got a little calcium + vitamin D. Bicarbonate (both types) reduced bone breakdown and calcium loss. Potassium made no difference. Bone loss was assessed using: Calcium excretion—bicarbonate reduces calcium loss Urinary N-telopeptide—bicarbonate reduced urinary N-telopeptide What is N-Telopeptide (NTx)? NTx is a biomarker of bone resorption (breakdown)g. It’s a byproduct of bone loss. When bone is broken down (resorbed), NTx fragments are released into the bloodstream and excreted in urine. Higher urinary NTx = more bone breakdown occurring Lower urinary NTx = less bone breakdown occurring So, the reduction in urinary NTx and calcium among bicarbonate users directly indicates that bone resorption (destruction) was slowing down — a positive outcome for bone health. The study used about 5g/day. “Subjects taking bicarbonate had significant reductions in urinary N-telopeptide and calcium excretion, when compared with subjects taking no bicarbonate. Potassium supplementation did not significantly affect N-telopeptide or calcium excretion. Conclusions: Bicarbonate, but not potassium, had a favorable effect on bone resorption and calcium excretion. This suggests that increasing the alkali content of the diet may attenuate bone loss in healthy older adults.” Baking soda lowers stomach acid for a short time and increases the absorption of calcium, and so should not be taken with food or calcium (see milk alkali syndrome). At higher doses like this, it can interact with certain health problems, so speak to your doctor first. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate. Baking powder is not the same. This ties into the recent posts about CO2, as sodium/potassium bicarbonate increases CO2. Ref: Treatment with potassium bicarbonate lowers calcium excretion and bone resorption in older men and women Effects of sodium bicarbonate administration on the exercise tolerance of normal subjects breathing through dead space

The International Hantavirus Society issued an important statement yesterday which brings this entire strategy into question. They clarify that “the precise timing of infectiousness remains incompletely defined”. Infected people MAY be infectious before clear symptoms develop.

Yes. We need lockdowns and we need them yesterday. We have two pandemics on our hands.. Covid is still raging and Hantavirus is spreading fast. The science is settled on this: masks and lockdowns save lives.