Coronavirus updates for Dec. 8: Here’s what to know in North Carolina this week
We’re tracking information about the coronavirus and vaccines in North Carolina. Check back every Thursday for updates.
11,000 new COVID cases reported
At least 11,055 new coronavirus cases were reported in North Carolina last week, up from 6,745 the week before, according to preliminary data from state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services also reported 653 new weekly COVID-19 hospital patient admissions, an increase from 534 the previous week, according to figures through Dec. 3, the most recent metrics available. The daily average of adult coronavirus patients in intensive care was 80, compared to 78 the week before.
The figures were released Wednesday, Dec. 7, more than eight months after health officials started adjusting information on their coronavirus dashboard and publishing weekly COVID-19 data. The figures had been updated almost every day.
Roughly 78% of adults in North Carolina have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and about 73% have finished an initial round of vaccine doses. Of the state’s total population, about 63% finished their initial round and about 67% have received at least one dose. State officials round vaccination metrics to the nearest whole number.
“Out of all people who have finished their initial vaccines in North Carolina, 59% have been vaccinated with at least one booster, and 17% with an updated omicron booster,” the health department wrote on its website.
Health officials have urged those who are eligible to get boosted, as data shows it offers increased protection against the omicron coronavirus variant. Across the state, most new COVID-19 cases were attributed to the omicron variant’s “lineages” in the two weeks leading up to Nov. 26, the latest time period for which data is available.
Updated COVID vaccines authorized for younger kids
Younger kids are now eligible to get the latest vaccines to help protect against COVID-19.
Children 6 months to 4 years old can be vaccinated with Pfizer’s bivalent booster shots after Pfizer received emergency use authorization. Also, kids up to 5 years old are able to get an updated dose from Moderna.
The extra doses were designed to target strains of the omicron coronavirus variant, McClatchy News reported on Dec. 8.
“With the high level of respiratory illnesses currently circulating among children under 5 years of age, updated COVID-19 vaccines may help prevent severe illness and hospitalization,” Pfizer wrote in a news release.
More details about the expanded vaccine eligibility are available here.
Charlotte business owner, son sentenced in COVID relief scam
A Charlotte restaurant owner and his son are going to prison after they were found guilty in a COVID-19 relief scheme, officials said.
The pair is accused of taking $1.7 million meant to help small businesses struggling during the coronavirus pandemic. They stole the money “by submitting multiple Paycheck Protection Program loan applications that misrepresented the number of employees and the payroll expenses” at the dad’s companies, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
The men recently were ordered to spend time behind bars after being convicted of money laundering and other charges in March. The dad was given a four-year sentence, and the son was given more than seven years, The Charlotte Observer reported on Dec. 8.
Is it possible to tell difference between COVID, RSV and flu symptoms?
As the coronavirus continues to spread, RSV and the flu also are making people sick in North Carolina.
How can you tell the difference between the symptoms of each one? It turns out, it could be difficult to tell early on since people often start with cold-like symptoms, The News & Observer reported on Dec. 6.
Breathing difficulties are more typical for COVID-19 and RSV patients when compared to those with the flu. But there isn’t a way to get definitive answers about what’s causing your symptoms unless you get tested, the N&O reported.
“I would not expect a layperson to tell the difference,” said Dr. Sameer Kamath, a pediatrician at Duke.
COVID-related stress has changed teens’ brains, study says
Stress tied to the coronavirus pandemic has made teens’ brains age at a rapid pace, new research finds.
“This is the first demonstration that difficulties in mental health (for adolescents) during the pandemic are accompanied by what seem to be stress-related changes in brain structure,” study author Ian Gotlib said in a statement to McClatchy News.
To come up with the findings, Stanford University researchers examined dozens of MRI scans for teenagers’ brains before the pandemic. They compared the scans to those from teens who lived through coronavirus-related shutdowns.
“The physical features of the brains of the teens after the shutdowns were similar to older individuals and children who have experienced ‘significant adversity,’” though the impact of the aging isn’t yet clear, McClatchy News reported on Dec. 1.
More details about the findings are available here.
Booster shots ‘more important’ for older people, research suggests
The coronavirus pandemic has hit older adults hard, and now research has found that COVID-19 vaccine protection “decreases with age,” McClatchy News reported on Nov. 30.
As new variants pop up, “COVID-19 boosters and updated vaccines are more important for older adults, who are more susceptible to severe illness with the virus,” according to a news release from the UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
A research team collected blood samples from people across multiple age groups who received two Pfizer vaccine doses. Vaccines are designed to cause the body to produce antibodies, but antibodies weren’t as active in older people, results show.
Click here for more information about the study, which was published in the journal Cell Reports.
