News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boot the Covid virus out. Parent comment

Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by andruby on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @10:15AM (#26555267)
> are colds.

What constitutes a "cold"? Is there some kind of definition for it?

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by maxerickson on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @10:49AM (#26555707)
It's a lay term for the various respiratory viruses that are pretty much constantly in circulation, especially when the infection is symptomatic.

So I think you have an implied question as to whether there is some more specific meaning, the answer to that is no.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by rovr138 on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @10:30AM (#26555463)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_cold

> The common cold, also known simply as a cold, is a viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory tract that primarily affects the respiratory mucosa of the nose, throat, sinuses, and larynx.

further down,

> Well over 200 virus strains are implicated in causing the common cold, with rhinoviruses being the most common.[13]

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by guscost on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @10:30AM (#26555459)
Exactly! Colds are poorly understood, and can be very dangerous.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4181476/

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by Izkata on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @12:06PM (#26556634)
That link appears to be about the flu, not the common cold. They're different, but something I've learned over the past year is that most people think of the flu as another name for the common cold.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by detritus on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @05:58PM (#26560887)
Here in Britain at least, having 'the flu' is basically having a particularly miserable cold - rather than a bout of influenza which fills the lungs with fluids and decimates armies.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by guscost on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @11:31PM (#26563266)
“Objectives: To define the epidemiology and outcomes of non-influenza respiratory viral infections in hospitalized adults.”
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by frenchy on Tuesday March 23, 2021 @11:54AM (#26556501)
I'm not sure this will really add anything to the discussion, but I think the common usage of the term "cold" is for an endemic, mostly-harmless disease, not just any viral respiratory illness.

Also, my quick read of that paper was that it was mostly concerned with immunocompromised individuals, and with secondary pneumonia infections. Secondary pneumonia is certainly a problem for old people, or otherwise vulnerable people with colds. Antibiotics can be pretty helpful but they have limitations.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boo... by hvac on Thursday March 25, 2021 @03:10AM (#26577261)
...I don’t see the word “cold” in that paper.
[ Parent | on HN ]