>>>
>>> MAYBE
>>> MAYBE YOU GOT WIND OF THIS YESTERDAY, A TOP SCIENTIST
CREATED QUITE THE BUZZ WHEN
THEY SAID ASYMPTOMATIC
TRANSMISSION OF COVID-19 IS
"VERY RARE."
"VERY RARE." THAT LED TO FOLKS QUESTIONING
MASS ORDERS, ECONOMIES BEING
SHUT DOWN, AND ADDING TO THE
MESSAGING WHIPLASH TODAY, THE
W.H.O.
W.H.O.
W.H.O. WALKED THAT COMMENT BACK SAYING
THERE ISN'T ENOUGH DATA TO KNOW
THAT FOR SURE.
THANK GOODNESS FOR 9 HEALTH
EXPERT DR. KOHLI WHO IS HERE TO
CLARIFY THIS FOR US.
LET'S START WITH WHY THIS
SCIENTIST SAID THAT
TRANSMISSION OF CORONAVIRUS BY
PEOPLE WITHOUT SYMPTOMS IS VERY
RARE.
RARE.
RARE. WHERE IS THIS COMING FROM?
>> HI RYAN, GREAT TO SEE YOU AS
WELL.
WELL.
WELL. SO
WELL. SO IT'S ACTUALLY COMING FROM
CONTACT TRACING DATA FROM
TAIWAN AND GERMANY.
BASED ON THIS, WHAT LED TO THE
CONCLUSION ASYMPTOMATIC
CONCLUSION ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSION IS VERY RARE.
AS YOU POINTED OUT THIS MORNING
THEY ACTUALLY CALLED THAT A
MISUNDERSTANDING AND WALKED IT
BACK AND SAID THEY REGRETTED
HAVING SAYING SO.
I SORT OF AGREE THIS WAS REALLY
AN OVERSTATEMENT OF THE SCIENCE
AND REALLY NOT A WELL-
THOUGHTOUT STATEMENT BY THE
W.H.O.
W.H.O.
W.H.O. THIS IS BASED ON CONTRACTING
TRACING DATA, WHICH WE KNOW IS
AN IMPERFECT SCIENCE.
CONTRACT TRACING IS HIGHLY
SUBJECT TO RECREATIONAL BIAS,
BASED ON MEMORIES NOT JUST WHO
THEY HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH,
BUT ALSO THEIR SYMPTOMS.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT SOME OF THE
SETTINGS IN WHICH CONTACT
TRACING NEEDS TO HAPPEN SUCH AS
NURSING HOMES WHERE YOU HAVE AN
ELDERLY PERSON WITH DEMENTIA,
ASKING THEM WHO HAS BEEN IN
CONTACT WITH THEM, BUT ALSO
WHAT THEIR SYMPTOMS MAY HAVE
BEEN, YOU CAN CERTAINLY HAVE A
LOT OF RECOLLECTION BIAS
INCORPORATED INTO THAT.
MAKING CONCLUSIONS BASED ON
SMALL STUDIES OR, YOU KNOW,
THESE TYPES OF CONTRACT TRACING
SCIENCE IS REALLY AN
OVERSTATEMENT OF THE FACTS.
>> SURE, AND YOU HAVE TO
IMAGINE FOLKS WHO SHOW SYMPTOMS
ARE BEING STUDIED, FOCUSED ON
MUCH HIGHER RATES THAN THESE
ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS.
ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS. HAVING SAID THAT, IS IT TRUE
THAT ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
IS VERY RARE?
>> NO, IN FACT, THAT'S NOT
TRUE, BUT LET ME EXPLAIN THAT
JUST A LITTLE BIT FURTHER.
WHAT WE LEARN FROM ALL OF THIS
DEBACLE IS TRULY ASYMPTOMATIC
PEOPLE ARE PRETTY UNLIKELY.
SO EVEN THOUGH PEOPLE THINK
THEY ARE ASYMPTOMATIC WHEN YOU
ACTUALLY PROBE THEM WITH
CERTAIN TYPES OF QUESTIONS
ABOUT WHETHER THEY MIGHT HAVE
HAD MILD SYMPTOMS SUCH AS
HEADACHE OR JUST FELT UNDER THE
WEATHER OR EASILY FATIGUED,
YOU'LL ACTUALLY FIND A LOT OF
PEOPLE WE PREVIOUSLY CLASSIFIED
IS ASYMPTOMATIC, PROBABLY WHAT
WE CALL MILDLY SYMPTOMATIC.
WE'VE ALSO SEEN FROM STUDIES
THAT MANY PEOPLE ACTUALLY
SPREAD THE VIRUS TWO TO THREE
DAYS BEFORE THEY START SHOWING
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS. THESE ARE CALLED PRESYMPTOMATIC
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. SO THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS
WHEN YOU MEET SOMEBODY ON THE
STREET YOU REALLY CAN'T TELL
WHETHER THEY ARE COMPLETELY
ASYMPTOMATIC, MEANING THEY ARE
NEVER GOING TO DEVELOP SYMPTOMS
OR THEY ARE PRESYMPTOMATIC,
THEY WILL GO ON TO DEVELOP
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS.
SYMPTOMS. WHAT WE SAW FROM THE PRINCESS
CRUISE SHIP, 50% OF PEOPLE THAT
TESTED POSITIVE FOR THE
CORONAVIRUS DID NOT HAVE
SYMPTOMS AT THE TIME THEY
TESTED POSITIVE.
TESTED POSITIVE. >> AND YOU KNOW I LISTENED TO
THIS SCIENTIST YESTERDAY AND I
KIND OF FELT FOR IT BECAUSE SHE
DID HER BEST TO ANSWER THIS
QUESTION, BUT OF COURSE IT
MIGHT HAVE BEEN TAKEN AND RUN
WITH BY MANY MEDIA OUTLETS.
I WONDER WHAT YOU AS A DOCTOR
WHO TAKES A LOT OF THESE
QUESTIONS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF
MONTHS THINK WE SHOULD TAKE
AWAY FROM SOME OF THESE
CONFUSING MESSAGES.
CONFUSING MESSAGES. ARE WE NOT PUTTING THEM INTO
CONTEXT?
CONTEXT?
CONTEXT? >> AND NO THEY ARE CONFUSING
ACTUALLY, MYSELF, I'M A LITTLE
BIT CONFUSED BY THEM.
BUT THE TAKE-HOME MESSAGE IS
ASYMPTOMATIC TRANSMISSION CAN
AND DOES OCCUR WITH COVID-19.
SO YOU NEED TO ASSUME EVERYONE
OUT THERE COULD POTENTIALLY BE
INFECTED WITH THE VIRUS AND NOT
KNOW IT.
KNOW IT.
KNOW IT. THEREFORE YOU NEED TO CONTINUE
TO WEAR THOSE MASKS, CONTINUE
TO SOCIALLY DISTANCE.
JUST THIS MORNING THE W.H.O.
SET OUT TO 40% OF PEOPLE, WHICH
IS WHAT THEY HAVE BEEN SAYING
AND MAYBE ASYMPTOMATIC
SPREADERS.
SPREADERS. THE MESSAGES COMING ACROSS
CONSISTENTLY NOW THAT THEY HAVE
WALKED IT BACK, BUT AT THE END
OF THE DAY NOTHING HAS CHANGED
IN THE SCIENCE, THIS WAS JUST A
LITTLE BIT OF A CONFUSING
MESSAGING BY THE W.H.O.
THAT HOPEFULLY WE HAVE BEEN
ABLE TO CLARIFY.
>> I KNOW WE ARE ALL LOOKING
FOR REASONS TO GO BACK