zlacker

>>pseudo+(OP)
"with symptoms consistent with both COVID-19 and common seasonal illnesses"

So 3 staff had gotten sick that flu season. Staff who work with infectious diseases and probably get every cough and cold checked out just in case. Seems pretty baseline average to me.

>>humani+H2
Its not that three got sick, that would be unremarkable. But three got sick so seriously as to seek hospital treatment.

That would be unusual. Given the proximity to the covid19 outbreak, there's a high probability that's the first known cases of covid19 - if confirmed.

>>eloff+Fs1
Yeah this is bullshit.

People in China routinely go to hospitals for colds. It's cheap, and it makes you feel better, so why not.

Its already incredibly common for average Chinese people to go to a hospital for a cold, and I'd expect someone working in a virology lab would be even more likely to do so.

>>sudosy+tz1
You'd need to know how often that happens, how many people work in the lab, etc to make a good calculation of the probability.

Maybe you're right, let's see how it plays out.

>>eloff+vQ1
I don't need to, I don't have the burden of proof. All I need to point out is that this is not out of the ordinary at all.

>>sudosy+902
I didn't say you need to.

But looking at the sibling comment, you'd have to be right about it being ordinary not for general citizens but for experts in infectious disease - which is unlikely. Those kinds of people don't seek treatment for a virus unless it's serious. They already know there is no treatment. I even know that and don't seek treatment, and I'm no expert.

>>eloff+232
It's not true that there is no treatment for the symptoms of viral infections. IV fluids, codeine, and ibuprofen will make you feel much better, even if it doesn't improve the underlying infection.

Those are exactly the things a Chinese hospital will administer.

If you were presenting to a hospital with Covid beyond what you might feel for a flu, you would be reporting difficulty breathing or loss of smell and taste.

However, they had symptoms consistent with seasonal illness.

So it's pretty obvious that the typical Chinese reaction is the best fit.

>>sudosy+KH2
Not at all obvious. It's really your idea of how they would behave versus mine. I'd need to see more information to have a better idea of who's closer to the truth in this one.

>>eloff+RX2
It's quite obvious. One interpretation conflicts with the available data, the others don't.

You can assume they were seriously sick with COVID beyond anything a flu or cold is likely to do. We know that this means either anosmia, difficulty breathing, and low blood oxygenation, with viral pneumonia visible on X-Ray.

None of these symptoms that characterize COVID serious enough to require medical attention, more than what one would expect from a bad flu or a bad cold, are compatible with the report citing symptoms consistent with seasonal illness.

There are two other possibilities.

One is that they had seasonal illnesses that were serious enough to require some medical attention, but not COVID. This is consistent with the report, and not implausible. This is just as possible whether they have similar attitudes towards medical attention for seasonal illness as other staff.

The other is that they had seasonal illnesses that were not very serious, but sought medical attention anyways. This is expected to happen if virology staff have similar attitudes towards the issue as the rest of Chinese society.

No matter which way you slice it, there is no indication they had COVID. Even if you remain ambivalent on their behaviour.