It may not be long before Omicron specific vaccines are available in Australia, like they are elsewhere in the world.

Last week the Therapeutic Goods Administration provisionally approved an Omicron variant specific vaccine, but we’re still waiting on ATAGI to recommend its use.

So with it likely to be available soon, is it worth waiting for if you’re due for your booster or should you just get what’s available now?

Also on today’s show:

* Snot and the inner parts of your nose - could this be the key to finally ending the pandemic?

Back at the start of the pandemic, if you tested positive for COVID - or even if you were a contact - you were looking at two weeks of isolation. 

These days, that's been downgraded to a week, and contacts are generally free to go about their normal life. 

But while COVID is still undeniably a health risk, having masses of people undergoing mandatory isolation takes its own toll. 

So should compulsory isolation be shortened or even scrapped altogether?

Also on today's show:

* Are vaccination requirements still useful? 

* Moderna sues Pfizer/BioNTech

* Didn't I see Norman out and about without a mask on the other day? 

It seems that COVID cases in the latest wave have indeed peaked, and all things across the usual pandemic metrics are improving.

It's the best COVID caseload we've had since Omicron came into our lives late last year.

So has BA5 burnt itself out or is this just a small respite? And are we due for another variant?

Also on today's show:

* How is COVID associated with increased risks of neurological and psychiatric conditions?

* Is monkeypox getting away from us?

Pretty much ever since the pandemic began, we've been told to socially distance by at least 1.5 meters if possible to reduce the chances of infection.

But as the science is gathered on how much viral load flows from an infected person, how relevant is that recommendation? Was it even correct in the first place?

Well a new - yet to be peer reviewed - study has attempted to explain just how much virus is in one's exhaled breath aerosols.

And what does this mean for how the virus is spread?

Is it finally time to say a big see ya later to the latest B5 COVID wave?

The Omicron family has already brought us several waves - the first at the start of the year when it muscled out Delta and the most recent big one via B5.

But there are signs that it is finally slowing down. Cases are dropping and there are small, but positive, signs that deaths are also falling.

So while it may be the end of the worst of B5, what could be next?

As more and more people become infected with COVID-19, more and more people are also going to be reinfected.

But there's another type of reinfection known as a rebound infection, which can happen in the days after you've recovered.

The US President Joe Biden tested positive again this week for COVID-19 only a few days after he was cleared following his treatment with antiviral medication Paxlovid.

So what could be going on? How common are rebound infections and could it extend to people who don't take the drugs also being reinfected?

When the pandemic started we were so worried about surfaces. But it turned out that wasn't so much of a concern.

The big thing was the very air we breathe.

But as Governments largely scale back on mandates and restrictions, experts are urging more be done on things that can prevent spread of the virus

And the big target is better ventilation.

On today's special Coronacast, Tegan Taylor takes a look around to see how bad the air is in everyday life.

BA5 sure is making itself well known, and is responsible for soaring infection and reinfection rates right across the country.

So how does it compare in infectiousness to other diseases? Well working that out is a difficult question.

It's partly down to changing variables like vaccination and controls, but also changes to the virus itself.

So on this week's Coronacast, why it doesn't really matter if BA5 is as infectious as measles - it's still doing a lot of damage.

Also on today's show:

* Enough about BA5 - what about BA2.75? Bring on the 'Centaurus' talk!

* An update on pregnancy and COVID-19

* And BA5 in schools - will a booster help?

cvp_20220727_episode477_ba5_infectious.mp3

13286016

830000

It's been a month since Coronacast took a break, and since then a lot has changed.

The BA4 and 5 variants have become dominant, and immunologists are starting to worry about the state of play.

Firstly, BA4 and 5 are acting a bit like new variants. They're evading vaccines and prior infections even more than original Omicron and there's no sign they're slowing down.

And secondly, COVID case loads are surging and hospitals are feeling the pressure.

So what else has changed over the last month, and what's the rest of winter looking like?

Also on today's show:

* I'm suddenly eligible for a fourth dose. Do I bother getting it?

* Can you get the 2nd booster shot 28 days after having COVID (in line with information that re-infection can occur after 28 days), or is it still best to wait the 3 months, and if so, why is it best to wait?

* I've had two AstraZeneca and one Moderna shots. What should I have as my fourth dose?

There's been a bunch of good news this week about kids and COVID, including kids under 5 moving a touch closer to become eligible for vaccination

A Scandanavian study has shown that before babies are born, they get an immune benefit from their vaccinated mother.

Another study has looked at a rare condition that can happen in kids after COVID, called MIS-C, and found vaccinated kids are way more protected from it

And also both Pfizer and Moderna have moved slightly closer to being registered for kids under 5 in the USA.

Also on today's show:

* Are there rapid tests available to test for influenza?

* I've noticed that cases seem to be falling. Is it just that it's being under reported? I haven't heard any mention of it in the media but it's the opposite of what I expected as we head into winter.

AND WE'LL BE TAKING A BREAK FOR THE NEXT MONTH BECAUSE NORMAN IS ON HOLIDAYS. SO KEEP AN EYE ON THE FEED AND WE'LL BE BACK SOON.