1. Explain why the articles were chosen. The first article I chose from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) site: focuses on a type of COVID called Long COVID. This explains how in certain individuals who contract the virus can have it in their systems for weeks up to years. It also informs us on what symptoms can occur from fatigue to heart palpitations. The second article from the CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) website gives information on the rapid antigen tests and how they perform. It outlines what testing was done and what participants reported on their rapid tests. I chose this article because it gives information of ways the CDC worked on preventing new outbreaks and ways they continue to do so. 2. Explain what was learned about the disease. What I have learned about this disease based just off of these two articles is that it is highly contagious and can be deadly. The COVID outbreak back in 2019 sparked high concern and became a national problem soon after in January of 2020. The disease shut down peoples organs causing death and now as there are vaccinations and rapid test kits available to the public it is still a danger to society. Long COVID can be with someone who has had the vaccinations and contracted the illness gotten over it yet it still lingers in the body. Variants are common and continue to expand across the board. 3. Explain how elements found in articles (ideas, terms, vocabulary, connections, etc.) relate to the final project. These two articles relate to the final project because they have some of the critical elements within them. The risk factors of long COVID, mortality rates, and
prevention strategies. The rapid antigen tests were just the beginning of many tests to come for at home test kits. 4. Describe the usefulness of the articles for completing the final project. These articles will prove useful in my final project as they describe the lingering affects of COVID and what can be done at home to stop the spread of the disease. Long COVID can happen to anyone however it is most likely to happen to those who have had a severe case of the illness. They describe the affects of the at home testing and threats of long COVID. They provide me with more insight of different outcomes of the virus.
References: CDC. (2024, March 14). Long COVID or Post-COVID Conditions. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/index.html Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. (2024, April 25). SARS-CoV-2 Viral Shedding and Rapid Antigen Test Performance - Respiratory Virus Transmission Network, November 2022-May 2023. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/73/wr/mm7316a2.htm