Um, it's only dusty in here, right?

With every passer-by currently regarding any stranger who just happened to cough as if they were bit-actors in a zombie movie -- actors who just mumbled some lines about your brain being tasty -- we are all on elevated alert for symptoms that could indicate Covid-19 infection. [This is Chronicle senior editor John Evans writing to you this morning from a damp and overcast Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada.]

Do you have dry cough, fever, fatigue, or new to the list, the runs?  Could be Covid. But, statistically speaking, it probably isn't.

Allergy season is starting up. We're all kicking up dust in our homes as, under the required period of being shut in, we are finally getting around to cleaning up. On top of all this, stress and worry aren't known to be good for the digestive system.

Calm caution is the best approach. National health services, such as Health Canada and the U.S. FDA, have self-assessment web services if you are concerned about your symptoms. Following is your Tuesday briefing:

COVID CHRONICLE 03/31/2020

• Researchers from Union Hospital and Tongji Medical College in Wuhan, China report in The American Journal of Gastroenterology that they've identified a sub-set of milder cases of Covid-19 which present first, or primarily, with digestive symptoms—particularly diarrhea. Read the paper in pre-print here. While most digestive issues aren't going to be Covid-19, the authors suggest that clinicians should recognize that new-onset, acute digestive symptoms in a patient with a possible Covid-19 contact should at least prompt consideration of the illness.

• On Monday, March 30, Ontario, Canada's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams, issued a statement recommending all residents of the province stay home except for essential reasons, such as accessing health care, acquiring groceries or needed medications, walking pets, or doing any of these acts for vulnerable community members who cannot do them themselves. He was even more emphatic in his recommendations to self-isolate for Ontarians over the age of 70. 

• Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt has announced that social distancing measures have successfully led to a sustained reduction in the daily increase of new Covid-19 cases in that country, from 25–30 per cent just over a week ago to 9 per cent this week. In a video briefing, he praised his countrymen. “In these most difficult of times, with these most difficult of measures that none of us had ever dreamt we would ever be involved in, you have risen to the occasion. We are seeing what I would describe as early promising signs of the curve flattening.” ABC News Australia reports on the announcement here.

• Chronicle's assistant editor Dhiren Mahiban writes that dermatologists and rheumatologists are concerned that investigations of the medications hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as potential treatments for Covid-19 may lead to shortages for patients with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. These patients rely on these medications for day-to-day function and in some cases survival. Read Dhiren's article at Derm.city.

STORIES CHRONICLE IS WORKING ON TODAY

• Look for the helpers. That's what Fred Rogers, of the children's show Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, always encouraged. In that spirit of looking for positive efforts I am working this morning on an article for The Chronicle of Skin & Allergy's Women in Dermatology special on Canadian women who work to make the world better through philanthropic projects. Organizing summer camp for children with skin conditions, volunteering to teach dermatologists in developing countries effective ways to diagnose and treat their patients with local resources, and more.

RIGHT NOW WE'RE LISTENING TO...

• "The History of English Podcast, episode 38: Nobles, Nuptials and a Cowherd Poet." Vocabulary and grammar are a writer's tools, and I find learning where they came from is fascinating. This episode examines the Northumbrian Rennaisance from the mid-seventh to mid-eighth century, and the first known poet in the English language—Caedmon, a cowherd. The podcast is hosted here, for people interested in this episode or who would like to start at the beginning.

LATER WE'RE READING...

• “Raising Steam,” a fantasy novel in the Discworld series by Sir Terry Pratchett. As I put my feet up and slip into one of the works of a writer who mastered both comedy and social insight—using his goblins and witches to talk about theatrical patriotism and the juggling act of law and ethics—I have to wonder what novel our current social distancing situation would have spurred him to write.

TONIGHT WE'RE COOKING...

• Skillet flatbread. I have not the patience, ingredients, or tools to make a full-on loaf of whole wheat or sourdough, but I've been craving some hot fresh bread, and I have this flour I've been promising myself I'd bake with that's staring at me accusingly from the pantry.

AND HOW ARE YOU DOING?

• Please make use of the comments section at the Daily CurveFlattener, to let us know what you're up to today. Or feel free to check in via LinkedIn, email, or your choice of connector. By all means, pass this newsletter along to your colleagues, and, when you're done, wash your hands.

That's it. Stay in touch and stay safe until tomorrow.