by Tonya L. Breaux-Shropshire, Ph.D., MPH, RN –
What is the status of the medication that can potentially treat COVID-19? There have been a lot of conversations about hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as a potential treatment for COVID-19. However, we still don’t know if either medication would work for the general public. This blog contains videos of the latest status of both drugs from two doctors and other useful information.
I have also included the latest information from other sources that may be considered. In these uncertain times, it might be good to know as much as we can from many sources.
There are certain drugs and herbs that you should avoid if you test positive for COVID-19. More research needs to be done, but so far, ask your doctor before using the following if you are COVID-19 positive:
1). ibuprofen
2). cough medicine containing dextromethorphan or any cough medicine
3). elderberry
4). selenium
5). ACE inhibitors
Update: Dr. David Moskowiz has released new information on 4/26/2020 in his tweet below about the benefits of a supplement and COVID-19. He is from St. Louis, and he is a Havard College graduate. Dr. Moskowiz did his Internship and Residency at Washington, University.
Good news! Quercetin, a plant flavonoid found in capers, buckwheat, apples, kale, and many other fruits and vegetables, cures COVID19. A dose of 0.5-1 gram a day should both prevent as well as treat the disease. A case report is in preparation.
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 26, 2020
My 18 year old index case now feels 100% back to normal after almost dying Monday night. Since then he’s been taking high dose quercetin AND halving his Prednisone dose. He goes off Prednisone on Sun, 16 days after starting. QUERCETIN RULES!
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 24, 2020
Ask your doctor if Quercetin is right for you. Use this link to purchse
Although hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, are being considered as a potential treatment, they are not prophylactic drugs. Both drugs might not be appropriate for people with liver, fatty liver, or kidney disease, or diabetics. These drugs are toxic to the liver and kidneys.
Dr. Gupta reviews evidence of potential treatment for COVID-19 treatment.
Vitamin D Deficiency and COVID-19
Before getting to the status of the medications that can potentially treat Covid-19, I want to talk about vitamin D deficiency. According to research, about 75% of people in the world have vitamin D deficiency. We know that COVID-19 attacks your immune system, and vitamin D is important to strengthen your immunity. To protect your lungs and boost your immune system, you want to correct your deficiency of vitamin D3. Ask your doctor to test you for vitamin D deficiency.
Dark skinned people are at more risk for vitamin D deficiency; therefore, they are more likely to have a chronic disease and an increased risk of mortality. Research has shown for many years that African Americans have the highest prevalence and the most serve form of diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and other diseases.
As you know, many viruses, including the flu and bacteria like pneumonia, occur in the winter. In the winter months, you will likely have a vitamin D deficiency unless you are on vitamin D supplements. If you are deficient in vitamin D, you increase your risk fo,r flu, and pneumonia. It helps to reduce inflammation, and it has antiviral properties. Most people with lung infections are likely deficient in vitamin D.
This is not medical advice, but research has shown that D3 is the most active form of vitamin D. In other words, vitamin D3 is readily available for your body to use upon ingestion. Nevertheless, many studies have been done using vitamin D2 with similar benefits of vitamin D3.
The average dose for children 1-12 is 2000 IU, and 5000 Iu is an average dose for adults 18 and older according to a published study in Nutrition journal. Ask your health care provider if you or your family should be on Vitamin D3 and the dose that is right for you and your family.
COVID-19 Vaccination & Medications
Scientists are working diligently to develop a vaccination for COVID-19. One doctor, and Medical writer, Dr. Shreetanu Das, says that we have been looking for vaccination for this virus since 1850. Dr. Das said in his video blog that this virus affected us as MARS, SARS COVID-1, and now as SARS COVID-2.
Perhaps the concept of herd immunity is being considered as a strategy for people who are at low risk.
Other Videos for the Potential COVID-19 Treatments
The videos below give you additional information about the status of the medication that can potentially treat COVID-19:
1). Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: Chloroquine / Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin
2). “Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin for the treatment of COVID-19–Review of study by Didier Raoult
3). COVID-19 Update 13: Randomized Controlled Trial of Hydroxychloroquine (Chen et al., Wuhan, China)
4). Coronavirus Pandemic—Daily Report with Rishi Desai, MD, MPH: Hydroxychloroquine + Azithromycin
5). Clinical trial begins for COVID-19 medication
6). How Does Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin Combination Therapy Measure Up For COVID-19 Treatment?
7). 3 Drugs Potentially Helping Against COVID-19 (Hydroxychloroquine, Azithromycin, Remdesivir)
So, what medication can potentially treat COVID-19? There have been tweets about hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as a potential treatment for COVID-19. Here are tweets from a “nephrologist turned genomicist researcher who has some interesting findings and recommendations.
Latest version of The List. COVID19 is an allergy involving eosinophils!
1. Losartan/ramipril (1st prescription)
2. Vitamins B3 and D3
3. Aspirin
4. Allegra-D (other antihistamines + pseudoephedrine OK)
5. Omeprazole (any -prazole drug is OK)
6. Celebrex (2nd prescription)— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) March 30, 2020
Nasal steroids (Flonase, Nasocort) are delivered via an inhaler and can be purchased without a prescription ("over the counter"). They may be all that you need to avoid dying from COVID19.
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) March 30, 2020
My best guess for COVID19:
1. Claritin on day 1 of symptoms
2. Nasocort if symptoms get worse— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 1, 2020
COVID19 is just asthma.
Proof: nobody with asthma or COPD got it in China.
Q. Why not? They’re the first ppl you’d expect to get cough, dyspnea and chest tightness, ie a typical flare.
A. They were used to these symptoms and just used their steroid and albuterol inhalers more.
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 1, 2020
COVID19 is a pseudo-allergy. We’re treating it wrong since so many are dying. You don’t treat a peanut allergy with a ventilator, mask, or by staying home. You stabilize mast cells with steroids.
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 6, 2020
COVID19 is a pseudo-allergy. We’re treating it wrong since so many are dying. You don’t treat a peanut allergy with a ventilator, mask, or by staying home. You stabilize mast cells with steroids.
— dwmoskowitz (@dwmoskowitz) April 6, 2020
Dr. G. Bhanu Prakash gives information about asthma treatment for asthmatics and COVID-19 in the video below. Essentially, he says that asthmatics should not be concerned with continuing their medication regimen. Generally, the medication that is taken for asthma is not usually contraindicated and can help you stay well.
Asthma & COVID-19
According to Dr. Karen Gell, an allergist from Grand Rapids Allergy, when interviewed by her local news station staff on March 12, 2020, to prevent severe problems from asthma, upper airway problems must be resolved. Dr. Gell said, “many infections in asthmatics start in the upper airways, and if we don’t clear that up, we won’t have much control with clearing the lungs up.” She encouraged her patients to strictly adhere to their medications and call their primary care doctor if their medication regimen is not working.
Although these are early findings from this medical doctor and researcher, I find it plausible, yet challenging to believe that over the counter medications such as Claritin and nasal court or rescue and corticosteroid inhalers would be a treatment for COVID-19 without some other prescribed medical treatment.
The thought that over-the-counter drugs would prevent severe symptoms of COVID-19 is perplexing. However, just think about it; these medications work by decreasing inflammation, mucous secretions, and muscular constrictions in the airways. Further, it is common knowledge that respiratory infections could trigger an asthma attack.
An asthma attack is nothing more than bronchospasm. Bronchospasms occur due to the inflammation, mucus, and muscle constriction that cause chest tightness and narrowing to your lung airways, making it difficult to breathe. The medications for asthma reduce the inflammation, excessive mucus, and open the airways of your lungs.
Some other asthma triggers are pollen, smoke, dust mites, pet dander, mold, cold air, GERD, medications (NSAIDs, aspirin, nonselective beta-adrenergic blockers[most popular are propranolol, labetalol, & carvedilol]), peanuts, and sulfites. Caution is used with certain medications and patients with COPD or Asthma.
So, is he saying that just as there is not a cure for asthma, COVID-19 perhaps could be treated similar to asthma to prevent severe symptoms that require a ventilator until there is a vaccine available? Would this be worth a try in the general population? Contact your doctor for any medical advice.
After reading the New York Times story about many doctors who are questioning the current medical management of COVID-19, I understood better the impact of the disease.
The YouTube video “Doctors Face Troubling Question: Are They Treating Coronavirus Correctly? | NYT News” allows you to hear these doctor’s concerns in their own words. All of their testimonials are compelling, but I found the statements by Dr. Cameron Kyle-Sidell, and ICU/ER doctor at Maimonides Medical Center, the most striking regarding the topic of this blog post. Dr. Kyle-Sidell said, “Somebody needs to look at the disease and figure out how we can treat it better.”
Get Claritin at this link</a>
Click here for Nasocort
Vitamin D3 & K2 here
Resources:
All County Health Care, Inc. You and Your Doctor featuring Doctor David Moskowitz Internal Medicine Nephrology. YouTube Video
Amrein, K., Zajic, P., Schnedl, C., Waltensdorfer, A., Fruhwald, S., Holl, A…Dobnig, H.(2014). Vitamin D status and its association with season, hospital and sepsis mortality in critical illness. Crit Care. 2014 Mar 24;18(2):R47. doi: 10.1186/cc13790.
Brown, S. (2019). How Quercetin & Vitamin C Are GREAT Antihistamines!YouTube Video
Das, S.(2020). Hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin,vitamin-D, and recovery for CoVID-19 by DR.S.DAS. YouTube.
Gell, K. (2020, March). Asthma patients are more at-risk of COVID-19. YouTube Video
Geomed. Clinical Trials. Retrieved from https://genomed.com/about-us/
JAMA Clinical Reviews. (2020). Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: Chloroquine / Hydroxychloroquine and Azithromycin
Martine, A.R., Jolliffe, D., A., Hooper, R. L., Greenberg, L., Aloia, J. F., Bergman, P…Camargo, C. A. (2017). Vitamin D supplementation to prevent acute respiratory tract infections: systematic review and meta-analysis of individual participant data BMJ 2017; 356 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i6583
Stein, R., & Tiefenthaler, A. (2020, Apr 14.) “What disease are we treating?”: Why Coronovirus is stumping many doctors. New York Times News. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000007082510/coronavirus-treatment.html
Tiefenthaler, A., Stein, R., Hurst, W., Scheffler, M. (2020, Apr 14.) “Doctors Face Troubling Question: Are They Treating Coronavirus Correctly? | NYT News”. New York Times News. YouTube Video
Philippe, G., Jean-Christophe, L., Philippe, P., Van Thuan, H., Line, M….Didier, R. (2020). Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment of COVID-19: results of an open-label non-randomized clinical trial. Int J Antimicrob Agents.doi: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2020.105949 [Epub ahead of print]
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