Archive for the ‘Treatment’ Category

Trump Holds Meeting With Recovered COVID-19 Patients – First One Has Chronic Lyme Disease

 Approx. 42 Min.

Trump Holds Meeting With Recovered COVID-19 Patients – First One Has Chronic Lyme

The first patient to speak is Representative Karen Whitsett who credits President Trump’s promotion of a malaria drug, hydroxychloroquine, with her recovery from coronavirus. Other COVID-19 survivors also speak after her at the White House. During their informal discussions, Rep. Whitsett, who had a severe case of  COVID-19, brought up her chronic Lyme disease as an underlying condition. Throughout the 41-minute meeting, President Trump highlighted how serious and devastating Lyme disease is, stating that it “can kill you.”

https://lymediseaseassociation.org/government/federal-government/mediaother/president-meets-covid/#excerpts

EXCERPTS OF LYME DISEASE DISCUSSION DURING MEETING 

Starting at 2:15 – Whitsett’s’ husband talks about getting hydroxychloroquine late at night for his wife as she was not doing well. Rep. Whitsett goes on to say she’s lost several family members to COVID-19. Evidently, many of them were turned away from the hospital. She brings up the important point that this treatment needs to be available for everyone – not just her, due to her name and position.

Starts at 9:40- STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: The shortenings of — the shortening of breath is what really got me afraid because I do have Lyme disease. And thank you for always mentioning about Lyme disease.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. Yeah. No, Lyme disease is a big deal.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Thank you for always bringing that to the forefront.

THE PRESIDENT: Do you think you still have Lyme disease?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: I do. I have chronic Lyme disease because I was never treated in time.

THE PRESIDENT: Can that be — can you get rid of it?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: I’m hoping that we’ll talk about that.

THE PRESIDENT: Lyme disease is a thing that people don’t talk about. It is brutal —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It is brutal.

THE PRESIDENT: And if you have a certain type of blood, you have no chance.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It’s brutal. It’s brutal. And then, on top of having COVID-19 with it, it is a nightmare.

THE PRESIDENT: Incredible.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: But the breathing is what scared me the most. And it came — I went from 0 to 100. It was from getting tested that day on March 31st to trying to do a few things around the house, to just all of a sudden my breathing became labored.

(Later In Discussion)

Start at 15:40 THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. No, if — by the way, we have tremendous endorsements. But if it were somebody else other than President Trump that put it forward — if some other person put it forward, they’d say, “Oh, let’s go with it.” You know.

What do you have to lose? They’ve been taking it for 40 years for malaria, which — by the way, it’s an unbelievable malaria pill. Unbelievable lupus pill. Unbelievable. In fact, the problem we had is people with lupus —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: And with Lyme disease.

THE PRESIDENT: Huh?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: And with Lyme disease. It was (inaudible) with Lyme disease.

THE PRESIDENT: And with — I heard Lyme disease, too.

(Later In Discussion)

Start at 22:00 THE PRESIDENT: I’m a little surprised they can’t do something with your Lyme disease. The Lyme disease is really terrible.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: That’s because that’s federal. I need you.

THE PRESIDENT: Yeah. Well, but —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: I need you on that.

THE PRESIDENT: — I mean, I could even have you see the doctor over here, because White — White House doctor. Ask the White House doctor to come.

PARTICIPANT: (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT: Seriously. Because Lyme disease can be very, very bad.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Yeah. I don’t have a doctor any longer.

THE PRESIDENT: But it also can be — it also can — is it legal for me to allow her to use the White House doctor? You know what? If it’s not, I will suffer the repercussions. (Laughter.) I don’t care.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Well, there are —

THE PRESIDENT: The Democrats might not like that.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Well, there are a lot of people in Michigan and I do have eight Lyme bills that I am putting forward for Lyme disease —

THE PRESIDENT: Very good. Do it.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: — because you cannot get treated in Michigan, as a doctor sees fit, for Lyme disease.

THE PRESIDENT: People don’t know about Lyme disease. It’s a very bad —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It’s horrible.

THE PRESIDENT: — very bad thing. And it —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: So it is something I’m working on.

THE PRESIDENT: But it is something, over a period of time, you can treat generally. It also can kill you. Lyme disease — if you —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Yes.

THE PRESIDENT: If you have a certain type blood, you get Lyme disease —

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Yes.

THE PRESIDENT: — it’s over.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: I’m glad you know that.

THE PRESIDENT: It’s literally over.

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: I’m glad you know that.

THE PRESIDENT: I think type O — type O blood is not too good. If you have type O blood, stay out of the woods. Right?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It’s not even the woods. I got this at home at five years old.

THE PRESIDENT: You got it at home?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: In Detroit.

THE PRESIDENT: But usually it’s from a deer tick, right?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It is a deer tick.

THE PRESIDENT: So where did the tick come from?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Well, the tick does not discriminate. It will get on anything.

THE PRESIDENT: So it comes somehow, right?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Yes. A squirrel, a bug, a bird — anything. It doesn’t discriminate.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, it’s like when I hit a ball into the rough in golf. (Laughter.) You know what I say? “Enjoy yourself. I’m not going in there.” (Laughter.)
That Lyme disease is pretty tough, right?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: It is.

THE PRESIDENT: It’s a bad one. I’d like you to see our doctor before you leave, okay?

STATE REPRESENTATIVE WHITSETT: Thank you.

(Last Statements on Lyme)

Starts at 38:20 THE PRESIDENT: But what do I know? Am I allowed to take Karen over to see the White House doctors, see if we can help her out a little bit with Lyme disease? Because Lyme disease is a problem and there are some answers. What do you think? Are you guys going to report me for being a horrible human being? For doing something illegal? Did I do something illegal?

Q We can’t advise you on that, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: And then impeach me. Then you’ll impeach me because I tried to help her out with her Lyme disease. Do you think maybe? Because I’d like to do that. What do you think? Should I do it?

Q I can’t advise you on that, sir. But I — I certainly hope that she —

THE PRESIDENT: See, they never like to take chances, but I do. So, we’ll take a chance on it. Okay?

____________________

**Comment**

I wonder if we can ALL see the White House doctor?  Seems like he knows something we don’t.

Fantastic that Lyme disease came up. In the video, Rep Whitsett mentions being tired due to her “underlying condition” of Lyme disease.  This is important because the majority of patients I work with have this symptom as a general rule – daily, even without the virus.

President Trump also brings up an important point about people politicizing hydroxychloroquine due to his endorsement of it. This is sad because it is a drug that can help everyone regardless of political affiliation. The fact they would make a life-saving drug political is dumbfounding.  To date, 3 states  (MI, NV, NY) deny it to COVID-19 positive patients:  https://www.thepostemail.com/2020/03/28/three-governors-deny-hydroxychloroquine-to-covid-19-positive-outpatients/

But politicizing drugs isn’t new to Lyme patients. There’s been a hard-core concerted effort to disallow antibiotics to chronically infected patients who remain symptomatic as well as IV antibiotics.  The reasons – similar to the ones for plaquenil for COVID, is there are “side effects.”  Well, I got news for you: ALL drugs have side-effects.  Isn’t that what doctors go go school to learn about so they can make educated decisions with their patients?  

Again, the control of drugs albeit opioids, antibiotics, and in this case an anti-malarial, is a common refrain.  The only people that get hurt in the process are sick patients.

He also mentions the anti-viral drug remdesivir as being a promising treatment. For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/13/washington-doctors-successfully-treat-coronavirus/

**UPDATE**  I just discovered the clinical trial on remdesivir has been cancelled:  https://endpts.com/gilead-takes-a-hit-after-quietly-terminating-a-closely-watched-covid-19-trial-of-remdesivir/

A clinical trial on coronavirus patients is underway:  https://www.bioworld.com/articles/432804-gileads-remdesivir-enters-china-phase-iii-trial-to-fight-coronavirusExcerpt:

The study, expected to be completed on April 27, is a phase III randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of remdesivir in hospitalized adult patients with mild and moderate 2019-nCoV infections. It will enroll 270 patients and be carried out in the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing.

It has been tested upon animals:  https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/02/12/1922083117

Excerpt:

We tested the efficacy of the broad-acting antiviral remdesivir in the rhesus macaque model of MERS-CoV (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) infection. Remdesivir reduced the severity of disease, virus replication, and damage to the lungs when administered either before or after animals were infected with MERS-CoV. Our data show that remdesivir is a promising antiviral treatment against MERS that could be considered for implementation in clinical trials. It may also have utility for related coronaviruses such as the novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV emerging from Wuhan, China.

Hopefully after listening to this, Lyme patients will not be terrified. This virus, like so many others, looks differently on everyone due to your immune system’s ability to handle it. While the Representative had a severe case, others have a mild one or even no symptoms at all:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/15/dr-rand-paul-had-zero-symptoms-with-covid-19/

This 101 year old Italian survived both the Spanish flu AND COVID-19:  https://tanksgoodnews.com/2020/03/30/101-year-old-italian-man-recovers/

You are not doomed and play an active role in your health. The following articles have great treatment suggestions:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/16/viruses-immunity-dr-waters-fix-your-soil-and-the-seeds-cant-grow/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/07/covid-19-integrative-support-in-prevention-early-interventions/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/10/corona-virus-lyme-disease-drs-bock-rawls/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/09/coronavirus-lyme/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/22/how-to-protect-yourself-your-family-from-infections/

Category:

Lyme, Treatment, Viruses

Viruses & Immunity – Dr. Waters “Fix Your Soil and the Seeds Can’t Grow”

Watch his video here:

https://www.watersbiomed.com/latest-news.html
Picture

From Dr. Waters…

VIRUSES AND IMMUNITY

The human immune system is designed to recognize and protect us against numerous pathogens and other foreign substances. However to be effective, like any other body system, it must have the necessary raw materials to orchestrate that process. The current virus infection dominates the news and the advice we are receiving to protect ourselves from the virus. We have been told to wash our hands, stay at least 6 feet away from other people and only go out for essential purposes – to get food, medicine or to perform jobs that the government has deemed necessary or essential. Very little has been offered beyond those measures.

Louis Pasteur has been credited for bringing attention to microorganisms as the cause of disease. His contemporary, Antoine Beauchamp, had a different position in this regard. The difference between their views of human illness can be summarized as resulting from “The Seed” (Pasteur) vs. “The Soil” (Beachamp). Pasteur supposedly, while on his deathbed from pneumonia, conceded that Beauchamp was correct – he was dying not from the germ that causes pneumonia but rather the condition of his body, his soil. We can think of the soil as the general health of the body and its immune system. A germ can only grow in a body whose soil was fertile for the germs growth – a body whose immune system was impaired. This is obvious to anyone who gives it some thought. If this were not true, EVERYBODY would get a cold or the flu when such viral diseases appear in a community.

Beyond isolation and handwashing as the only answers for addressing the present virus problem, there have been other voices recommending both prevention and treatment for viral and other infections. Dr. Thomas Frieden, the chief of the Center for Disease under President Obama, wrote an editorial describing the importance and recommending the use of vitamin D to both prevent and improve the outcome of people infected. He even explained how vitamin D can dampen the cytokine storm that is the real cause of death in infected patients.

Second, the Shanghai Medical Society released a protocol recommending the use of high dose intravenous ascorbic acid, vitamin C, for the treatment of this virus. This treatment has been effective for a variety of infectious diseases since it was applied in the late 1940’s here in the United States. It has proven antimicrobial effects as well as cell-protective effects during viral and bacterial infections. I have been utilizing intravenous ascorbic acid treatment successfully for 35 years, for viral infections such as upper respiratory infections, mononucleosis, shingles and influenza. IV vitamin C is being used in China and even in some emergency rooms in New York City to treat the current virus. To reiterate, the actual reason why a person with the the current virus gets so ill that they may need a respirator or even dies, is that their body gets so inflamed in the process of attempting to control the virus that their cells and tissues get irreversibly damaged.

You might have learned that the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine has been used to treat patients. This had originally been rejected by the mainstream media. Why? There is a well-known explanation for why this agent is effective – it reduces the hyper inflammation generated by the cytokine storm that Dr. Frieden talked about in reference to the ability of vitamin D to help the body deal with the infection. In fact, hydroxychloroquine also alters the pH in compartments of certain white cells called macrophages. Many viruses invade our body and multiply in small chambers in the macrophages known as lysosomes. Viruses require the lysosomes to have an acidic pH in order to multiply. Hydroxychloroquine blocks acid production in these lysosomes and thus the viruses cannot multiply.

We may ALL get exposed to the current virus, the question is how our bodies will be able to deal with it without becoming gravely ill or dead. This brings us back to the argument between Pasteur and Beauchamp. Is it the seed or the soil? You can control the soil and use your own intelligence to avoid the seed, especially if you are immune compromised. If your soil is deficient in its ability to handle the fight with the seed, the virus itself, you are more likely to become gravely ill rather than just experience a form of the common cold. But the truth is you CAN improve your soil, your immune system and its ability to protect you against the virus.

The actions to accomplish this include:

  • Eating a wholesome diet. Unprocessed and organic. Animal products, vegetables, fruits and nuts. Avoid all processed food and especially sugar.
  • Get some sunshine and physical activity every day.
  • Replace nutrients that are known to be deficient in most people based on the federal government surveys. This means, along with Dr. Frieden’s recommendations, the following:
    • Vitamin D 5000 units daily
    • Vitamin C 2000 mg daily
    • Zinc 25 to 50 mg daily
    • Fish oil derived vitamin A 5000 units daily

Most people are also deficient in magnesium and the longchain omega-3 fatty acids. These should be added if you’re not already on them and, as Dr. Frieden said in his editorial, take a good multiple vitamin and mineral. I would also suggest you take one without iron as many of us are overloaded with this metal.

If the person still becomes very ill, find an MD who can prescribe hydroxychloroquine along with azithromycin. Studies overseas in France and elsewhere have shown that this combination can ameliorate or stop the infection. These are inexpensive, readily available drugs. The FDA has already released hydroxychloroquine for use in the treatment of the current virus. Azithromycin is already widely available and used to treat many infections.

In my opinion soil is of the utmost importance. The seed cannot grow if your immune system is resilient. If you believe you are compromised and may be unable to fight off the virus, stay home and do the things that I have indicated. Ask people to bring you good food and the supplements I have listed. If you get ill ask a doctor to prescribe hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin and if it all possible intravenous vitamin C.

Even if you contract the virus, you can mitigate its effects on your body. Hopefully you can change the outcome from the need for a respirator to a condition similar to a common cold. Fix your soil and the seeds can’t grow.

 

Stay well!

For Dr. Waters’ presentation to the support group which goes far deeper into the topic:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2015/04/18/dr-waters-presentation/

For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/07/covid-19-integrative-support-in-prevention-early-interventions/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/27/the-truth-about-hydroxychloroquine-plaquenil-in-the-treatment-of-covid-19/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/12/convalescent-plasma-therapy-tested-on-critically-ill-covid-19-patients/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/13/washington-doctors-successfully-treat-coronavirus/ using the anti-viral remdesivir.

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/10/new-york-hospitals-treating-coronavirus-patients-with-vitamin-c/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/11/world-first-trial-to-test-benefit-of-intravenous-zinc-in-covid-19-fight/

 

Category:

diet and nutrition, Gut Health, Inflammation, Supplements, Treatment, Viruses

Dr. Rand Paul Had ZERO Symptoms with COVID-19

https://www.foxnews.com/media/rand-paul-gives-first-interview-since-recovering-from-covid-19?  Video Interview Here

Rand Paul gives first interview since recovering from COVID-19, says he had no symptoms

By Talia Kaplan | Fox News

In his first interview since recovering from COVID-19, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., described what it was like to contract the new coronavirus.

“I had an extraordinarily mild case,” Paul, who is also a doctor, said on “Fox & Friends” on Monday. “I had no symptoms, never had a headache, never had a body ache, never had a fever, never had a cough.”

He added that he would not have gone to the hospital or the doctor’s office if he didn’t know it was going around and if he hadn’t been traveling so much.

“It’s a bizarre sort of situation that some people get very, very sick, even die from this and some people get no symptoms,” Paul said.

___________________

**Comment**

This is important because the media is pushing the idea that everyone is getting severely sick and dying from this.  Please remember that the vast majority get a mild case or as in this situation, no symptoms at all, and go on with life.

He states that he has immunity to COVID-19 now “presumably” and therefore can attend and treat those with it.

Again, this immunity issue is completely avoided by mainstream media but is extremely important. By holing up and avoiding each other, we are not allowing nature to run its course. Of course those who are ill should take proper measures but the world – wide quarantining we are experiencing defies all that is known about viruses.

For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/15/covid-19-testing-in-chicago-30-50-already-have-antibodies-milwaukee-man-given-plasma-transfusion-from-recovered-patient/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/09/epidemiologist-coronavirus-could-be-exterminated-if-lockdowns-lifted/

Category:

Activism, Treatment, Viruses

Lyme Podcast: Boy With Severe Cardiac Lyme Disease

https://danielcameronmd.com/boy-with-severe-cardiac-lyme-disease/

LYME PODCAST: A BOY WITH SEVERE CARDIAC LYME DISEASE

A 15-year-old boy with severe cardiac Lyme disease

I will be discussing a 15-year-old boy with severe cardiac Lyme disease in this Inside Lyme podcast.
By
See link for Podcast

Nawrocki and his colleague first discussed this case in the Air Medical Journal  in 2018.

A 15-year-old boy experienced an episode of exertional syncope while at a trampoline park. Syncope is a temporary loss of consciousness.

He had a history of an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

His friends immediately called 911. They were not sure how long he was unconscious.

The boy was pale with a heart rate of 300 beats per minute, according to the medics. His EKG showed a wide complex tachyarrhythmia. That means that the heart is fast, and the QRS parts of his EKG were wide.

He was given a dose of amiodarone, but the ventricular tachycardia remained a problem. Amiodarone is a medicine used to treat and prevent irregular heartbeats.

At the hospital, he was dizzy and was short of breath. His heart rate remained between 290 and 300. His blood pressure dropped to 66/30 mm Hg.

He required synchronized cardioversion. Synchronized cardioversion is a procedure similar to electrical defibrillation. Synchronized cardioversion uses low energy synchronized with the heart.

His EKG changed to a third-degree heart block. That occurs when there is a complete block of impulses from the atrium to the ventricle. The atrium is the top of the heart, and the ventricle is the bottom. He had pacing pads placed.

He was flown to a cardiac intensive care unit (ICU) at a children’s tertiary care hospital via rotary-wing aircraft staffed with two flight nurses.

He continued to have a complete heart block with a fast rhythm.

CARDIAC LYME DISEASE

Doctors suspected Lyme disease and prescribed intravenous ceftriaxone. The diagnosis of Lyme disease was confirmed by “anti-Lyme titers” and Western blot tests.

His low heart rate and low pressure continued. The doctors inserted a transvenous pacemaker to control the heart rate.

He had three additional episodes of ventricular tachycardia. He was cardioverted twice.

But after several days of intravenous antibiotics, the boy’s heart block gradually resolved, and the pacemaker was removed.
He completed 28-days of IV treatment. He remains well on a one-year follow-up, according to the authors.

The authors note that conduction problems have been reported previously in untreated Lyme disease. The list of conduction abnormalities includes first and second-degree AV block, ST and T wave changes, prolonged QT, junctional tachycardia, and complete heart block.

There was no mention of conduction problems in patients who have been treated. I have not seen conduction problems in patients I have treated.

What can we learn from these cases?

  1. Cardiac Lyme disease or more commonly known as Lyme carditis, can lead to life-threatening rhythm disturbances.
  2. The conduction problems with cardiac Lyme disease can rapidly change.
  3. Antibiotic treatment was helpful.
  4. A pacemaker was necessary in this case. The doctor was able to remove the pacemaker after treatment with antibiotics.

What questions do these cases raise?

  1. How often does cardiac Lyme disease occur?
  2. Are there cases of cardiac Lyme disease cases that are not diagnosed?
  3. Were there any warning signs of cardiac Lyme disease that would have allowed treatment before the young man collapsed?
  4. 4. Would the doctors have been able to recognize cardiac Lyme disease early before the need for hospitalization, air transport, and cardioversion?

TREATING TICK-BORNE DISEASE IN MY PRACTICE

In my practice, each individual requires a careful assessment. That is why I order a broad range of blood tests for other illnesses in addition to tick-borne infections. I also arrange consultations with specialists as needed.

Many patients are complex, as highlighted in this Inside Lyme Podcast series.

We need more doctors with skills recognizing Lyme carditis. We hope that professionals evaluating individuals with Lyme carditis can use this case to remind them to look for tick-borne illnesses and treat accordingly.

Inside Lyme Podcast Series

This Inside Lyme case series will be discussed on my Facebook and made available on podcast and YouTube.  As always, it is your likes, comments, and shares that help spread the word about this series and our work. If you can, please leave a review on iTunes or wherever else you get your podcasts.

Sign up for our newsletter to keep up with our cases.

References:
  1. Nawrocki PS, Poremba M. A 15-Year-Old Male With Wide Complex Tachyarrhythmia. Air Med J. 2018;37(6):383-387.

___________________

For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/11/16/advanced-heart-block-in-children-with-lyme-disease-2/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/12/09/study-identifies-189-children-with-lyme-carditis/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/06/04/how-vector-borne-diseases-impact-heart-health/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/06/03/heart-problems-tick-borne-disease/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/11/04/suspect-lyme-carditis-start-empiric-antibiotics-case-report-suggest-and-lyme-carditis-is-not-rare/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/03/10/when-lyme-hurts-your-heart-warning-signs-solutions/

Category:

Heart Issues, Lyme, research, Testing, Treatment

World-first Trial To Test Benefit of Intravenous Zinc in COVID-19 Fight

https://neurosciencenews.com/zinc-coronavirus-16121/

World-first trial to test benefit of intravenous zinc in COVID-19 fight

Previous studies have shown zinc is effective at slowing the rate of other respiratory infections, such as SARS.
FeaturedNeuroscience

·

Summary: University of Melbourne researchers are conducting trials to see if intravenous administration of zinc chloride will help combat some of the effects of COVID-19. Previous studies have shown zinc is effective at slowing the rate of other respiratory infections, such as SARS.

Source: University of Melbourne

A world-first trial will see researchers from Austin Health and the University of Melbourne use intravenous zinc to fight the symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19).

The trial will be led by Dr Joseph Ischia from Austin Health, along with Dr Oneel Patel from the Department of Surgery at the University of Melbourne, who has a long history of investigating the protective effects of intravenous zinc against organ damage induced by lack of oxygen.

Dr Ischia said COVID-19 is especially dangerous because it replicates inside a patient’s body which can lead to respiratory conditions like bronchitis and pneumonia.

“If COVID-19 enters a patient’s lungs then they often need to be placed on a ventilator to help their breathing and, in severe cases, COVID-19 can cause multiple organ failure and brain injury due to a lack of oxygen,” Dr Ischia said.

Dr Patel said studies have shown that zinc is very effective at slowing the rate that similar viruses such as SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and common cold (a type of coronavirus) replicate in the body.

“Our published studies have also shown that high doses of zinc can protect vital organs such as the heart, kidneys and liver against the damage caused by a lack of oxygen,” Dr Patel said.

The clinical trial has been fast-tracked to test whether receiving a daily injection of zinc chloride will benefit patients with coronavirus.

“There is currently no specific treatment available for patients who have COVID-19 and are at high risk of respiratory failure, which means this study has the potential to have an enormous positive impact on their clinical outcomes,” Dr Ischia said.

“Importantly, we hope to show that we can save lives by limiting the impact of the symptoms. We are expecting to have preliminary results of the trial available after only seven days so we will know very quickly how effective this treatment is.”

The trial is the culmination of a rapid collaboration between surgeon scientists as well as intensive care, infectious diseases and respiratory medicine doctors at Austin Health, working with the Australian pharmaceutical firm, Phebra.

This shows an IV bag
The clinical trial has been fast-tracked to test whether receiving a daily injection of zinc chloride will benefit patients with coronavirus. The image is adapted from the University of Melbourne news release.

Phebra Chief Executive Officer Dr Mal Eutick said intravenous (IV) zinc injections, manufactured at Phebra’s multi-purpose sterile injectables plant in Sydney, would be used in the trial.

“Zinc has been proven to be effective in treating severe pneumonia and other viruses although not COVID-19 to date. This trial is an extraordinary opportunity to discover if IV zinc can help us respond to the current pandemic,” Dr Eutick said

“If successful this could save lives and with this trial we should know in a short time frame. In particular, it could be very important for those high risk elderly patients and also help reduce the level of general anxiety in the community.”

However, both Dr Ischia and Dr Eutick warned of the need to manage the risk of zinc overdose for patients.

“Zinc can be toxic and it will be carefully administered as part of the trial to ensure patients are safe,” Dr Ischia explained.

About this COVID-19 research article

Source:
University of Melbourne
Media Contacts:
Media team – University of Melbourne
Image Source:
The image is adapted from the University of Melbourne news release.

Feel Free To Share This Coronavirus News.

 

 

 

 

 

Category:

Activism, research, Treatment, Viruses