Posted on 06/27/2020 8:34:23 AM PDT by ransomnote
Yesterday’s Scientific Dogma is Today’s Discarded Fable
Introduction
The above quotation is ascribed to Justice Archie Campbell author of Canada’s SARS Commission Final Report. 1 It is a stark reminder that scientific knowledge is constantly changing as new discoveries contradict established beliefs. For at least three decades a face mask has been deemed an essential component of the personal protective equipment worn by dental personnel. A current article, “Face Mask Performance: Are You Protected” gives the impression that masks are capable of providing an acceptable level of protection from airborne pathogens. 2 Studies of recent diseases such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and the Ebola Crisis combined with those of seasonal influenza and drug resistant tuberculosis have promoted a better understanding of how respiratory diseases are transmitted. Concurrently, with this appreciation, there have been a number of clinical investigations into the efficacy of protective devices such as face masks. This article will describe how the findings of such studies lead to a rethinking of the benefits of wearing a mask during the practice of dentistry. It will begin by describing new concepts relating to infection control especially personal protective equipment (PPE).
Trends in Infection Control
For the past three decades there has been minimal opposition to what have become seemingly established and accepted infection control recommendations. In 2009, infection control specialist Dr. D. Diekema questioned the validity of these by asking what actual, front-line hospital-based infection control experiences were available to such authoritative organization as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). 3 In the same year, while commenting on guidelines for face masks, Dr. M. Rupp of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America noted that some of the practices relating to infection control that have been in place for decades, ”haven’t been subjected to the same strenuous investigation that, for instance, a new medicine might be subjected.” 4 He opined that perhaps it is the relative cheapness and apparent safety of face masks that has prevented them from undergoing the extensive studies that should be required for any quality improvement device. 4 More recently, Dr. R. MacIntyre, a prolific investigator of face masks, has forcefully stated that the historical reliance on theoretical assumptions for recommending PPEs should be replaced by rigorously acquired clinical data. 5 She noted that most studies on face masks have been based on laboratory simulated tests which quite simply have limited clinical applicability as they cannot account for such human factors as compliance, coughing and talking. 5
Covering the nose and mouth for infection control started in the early 1900s when the German physician Carl Flugge discovered that exhaled droplets could transmit tuberculosis. 4 The science regarding the aerosol transmission of infectious diseases has, for years, been based on what is now appreciated to be “very outmoded research and an overly simplistic interpretation of the data.” 6 Modern studies are employing sensitive instruments and interpretative techniques to better understand the size and distribution of potentially infectious aerosol particles. 6 Such knowledge is paramount to appreciating the limitations of face masks. Nevertheless, it is the historical understanding of droplet and airborne transmission that has driven the longstanding and continuing tradition of mask wearing among health professionals. In 2014, the nursing profession was implored to “stop using practice interventions that are based on tradition” but instead adopt protocols that are based on critical evaluations of the available evidence. 7
A December 2015 article in the National Post seems to ascribe to Dr. Gardam, Director of Infection Prevention and Control, Toronto University Health Network the quote, “I need to choose which stupid, arbitrary infection control rules I’m going to push.” 8 In a communication with the author, Dr. Gardam explained that this was not a personal belief but that it did reflect the views of some infection control practitioners. In her 2014 article, “Germs and the Pseudoscience of Quality Improvement”, Dr. K Sibert, an anaesthetist with an interest in infection control, is of the opinion that many infection control rules are indeed arbitrary, not justified by the available evidence or subjected to controlled follow-up studies, but are devised, often under pressure, to give the appearance of doing something. 9
The above illustrate the developing concerns that many infection control measures have been adopted with minimal supporting evidence. To address this fault, the authors of a 2007 New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) article eloquently argue that all safety and quality improvement recommendations must be subjected to the same rigorous testing as would any new clinical intervention. 10 Dr. R. MacIntyre, a proponent of this trend in infection control, has used her research findings to boldly state that, “it would not seem justifiable to ask healthcare workers to wear surgical masks.” 4 To understand this conclusion it is necessary to appreciate the current concepts relating to airborne transmissions.
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The D hammer doesn’t appeal to me. I take 3000 IU daily(occasionally 5000 IU but that’s the most.)
[[I had weird herxheimer like reaction to prescribed 50,000 for 8 weeks]]
Did you do it daily for 8 weeks? Or once a week? I think you’re only supposed to do that amount once a month (if i recall right)
Yeah, herx can be as awful as a flu sometimes- depending on symptoms of the Herx-
Yeah, I’ve read conflicting reports on Sambucol/elderberry too- some say it increases cyto storm, others say it decreases- I’ll likely stay away from it- I do have a bottle of it- never seemed to hurt in the past- but with covid- don’t wanna take a chance with it-
Yep- you can take that amount daily and get same results as hammer- the hammer is a ‘one shot deal’ (per month i think- maybe it’s per 2 weeks, don’t remember)
We don’t know that masks are ‘working’ in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan,
We may know that they are having a lower mortality rate due to COVID, but that may be due to some other factor (e.g., less obesity in those countries).
Those countries don't just have a lower mortality rate. They have many fewer cases for their population than the US. America has 7,789 cases per million while South Korea has 247 cases per million, Japan has 144 cases per million, and Taiwan has just 19 cases per million. And the citizens of these countries all live cheek by jowl in dense urban centers where social distancing is impossible in many cases. I'd say their masking policy is working out a lot better for them than our masks-mostly-optional policy is for us.
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries
it was once a week for 8 weeks. it was really low
interestingly, the Dr made no mention of the Vitamin K2 you are suppose to take..nor did another Dr the last time I needed one
but I already knew that
saved three of the hammers in case I want them for covid 19 or something else
Bingo...which is all MOST people need. And you're right about viral load (same concept applies to bacteria and other pathogens like spores).
I believe that mask wearers have two polar opposite reactions:
1. They are reminded that a pandemic is in process and “Karen” their way around, giving everyone the “tsk, tsk” and being a nuisance. They social distance very well, whether they have a mask or not. These are the mask shamers.
2. They think they mask gives the really good protection so they don’t have to social distance.
It is #2 that drives me crazy. I’ll be at church and people with a mask on will walk right up to me. ZERO social distancing.
yeah my doc didn’t mention K either- i unfortunately didn’t know about k then- and ended up with kidney stones- which i get frequently, but got very frequently while taking the D without the K
"Scientific consensus" isn't a thing. There is just data. You either accept it or not.
okay so this is from Dr Coats but months ago...
it talks about the science of the issue prior to covid. if you use the key words you might find the studies..but he has since amended it to take it as long as your levels arent too high. dont know if he has specified what number is high..fill in the blanks for the astericks
https://texags.com/forums/84/topics/3104501/last
“Vitamin D
Vitamin D is known to enhance the function of immune cells, including T-cells and macro****es, that protect your body against pathogens In fact studies show that vitamin D enhances your immune system and helps protect you from many respiratory diseases. In fact low vitamin D levels are associated with an increased risk of respiratory diseases, like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma viral and bacterial bronchitis as well as upper respiratory infections.
Vitamin D causes activation of key innate immune cells such as monocytes, macro****es, and neutrophils leading to enhanced chemotactic, ****ocytic, and bactericidal activities. Those with stronger innate immune systems are believed to be a reason why some people have only mild symptoms when infected with COVID-19.
So vitamin D has been shown to help prevent infections and enhance our innate immune system but in doing so it also enhances cytokines particularly IL-6 and TNFa which are both used in the cytokine storm during serious disease. So while I think it may help us from initially getting sick it should be stopped immediately if you become ill because we don’t want anything that may enhance the cytokine storm. So I think if you are deficient in vitamin D you should supplement it for sure, as we know low levels are definitely a risk factor for respiratory infections. If you are not deficient in vitamin D use it with caution and stop it at the first sign of illness.
its exactly that
virtue signalling that doesn’t pan out
but people ‘feel good’ doing it, so you must do it
these people are the two angry gay guys in seinfeld screaming “WHO DOES NOT WANT TO WEAR THE RIBBON?!?”
If you refuse to be afraid to vote, then you will be prevented....
Saran Wrap mandates for mask rebels will be one October surprise.
Thank you
The same 2 guys were analogous to BLMantifa folks too - they looted the armoire - which itself previously served a Nazi.
Some things never change.
When I was a teen it was Black Panthers and The Weathermen.
Today it is Black Looters Matter and The Whether Men?
Not that there's anything not wrong with that!
a soup nazi, at that
That picture redlined my gaydarometer.
I think his name was Karen.
I know that. You know that. Our governor doesn’t know that or doesn’t care. I seriously am starting to feel resentful.
The only employee who refused to come back to work when the state allowed it, because she wasn’t “comfortable with wearing a mask” is a pre med student. I couldn’t let my amazing employers down, but if I didn’t like and respect them so much I’d be gone.
I hate wearing a mask.
poor guy got instantly typecasted from that point on
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