Existing drugs could help treat covid-19. How do we know when to use them? Finding the balance between being ultra-rigorous in trials and trying to keep patients alive

Washington Post ^ | Jeffrey Klausner : Professor of epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

[SeekAndFind]

More than 400,000 Americans are dead from covid-19 in the 11 months since the first confirmed U.S. fatality from the disease. Current models predict an additional 200,000 could be dead by late spring. Intensive care units nationwide are nearly 80 percent full. Vaccination is going far more slowly than necessary to keep up with the epidemic.

There have been no substantial advances with new antivirals, and remdesivir, a drug approved for use in hospitalized patients, has had only a modest effect in curbing bad outcomes. We are in desperate need of safe, oral medications to treat early cases of covid-19 to prevent hospitalization and death.

Unfortunately, the debacle with hydroxychloroquine in the summer, touted by the former charlatan in chief as a cure-all for SARS-CoV-2 infection, further poisoned the well of repurposing old and generally safe medications for treating the new disease.

But potentially reliable medications are available already — and it’s time to start trying to use them, even if that means loosening the standards for deciding whether a drug works to use off-label to treat the coronavirus.

Ivermectin, a widely available, inexpensive medication used to treat parasitic infections in both humans and animals, was found to have antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2, prompting study by investigators. The results have been conflicting, leading the National Institutes of Health Covid-19 Treatment Guidelines group not to advise for or against routine use and recommending only further study. Ivermectin, however, is increasingly being tried both in the United States and internationally, with reports of widespread use. On Wednesday, the South African Medicines Control Council approved it for compassionate use.

Last week, the Montreal Heart Institute issued a news release sharing encouraging findings from a study of the anti-inflammatory medication colchicine in reducing covid-19-related hospitalizations or deaths.

[Jeff Chandler]

First they destroy anybody who suggests any actual treatments, then they turn around and act as if treatment is their idea.

Intensive care units nationwide are nearly 80 percent full.

And that is by design. ICUs are not profitable is they don't run near capacity. But you know that, don't you? You don't give any breakdowns, either. How many of those ICU bed are covid patients? You know that, too. But your intention is to hyperbolize the issue, so you don't bother with facts.

I am not a violent man. but I have such an urge to b-slap Jeffrey Klausner.

[blueplum]

touted by the former charlatan in chief as a cure-all

they just had to get a jab in, eh? Trump never said HCQ was a ‘cure-all’ just a tool in the empty toolboox, but it sure has shown promise since then in early treatment, not that the author, in search of a magic pill, would admit

[Gene Eric]

So in order to tout Trump’s suggestions one must first ridicule Trump...

Courageous you are, Klausner... not.

[Jonty30]

If it hadn’t been politicized, we would know by now the optimum time to take hydroxichloroquine or ivermectin or Remdisiver and everything else.

That should piss everybody off.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

...hydroxychloroquine, touted by the former charlatan in chief as a cure-all

Despicable!! President Trump did no such thing.

What an arsehole is Jeffrey Klausner, Professor of epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.

I'd wager that the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health never once in the past 15 months looked into HCQ or IVM, argued on their behalf, or prescribed them for ambulatory patients in the early stages of the disease. If they did, they prescribed them for late-stage patients where they do not help.

[El Cid]

What an arse.
The only debacle was the Media, and the lies they spewed. And HCQ ‘trials’ that were designed to fail.
But if Ivermectin works better, fine. President Trump also pushed for the use of that drug early on. Still ‘impossible’ to get (as with HCQ) in most blue states. You can still get it, but you need to jump through hoops and probably pay 10x from what should be the going rate.

[Mr Rogers]

In Arizona, 83% of ICU beds are filled. 17% are empty, 7% have COIVD patients and 76% have non-COVID patients.

IOW, COVID ain’t driving squat all. And we’re nowhere near capacity.

[Jane Long]

I guess they’ve come close to achieving their *goal* if WaComPost is now mentioning Ivermectin.

They have to continue to bash Pres Trump, of course....since he’s the one who FIRST mentioned safe, effective and existing treatments.

[ransomnote]

They could check with Dr. McCullough and his team, or other physicians successfully treating Covid every since they realized the CDC had no plans to treat people sick with Covid.

[Trump Girl Kit Cat]

You can order HCQ CHEAP through Indiamart.com just type it in their search engine SEVERAL places to order it!!

[ifinnegan]

He comes up with this after the horses are all out of the barn.

Fauci’s actual job was to oversee research that found this out well before the Chinese released the virus.

He didn’t do it. He didn’t do the main thing he is paid to do and given a billion dollar a year budget to do.

SARS first showed up in 2004 and Fauci never developed a countermeasure to treat it, which was his job.

[Mr Rogers]

BTW, at the peak, 66% of ICU beds in Arizona had COVID patients. Now 7%. At the absolute worst, we had 7% of ICU beds empty. Around 15% empty seems to be the goal and they can expand or contract capacity to meet the need. And we have 17% empty now.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

...it’s time to start trying to use them

Good God, where has this arsehole been? HCQ and IVM have been evaluated, examined, tested, and trialed since March and April 2020. So here we are almost JULY 2021 and this arsehole says "it's time to start TRYING them"!! Is he unaware of the millions of people treated with these drugs all over the world? This guy should have his credentials and licenses revoked today!

Dr. Seheult has been a favorite of mine throughout this epidemic (along with many other doctors). On April 8, 2020, he released Coronavirus Pandemic Update 52: Ivermectin Treatment; Does COVID-19 Attack Hemoglobin?."

In March 2020 a group of critical care doctors called Frontline Covid-19 Critical Care Alliance, embarked on a project to compile research and trial results on ivermectin.

In April 2020, Australian Scientists at Monash University in Melbourne showed that a single dose of Ivermectin, could stop the SARS-CoV-2 virus growing in cell culture - effectively eradicating all genetic material of the virus within 48 hours.

And many more!

[ProtectOurFreedom]

I’m in California where it is hard to get. But I got two doctors not the phone who prescribed it for me. Both sent the prescription to my local Walgreens where I picked it up within 24 hours and my insurance covered all the cost but a $5 copay.

[UnwashedPeasant]

This fraud and the Washington Post have been part of the Ivermectin/HCQ coverup for well over a year.

They are trying to cover their tracks now because people are catching on to the coverup.

[Truthoverpower]

Silver. Use it every day. Never get sick

[MAGAthon]

the real charlatan -

Jeffrey Klausner : Professor of epidemiology at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

what a nasty POS.

[digger48]

This appears to be an older article from over the winter

I doubt those hospitals numbers are near that high

[Secret Agent Man]

its extremely easy

people can ask for them to be used in extreme cases

they do it all the time in other life threatening instances, where other drugs mightnhave a chance, or an experimwntal drug that appears promising is known but not yet available.

They are on purpose acting naive like they don’t know how to handle this. They do, and its insulting to our intelligence that they act this way.