[TaxRelief]

Translation: Because it has been proven that aspirin causes excessed reproduction in some viruses, aspirin use may be a contributing factor in the most severe cases of SARS.

If it turns out that the worse cases did use aspirin in the early stages, then research should be directed towards how "activation of p38 MAP-kinase " affects the reproduction of the SARS virus, which in turn will lead to possible treatment drugs.

He is not suggesting that aspirin is a factor, but suggests research concerning uses of aspirin should commence immediately.

[prairiebreeze]

This sounds similar to the etiology of Reyes syndrome. Particularly, ASA should be avoided when viral infections such as chicken pox are present.

Prairie

[David]

The medical establishment has never liked aspirin; and has been looking for ways to discourage its use for years. It doesn't require a perscription and generates no cash flow for the makers of proprietary drugs.

Thus when the possibility is alleged to exist that aspirin is somehow a negative in connection with spreading of a virus, we tend to be very very skeptical.

Fine to study and assess the possibility at somebody elses expense. But until demonstrated otherwise, this is just another argument by the medical profession that people shouldn't use aspirin.

[mabelkitty]

AIDS epidemic in all countries where SARS is most dangerous.
Why the media is allowed to get away from scrubbing AIDS from the story is beyond me.

Remember, this will spread through Russia and Western Europe because AIDS is epidemic there, and yet nobody will mention the AIDS + SARS = DEATH equation.

It's ammoral.

[aristeides]

This seems to support your initial hunch about aspirin and the superspreaders.

[aristeides]

I thought aspirin impeded the reproduction of viruses. Does this article mean this is not the case for at least some viruses?

[EternalHope]

Aspirin can affect blood clotting, and SARS patients have a problem with bleeding in the lungs. I wonder if aspirin should be contra-indicated, regardless of its affect on the virus?

[handk]

It seems that "modern" medicine is fixated on suppressing what the body is trying to accomplish. Allopathic quackery inevitably seeks to quash the symptoms whilst ignoring the cause.

Example? Water retention. There's a drug women can buy to "combat" water retention during their menstrual cycles. This highly profitable drug (for the makers) "gets rid of the bloating caused by water retention."

Question? Do these medical quacks ever pause and ask "why"? Why is the body retaining water? Could it be, and this is just a wild guess, that the body is "starved" for water? Hmmm, do ya think so?

Maybe, "water retention" is a "sign" that the person is not drinking enough water. So the medicos say; "Gee, you're retaining water, here's a drug to suppress that awful symptom. Cha-ching." What they don't say is; "You need to increase your daily water consumption."

Maybe drug companies are willing to invest $200 million dollars developing a new drug because "they care about you". Caring and sharing.

[vetvetdoug]

Viruses are in many cases, temperature sensitive. A fever will cause the virus to decrease replication and therefore decrease the severity of the disease. Prostaglandins may also be decreased which may be involved in the loss of inhibition of the viral replication. This on the molecular level will need further investigation with the specific SARS virus which will give a lot of molecular biologists and virologists some real fodder for phD's and Masters theses.