Covid-19 News

Kind of strange statement. Sounds like it doesn’t makes sense to intervene...and let nature go? Science should be able to stop that. Do you have a son?

Quote from zorud

Kind of strange statement.

No of course not: Just to say that all Cov-19 victims have preconditions. It's up to us to find them! At least for these individuals , the vulnerable -as I postulate since ever - a vaccination is mandatory!

Quote from Mark U

How about you do an experiment Jed. Ask your doctor to give you a prescription for ivermectin - for Covid-19 - and let us know how it goes.

Many doctors in the U.S. are prescribing it. Shop around and you will find one. I would not do it if I were sick, because I tend to trust experts, based on my experience with cold fusion.

Quote from Fm1

Do you not understand that doctors using drugs off label open themselves up to criminal liability.

No, they do not. The laws and the FDA statement is very clear about that. Off label use is allowed in the U.S., in all cases.

Have some common sense. If this were criminal, don't you think the FDA would say so? It is Federal Government website. Do you really think the government is advising people to go ahead and commit a crime?

Quote from Fm1

Using drugs for labeled use there is no liability. Until the FDA gives emergency use doctors will not risk their licence and assets. Now do you now understand???

No, that is not what the FDA website says. Read it. It does not say this is criminal. It says:

"If you and your healthcare provider decide to use an approved drug for an unapproved use to treat your disease or medical condition, remember that FDA has not determined that the drug is safe and effective for the unapproved use."

https://www.fda.gov/patients/l…rent%20type%20of%20cancer

If it were criminal, the FDA would definitely say so.

The USA is not as corrupt as the Philippines..God Bless America.

Filipino Dr Binulgar about IVM..

"TM 12.30 "because before ivermectin we were using hydroxychloroquine.

with ivermectin really one to two days long

they become so good so well

even to those who in their 70s in their 80s in their 90s

and there's so many testimonials now

showing that it's really really effective

now that they have banned it it's really so sad because

i have to go back to giving other medicine

that are not as effective as uh or as quick as ivermectin

in dealing with infection..

About the Philippine FDA recent ban on ivermectin,,

TM 17.14"too shady.. too shady" with a shake of the head...

God Bless the Phillippines..

Quote from Alan Smith

' and something went wrong.

Maybe a litigious patient could blame their rash on ivermectin. 'Litigious' is expensive and prevalent in the States.

Perhaps 1 out of a million ivermectin treatments could result in asthenia.!!! woopeedoo.

From Mercks's postvigilance data in 2013..

Overall, the adverse event profile for ivermectin use in treatment of scabies appeared to be similar to that observed for other indications for which it is approved. In the published randomised clinical trials the main adverse events were headache, abdominal pain, mild diarrhoea and rash. Post marketing data were also provided in the form of a PSUR, covering the period April 2010 to April 2011. During the reporting period an estimated 1,423,010 patient treatment courses were administered for all indications.

The most common serious adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were asthenia (n=21),

headache (n=15),gait disturbance (n=15)depressed level of consciousness (n=15),

coma (n=14), pyrexia (n=11), back pain (n=8) and myalgia (n=4)

. In patients aged >65 years, the most commonly reported serious AEs recorded during the reporting period were depressed level of conscious (n=3), altered state of consciousness (n=2) and single cases of asthenia, blister and blood creatinine increased.

There was a time when Merck were scrabbling after the chicken feed profits from scabies treatment in Australia..

now in 2021 Merck -USA views ivermectin as unsafe..(perhaps for their profits?)..

https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/d…ar-ivermectin-131030.docx

A rare clotting disorder may cloud the world's hopes for AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine

https://www.sciencemag.org/new…azenecas-covid-19-vaccine

In the tumultuous rollout of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, all eyes were on the United States this week, where the company had a highly public communication breakdown over the vaccine's efficacy with an expert panel overseeing a large study in the Americas. But on the other side of the Atlantic, the vaccine faces new concerns about safety as an explanation gains ground for the unusual strokes and clotting disorders recorded in at least 30 recipients.

Many European countries suspended use of AstraZeneca’s vaccine earlier this month following initial reports of the symptoms, which have led to at least 15 deaths. Most resumed vaccinations after the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended doing so on 18 March, saying the benefits of the vaccine outweigh any risks. EMA is continuing to investigate the matter and will convene a wideranging committee of experts on 29 March.

Now, a group of researchers led by German clotting specialist Andreas Greinacher of the University of Greifswald says the highly unusual combination of symptoms—widespread blood clots and a low platelet count, sometimes with bleeding—resembles a rare side effect of the blood thinner heparin, called heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT).

The scientists, who first described their findings during a 19 March press conference, recommend a way to test for and treat the disorder and say this can help ease worries about the vaccine. “We know what to do: how to diagnose it, and how to treat it,” says Greinacher, who calls the syndrome vaccine-induced prothrombotic immune thrombocytopenia, or VIPIT. Greinacher says he has submitted a manuscript to the preprint server Research Square.

Even if Greinacher’s mechanism isn’t the whole story, multiple researchers told Science they were convinced that the vaccine was causing the rare set of symptoms. If that turns out to be true, it could have major consequences for the vaccine, which is one of the cornerstones of the World Health Organization’s push to immunize the world. AstraZeneca is working with partners around the globe to make and distribute billions of doses in low- and middle-income countries, which might have a harder time identifying and treating rare side effects.

Europe is relying heavily on the vaccine as well; the European Union bought 400 million doses. The company's failure to deliver on time has delayed vaccine rollouts on the continent, but now, dented confidence is exacerbating the delays. And even if the risk is very low, it may make sense to use the vaccine only in those who also stand to gain the most from it: elderly people at high risk of dying from COVID-19. Several European countries have started to do this. The situation has scientists walking a tightrope: They want to make the medical profession aware of their concerns without sowing panic.

Quote from JedRothwell

Many doctors in the U.S. are prescribing it. Shop around and you will find one. I would not do it if I were sick, because I tend to trust experts, based on my experience with cold fusion.

Which experts, the ones that say you're nuts on cold fusion?

Covid-19 could be 'swallowed' into our bodies

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2021/0…-intl-03-26-21/index.html

(CNN)Researchers say they have found evidence that coronavirus infects the mouth, including inside the cheeks, in the gums and in salivary glands. When people swallow infected saliva, they could be spreading the virus to other parts of their bodies, CNN's Maggie Fox writes.

The study, detailed in the journal Nature Medicine on Thursday, may explain why so many people infected lose their sense of taste, and suggests the mouth is an important source of the spread of Covid-19. It was previously known that saliva testing was a good way to detect infection, but researchers hadn't looked to see why.

"When infected saliva is swallowed or tiny particles of it are inhaled, we think it can potentially transmit SARS-CoV-2 further into our throats, our lungs, or even our guts," said Dr. Kevin Byrd of the American Dental Association Science and Research Institute, who worked on the study.

The mouth, nose, sinuses, throat and lungs are connected, and the virus can spread across all those regions in mucus that drains or is coughed up. They checked samples of oral tissue from people who died of Covid-19 and found the virus in about half of the salivary glands they tested.

The study also found evidence that people who test negative after a nasal swab sometimes continue to test positive on a saliva test, highlighting that even if the virus is cleared from the nasopharynx -- the upper part of the throat behind the nose -- it could persist in saliva.

New COVID-19 variant found in travelers from Tanzania

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/afric…ers-from-tanzania/2190201

JOHANNESBURG

A new COVID-19 variant with the most divergent mutations has been found in travelers from Tanzania, according to a scientific research institute based in South Africa.

Professor Tulio de Oliveira, director of Krisp, a research and innovation sequencing platform, said the variant had been found in travelers arriving in Angola from Tanzania.

“Whilst we have only detected three cases with this new VOI, this warrants urgent investigation as the source country, Tanzania, has a largely undocumented epidemic and few public health measures in place to prevent spread within and out of the country,’’ Oliveira wrote on Twitter.

He said the new variant is the most diverse a lineage sequencers ever described. “We decided to report this as a new VOI given the constellation of mutations with known or suspected biological significance, specifically resistance to neutralizing antibodies and potentially increased transmissibility,’’ he said.

Tanzania, an East African nation of almost 60 million people, stopped releasing COVID-19 results almost a year ago, with 509 cases reported and 21 deaths. The country’s late President John Magufuli who succumbed to a heart condition over a week ago had declared his nation free of the pandemic.

Krisp, which carries out genetic testing for several African countries, last year, discovered the South African variant, also known as 501Y.V2.

Krisp found that the 501Y.V2 variant had a number of mutations on its spike protein, which increases the efficacy of the virus to infect humans and potentially poses problems of vaccine escape.

Zimbabwe hits Covid since JAN 27 with ivermectin

Now Covid becomes "almost fun,", .even though Zimbabwe is awash with the South African variant

It was worth a stay in Harare prison..

and a looming disciplinary hearing for Dr Jackie Stone..

https://dr-jackie.org/about/

Physicians’ liability for off-label prescriptions
https://www.mcguirewoods.com/n…health_care/off_label.pdf

Hematology & Oncology News & Issues • May/June 2007 [printed with permission ]

..The FDA does not, however, regulate the practice of medicine, and physicians are allowed to prescribe approved drugs for off-label uses as long as such prescriptions do not qualify as “research.”

..

whenever a physician prescribes a drug for off-label use, it should be based on: (1) the doctor’s own expert medical judgment; (2) peer-reviewed articles reflecting sound scientific evidence; (3) documented medical practice; (4) if possible, the opinions of the physician’s local colleagues; and (5) a desire to directly benefit the patient for whom it is prescribed.

Neutralization of European, South African, and United States SARS-CoV-2 mutants by a human antibody and antibody domains

https://www.biorxiv.org/conten…/2021.03.22.436481v1.full

Researchers in the United States have demonstrated the effectiveness of three antibody agents at neutralizing recently emerged variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the agent responsible for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The team showed that one full-length antibody and two antibody domains each effectively neutralized pseudotyped virus containing key mutations found within the B.1.1.7 variant that emerged in the UK.

However, only one of the antibody domains was effective at neutralizing pseudotyped virus containing key mutations found within the South African B.1.351 lineage.

Discussion

Blocking the binding of viral receptor-binding domain (RBD) to human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor is one major solution of neutralization. The emerging SARS-CoV-2 virus variants bearing mutations in RBD decreased the efficiency of neutralization of FDA approved antibody therapeutics and vaccination induced humoral immune response [12]. Aiming to evaluate the efficacy of our previously reported antibodies in binding and neutralizing emerging mutant variants, we performed both ELISA assays against a panel of RBDs bearing different mutations and neutralization assays by using lentiviral virions pseudo typed by the variant spike proteins. Though it is possible that mutations outside the spike protein can determine or enhance escape from antibody neutralization, in most cases pseudotyped virus assays can reflect the result of a live replication competent system.

Recent studies show antibodies elicited by the Moderna 1273 mRNA vaccine decrease titers by 2.7-fold for B.1.1.7 variant and 6.4-fold for the viruses containing the B.1.351 spike protein [16, 17]. B.1.351 variant was observed markedly resistant to neutralization by convalescent plasma and vaccinee sera [18]. In a study of antibody response against the B.1.1.7 variant after a second dose of BNT162b2 vaccine, a modest reduction was observed in neutralization against pseudo typed viruses containing B.1.1.7 Spike mutations, and a significant additional loss of neutralization was observed against B.1.1.7 viruses bearing the Spike E484K mutation by BNT162b2 mRNA-elicited antibodies, convalescent sera and mAbs [19].

N501Y has little effect on neutralization by vaccinee sera as reported [20], however, 35% RDB-specific mAbs isolated from mRNA-1273 vaccinees showed a 100-fold or even higher loss of neutralization against N501Y mutant [18]. E484K mutant resulted a 3-6 fold reduction in neutralization, and 50% of the RBM specific mAbs lost neutralization against E484K mutant in one assay. K417N is another key mutations in RBD that can escape of neutralization from 33% mAbs tested in an assay. E484K in combination of N501Y and K417N can cause an additional loss of neutralization observed in convalescent sera [21, 22]. Although some of these variants and point mutations cause only partial reduction in neutralization by vaccine sera or currently approved mAbs, there is a risk that the constantly evolving variants could become dominant and evade current therapeutics and vaccines with higher efficiency. Antibody domain ab6 exhibited potency in neutralizing all these pseudo typed variants bearing these mutations. Interestingly, emerging variants including the 501Y.V2 and B.1.1.7 lineages also accumulated mutations and deletions in N-terminal domain (NTD) [23], and NTD-specific antibodies is comparable less resistant to mutant variants than RBD-specific antibodies.

Vaccines remain an efficient strategy for a long term control of the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Production and distribution of vaccines around the world require time and large scale coordination of logistics, allowing the virus to continue to spread and harbor new mutations. Our study provides highly potent antibody candidates that neutralized emerging mutant variants that can be used as emergency therapeutics where current vaccines are not present or less effective in prevention.

Quote from RobertBryant

Zimbabwe hits Covid since JAN 27 with ivermectin

River blindness is not endemic in Zimbabwe so it is not part of the WHO sponsored community IVERMECTIN treatment program..

Note that the program was initiated because of philanthropy of the old Merck.

Zimbabwe's recent community ivermectin program has made it similar to 31 riverblindness afflicted countries in Africa,,

from Mali to Mozambique.

Japanese researchers have shown a statistically significant correlation btw the presence of river blindness(and hence ivermectin treatment and Covid mortality.

The mortality in the 31 riverblindness coubtries was about 10 times less than in the others.. p value 0.002.

Hopefully the WHO takes notice of this correlation . Hopefully Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus , from Eritrea, can appreciate the significant recommendations of the researchers, even though he is not and has never been a frontline medic.

"

In conclusion, in the countries where ivermectin is distributed to and used by the entire areas,

itsuggests to lead a reduction in mortality, to accelerate patient recovery and, to avoid death.

And this analytical study will suggest that early treatment with ivermectin may accelerate recovery and
prevent worsening of symptoms in patients with mild disease.

These findings can be efficientlytranslated into therapies for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tedros_Adhanom

Quote from JedRothwell

If it were criminal, the FDA would definitely say so.

The problem is your round table buddies that run the insurances.

They certainly will not cover any doctors risksfor off label drug use.

The problem is your round table buddies that bribe most country heads/ministers of third world countries for damping the spread of Ivermectin.

The problem is your round table buddies that proliferate fringe stories about HCQ/Ivermectin in the once most important medicine papers.

The problem is your round table buddies (and allies) that ignore human rights for private profit taking. So we are back in the ancient (roman) times where as you try us to sell your fake modern views of science.

The Politically Incorrect Secret That May Have Led to Thousands of Covid Deaths

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-p…-of-covid-deaths-n1435529

If you’re woke, or want to be woke, or support wokeness, chances are you probably congratulate obese people for being “body positive” despite all medical evidence pointing to obesity as a leading cause of cancer and heart disease.

As it turns out, we don’t hear much about the dirty little secret that obesity easily killed as many people as mask avoidance — perhaps more. The Washington Examiner’s Brad Polumbo did a deep dive into the issue of weight and Covid deaths and found some shocking correlations.

COVID-19 is much more deadly for the elderly and those with preexisting conditions that weaken the immune system. One of those conditions is obesity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Adults with excess weight are at even greater risk during the COVID-19 pandemic.” The CDC said that of the roughly 900,000 adult COVID-19 hospitalizations from the start of the outbreak to Nov. 18, 30% were attributed to obesity.

Meanwhile, a new study examining over 150,000 adults across 20 hospitals confirmed that obese people are much more likely to be hospitalized or to die from the virus. Severely obese COVID-19 patients were 61% more likely to die and 33% more likely to face hospitalization than their peers at healthy weights.

This alarming pre-pandemic crisis and recent acceleration should be setting off enormous alarm bells. But instead, liberal-leaning media outlets and cultural influencers have glorified obesity and downplayed its health risks.

For example, Cosmopolitan ran a series of magazine covers featuring significantly overweight women under the heading, “This is healthy!”

Quote from Fm1

As it turns out, we don’t hear much about the dirty little secret that obesity easily killed as many people as mask avoidance — perhaps more.

Way more! The CDC's own study reported that mandated mask wearing resulted in a reduction of mortality of roughly 1 percent per 20 days. Not something to write home about.

Quote from Alan Smith

Which statement would pretty much invalidate a doctor's professional liability insurance if he/she went 'off piste' and something went wrong.

That would be a civil suit, not a criminal one. As I said, there are no criminal law prohibitions or regulations preventing off-label use of drugs.

I do not know much about lawsuits, but I expect that any doctor who uses a drug off-label would first have the patient sign many forms granting permission and absolving the doctor from any and all bad results. In the U.S. even when the doctor tells you to use some over-the-counter allergy medicine, they make you sign six different forms saying they take no responsibility and you can't sue them.

Furthermore, in the case of COVID-19, the government declared that malpractice liability is suspended and any drug can be used. All risks are assumed by the patient. This is an emergency provision for this disease only. They probably make the patient sign a dozen forms to back that up.

So, for those two reasons, I do not think there will be any malpractice suits for the use of ivermectin.