well the main reason it’s controversial is because there’s no indication for their use yet but also because the chloroquine drugs at least are actually needed by other patients that do benefit from them, ad given who makes these drugs, shortages are a real possibility if everybody starts taking them before we even know if they’re effective. I would hate to think that a bunch of lupus patients die prematurely or suffer because we give everyone else the drug like candy and it turns out not to work.
By the way, the way cases are doubling, we will have results from a trial relatively soon anyways – I mean if they’re enrolling 2,000 people we could conceivably hit the enrollment period in a few weeks and have results a few weeks after that…
I took 200 mg hydroxychloroquine daily for 20 years for rheumatoid arthritis. The only side effect I had was retinal toxicity (no vision effects) after long-term use (20 years). The use for Covid-19 of course would be short-term. The Covid-19 protocol is 200 mg twice daily for 5 days. I don’t know anything about Lupus, but if hydroxychloroquine was in short supply (when I was taking it), I certainly wouldn’t die, I would find another anti-rheumatic drug.
I’d use it in a minute. @TiaG
You’re concerned that if hydroxychloroquine worked against Covid-19, then no one would sign up for the placebo in a trial??? Well, if it works, I’d say that ethically they shouldn’t be given the placebo. That’s one of those stop the trial early situations.
The point is that we wouldn’t know it worked, but many doctors might prescribe it anyway, because people are desperate to try anything that works. And meanwhile because they’re prescribing it off label, you can’t enroll people in a clinical trial who will offer to have a 50/50 chance of getting a sugar pill, so we’ll never know it works or doesn’t.
But it was widely prescribed for people just passing through malaria areas for many decades… it’s not like it’s some controversial new treatment… we literally took it the whole way across the Atlantic every time… it’s not like it’s some reckless brand new thing that might turn out to be a horrible idea…
@TiaG
Well, it seems pretty simple to me, it’s given to someone who is sick, and they get better. Then again, and again, and again, etc. And it works. Or it doesn’t. No it’s not a randomized controlled trial, but sometimes you do what you can with what you have, and what we have is a pandemic with no treatment, so testing drugs in a clinical situation may be as good as it gets.
The whole conversation equates to something as crazy as this analogy in my mind:
A brand new horribly venomous spider is discovered and it’s numbers are spiraling out of control sweeping the world. It’s very aggressive and devastated entire populations. It causes an allergic response that kills people. It seems that Benadryl (Diphenhydramine) tremendously halts this allergic reaction and saves lives—-but it hasn’t been studied in double blind randomized trials and FDA approved for this specific use that didn’t exist before… so we can’t say for sure—- therefore we better not take it!.. pollen in the air— sure, take it… mowing the lawn— sure, take it… might save your life—- oh no! Too dangerous!
Again… for the limited uses they have been approved for. That isn’t something that can just be brushed over as much as people are willing to do in this period.
I guess the perspective may be different from someone who was routinely prescribed it without an eye batted just as a routine preventative based on where they worked might be different than the general population
I remain optimistic about a vaccine too… but I’m afraid that may be a long way in the future, if ever… theres still no HIV vaccine, or more pointedly no diabetes vaccine
I only worry about Liam and honestly if he were in need i would try anything… Including snake oil. Not hypocricy… i believe it IS snake oil but as a last hope, snake oil is something i would definitely still consider using. Just the truth.
It is approved and used for… until now…“limited uses”. It has historically been used for a finite set off illnesses. I feel sorry for those who actually need it for approved ailments and can’t get it because of the mad rush.
