Task Force talks COVID’s comeback challenge
Dr. Daniel Hanley is not certain what he can do about the doubt some people still seem to have that COVID-19 really exists, he said at the Aug. 23 meeting of the Pine Island Task Force. Seeking treatment as an alternative to COVID-19 vaccinations is a recent, though very real, request.
“These treatments that people are asking me for — they’re not really proven,” said Hanley. “That’s why I’m not using them.”
According to Hanley, ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine are the most commonly requested alternative treatments. Ivermectin, he said, is appropriately used to treat malaria, and something he has never had to prescribe. Outside of the drug’s ability to treat malaria, using it, he said, poses risks such as going into atrial fibrillation, or experiencing abnormal heart rhythms.
Task Force member Sue Dahod told the group, this anti-parasitic veterinary medicine has been sought at feed stores and veterinary clinics. Although, Hanley stated, that hydroxychloroquine is something he understands more thoroughly, as it is used to treat autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, or rheumatoid arthritis.
“One of the problems with COVID, especially the complications,” Hanley said, “is that it can create a systemic inflammation in the body. That’s one of the reasons we want to reduce that inflammation — to help avoid further progression.”
This is one of the reasons steroids are used, he says, as hydroxychloroquine can suppress the immune system. When people insist on these alternative treatments, he id he simply refers them to a hospital, as he worries their condition could worsen. Although he would not recommend either of the two medicines, he says he is aware that Lee Health is currently doing monoclonal antibody infusions.
“I still don’t think they’re the proven drug, but they are an option that Lee Health offers, so you don’t necessarily have to get hospitalized to get that,” Hanley said. “You can get that as an outpatient. People might need that if they don’t feel like they’re getting worse, but they do have some of the symptoms of COVID.”
Hanley said his feeling regarding monoclonal antibodies is that the vast majority of people who do get COVID tend to recover pretty quickly, so the small population of those receiving monoclonal antibodies isn’t making a big difference anyway, emphasizing vaccinations as the best option by far.
“Mostly with my patients, we take it day by day, see how they do and then handle the complications as they arise,” Hanley said.
With regards to a new circulating rumor regarding vaccinated patients taking priority over those who remain unvaccinated, Hanley said it takes so long for the vaccines to truly be effective that by the time the vaccine takes hold, whatever virus was present, should be gone.
“The main thing we can do is protect ourselves, our families and our neighbors,” Hanley said. “Be consistent. Learn how to live with this. Mask up if you feel unsafe, or sick, or in a crowded situation. Protect yourself. That’s all you really can do. That’s an approach I take with parents as well — that even if their child has COVID, or has been exposed, everybody’s exposed.”