Nearly 100,000 lives could be saved by hydroxychloroquine if used for treating COVID-19, Yale professor claims
Early administration of hydroxychloroquine makes hospitalized coronavirus patients less likely to die of the disease, according to a study.
The Yale School of Public Health epidemiology professor Dr. Harvey Risch claims hydroxychloroquine could save 75,000 to 100,000 lives, FOX News reports.
In an interview with Laura Ingraham of The Ingraham Angle, Dr. Risch said:
“There are many doctors that I’ve gotten hostile remarks about saying that all the evidence is bad for it and, in fact, that is not true at all.”
The Yale professor believes that the drug can be used as a ‘prophylactic’ for frontline workers, referring to countries like India which are already implementing it.
Moreover, Dr. Risch claims that there is a ‘propaganda war’ based on political purposes against the use of hydroxychloroquine:
“It’s a political drug now, not a medical drug… I think we’re basically fighting a propaganda war against the medical facts.”
A recent study has revealed that early administration of hydroxychloroquine significantly decreases the death rate in COVID-19 patients.
Researchers the Henry Ford Health System in Southeast Michigan have looked through the effects of hydroxychloroquine in coronavirus patients. According to their findings, the drug provided a ’66 percent hazard ratio reduction’. What’s more, the combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin ‘decreased the mortality hazard ratio by 71%’.
Furthermore, the examination found substantial differences in the mortality rate with and without the drug. The overall in-hospital coronavirus related mortality was 18.1%. When patients were treated with hydroxychloroquine alone, it was 13.5%, while when treated with just azithromycin, the fatality was 22.4%. Additionally, when neither of the drugs was included in the treatment, the rate was 26.4%. The research states:
“In this multi-hospital assessment, when controlling for COVID-19 risk factors, treatment with hydroxychloroquine alone and in combination with azithromycin was associated with reduction in COVID-19 associated mortality. Prospective trials are needed to examine this impact.”
Dr. Marcus Zervos, head of the hospital’s infectious diseases unit, acknowledged at a news conference that their results differ from other studies. However, he highlights that Henry Ford Health System researchers examined patients who were treated early with the drug. Dr. Zervos explained:
“For hydroxychloroquine to have a benefit, it needs to begin before the patients begin to suffer some of the severe immune reactions that patients can have with COVID.”
At the beginning of the month, a statement from the Trump campaign hailed the findings as ‘fantastic news’.
According to Dr. Risch, the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine is intentionally opposed or not at all covered by the mainstream media.
“All the evidence is actually good for it when it is used in outpatient uses. Nevertheless, the only people who actually say that are a whole pile of doctors who are on the front lines treating those patients across the country and they are the ones who are at risk being forced not to do it.”
In addition, while discussing the new study emphasizing the benefits of hydroxychloroquine, Henry Ford Health System Chief Academic Officer and neurosurgeon Dr. Steven Kalkanis said:
“We stand behind our recent Henry Ford study where we looked at 2500 patients and we found that the use of hydroxychloroquine alone cut the death rate in half.”
However, Dr. Kalkanis notes that more studies need to be done, where the process is being scientifically controlled.