The Lancet: Chloroquine Study

I haven't read it all yet, but here is the study on Chlorquine by the Lancet. 

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(03)00806-5/fulltext

And bad news concerning Chloroquine - not sure if it's one of the ones impacted or not, but if it works against this - I'm sure it is (or will be darn soon)...   

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/04/india-limits-medicine-exports-coronavirus-paracetamol-antibiotics

The coronavirus outbreak has led India to restrict the export of dozens of drugs including paracetamol and various antibiotics, leading to fears of a global shortage of essential medicines.

On Tuesday, concerns over supply chain shortages led the Indian government to place limits on the export of 26 pharmaceutical ingredients and the medicines and vitamins made from them.

The restricted drugs include paracetamol, antibiotics such as tinidazole and erythromycin, the hormone progesterone, which is used in the contraceptive pill, and and vitamins B12, B1 and B6. The drugs account for 10% of all India’s pharmaceutical exports.

India is one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of drugs, with the US and Europe heavily reliant on the supply.

India’s pharmaceutical companies source about 70% of their ingredients from Chinese factories, many of which have been shut for weeks owing to the coronavirus outbreak. The closure of airports in China has also impeded supplies reaching India.

Glad I loaded up early.  

Albert I ordered on Feb 27, how long did it take for you to get yours?  I am worried I won't get mine!!

FluMom wrote: Albert I ordered on Feb 27, how long did it take for you to get yours?  I am worried I won't get mine!!

I paid the extra money for Airmail and it took around 3 weeks.  With airmail they give a tracking # and I tracked it here:   https://www.ems.post/en/global-network/tracking

Mines in the post as we speak. I've no idea if or when it'll get here.

Beware, Albert.  That guy in the video is spouting "fringe science".  Now, the fringe is where the breakthroughs are made.  All new stuff that works starts there. Geniuses like Tessla stay there.  But so do the loonies - and they outweigh the geniuses 10 to one (at best estimate - it could be higher).

Based on that lancet study, cloroquinne could be an effective drug, but it is also a very toxic one.

"Toxic dose. The therapeutic dose of chloroquine phosphate is 500 mg once a week for malaria prophylaxis or 2.5 g over 2 days for treatment of malaria. Deaths have been reported in children after ingesting one or two tablets—doses as low as 300 mg; the lethal dose of chloroquine for an adult is estimated at 30–50 mg/kg."

Now that does not sound too bad: "I'm only going to take 500mg daily."  until you look at the previous part of the article:

"Pharmacokinetics. Chloroquine and related drugs are highly tissue-bound (volume of distribution [Vd] = 150–250 L/kg) and are eliminated very slowly from the body. The terminal half-life of chloroquine is 2 months, and that of hydroxychloroquine is 40 days. Primaquine, with a half-life of 3–8 hours, is extensively metabolized to an active metabolite that is eliminated much more slowly (half-life of 22–30 hours) and can accumulate with chronic dosing (see also Table II–61)."

That means that it builds up in your body on a daily basis.  It takes a whole month for half of the chloroquinne you took to leave your body, EVEN LONGER IF YOU HAVE KIDNEY OR LIVER PROBLEMS OR TAKE PROBENACID. So every day the amount builds up in your body.  If you are small and skinny the fatal dose can be as low as 2g (4 X 500mg doses!).  Having the drug is one thing.  Now, if you were hospitalised and they said: "We could treat you with chloroquinne if we had some." that would be great, but if you tried to take it at home:

"Specific levels. Chloroquine is usually not detected on comprehensive toxicology screening. Quantitative levels can be measured in blood but ... "  So you would need to have a way to tell the medics what you were taking as they might not work it out in time - maybe an alert braclet or pendant.  The treatments for overdose are few and urgent (basically stopping the body absorbing any more). 

This drug could save your life.  It could take it too.  So take no chances.

Source:   https://accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?bookid=391&sectionid=42069865