The Hope for Hydroxychloroquine

First, this post is speculation and is in no way a recommendation for or against any particular medical therapy for COVID-19. I am not a physician and this post consists of a layman’s thoughts on the matter. Always obtain medical advice from a physician and NEVER attempt to self-medicate with any drug without medical consultation. Never try to approximate pharmaceutical-grade quality drugs by substituting substances not intended for human consumption. If you do that, you have no idea what you are taking. People have died recently doing this. More people will die if such insanely desperate behavior continues.(You don’t pop pills meant for aquarium fish into your mouth.)

The FDA has provisionally approved hydroxychloroquine for use in the treatment of COVID-19, pending additional information, but not as a prophylactic (preventive) measure. A physician would need to determine whether the seriousness of your symptoms could merit the associated risks of taking hydroxychloroquine. And there are a number of physical conditions (heart disease, to name just one) which could increase the risks. Drug interactions must also be examined before taking this medication. The side effect that caught my attention was potential retinal damage, but this seems to be linked with longterm usage of the drug or extremely high doses.

Like the rest of the world, I eagerly await the results of more double-blind, placebo-controlled studies on hydroxychloroquine’s effectiveness at helping COVID-19 patients recover from the devastating effects of this insidious…