A\nPhoenix-area man is dead and his wife is under critical care after the two took\nchloroquine phosphate in an apparent attempt to self-medicate for the novel\ncoronavirus, according to hospital system Banner Health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chloroquine has been touted by President Donald Trump as a possible treatment for Covid-19, but it’s also “an additive commonly used at aquariums to clean fish tanks,” Banner Health said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chloroquine is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treating malaria, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. But the FDA has not approved it to treat the coronavirus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Banner\nHealth experts emphasized that the medication — as well as other\n“inappropriate medications and household products” — “should\nnot be ingested to treat or prevent this virus.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Given\nthe uncertainty around COVID-19, we understand that people are trying to find\nnew ways to prevent or treat this virus,” Dr. Daniel Brooks, Banner Poison\nand Drug Information Center medical director, said in the statement. “But\nself-medicating is not the way to do so.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Banner\nHealth, which is based in Arizona, didn’t give any details on how the couple,\nboth in their 60s, acquired the chloroquine or which Banner hospital treated\nthem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However,\naccording to the statement, “within thirty minutes of ingestion, the\ncouple experienced immediate effects requiring admittance to a nearby Banner\nHealth hospital.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chloroquine\nand hydroxychloroquine: what to know about the potential coronavirus drugs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chloroquine\nand hydroxychloroquine: what to know about the potential coronavirus drugs<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump\nhas called chloroquine, and the closely-related hydroxychloroquine, potential\ngame changers in the fight against Covid-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“HYDROXYCHLOROQUINE\n& AZITHROMYCIN, taken together, have a real chance to be one of the biggest\ngame changers in the history of medicine,” he tweeted Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some\nearly research suggests the drug could be useful against the virus. However,\nTrump’s comments have prompted health officials to warn that further study is\nneeded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr.\nAnthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, has said the drugs\nmay be effective against the novel coronavirus. However, he told CBS’ Margaret\nBrennan on Sunday that Trump had heard about the hydroxychloroquine and\nazithromycin combination’s effectiveness from anecdotal reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“I…have\nsaid I’m not disagreeing with the fact anecdotally they might work, but my job\nis to prove definitively from a scientific standpoint that they do work,”\nFauci, who serves on the White House coronavirus task force, said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your\ncoronavirus questions answered<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\nNigeria, health officials issued a warning about chloroquine, saying three\npeople in the country have overdosed on the drug after Trump endorsed it as a\npotential treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Banner\nHealth said it is “strongly urging” health care providers not to\nprescribe chloroquine to patients who aren’t hospitalized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The\nlast thing that we want right now is to inundate our emergency departments with\npatients who believe they found a vague and risky solution that could\npotentially jeopardize their health,” Brooks said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Phoenix-area man is dead and his wife is under critical care after the two took chloroquine phosphate in an apparent attempt to self-medicate for the novel coronavirus, according to hospital system Banner Health. Chloroquine has been touted by President Donald Trump as a possible treatment for Covid-19, but it’s also “an additive commonly used […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27983,"featured_media":14657,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_paywall_metabox":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[98],"tags":[31],"class_list":["post-14656","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-featured"],"yoast_head":"\n