MAY 12, 2020

Smoking and COPD associated with higher COVID-19 mortality

By Denise Baez

Current smokers and people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who contract coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have an increased risk of severe complications and higher mortality with COVID-19 infection, according to a study published in PLOS ONE.

Jaber Alqahtani, University College London, London, United Kingdom, and colleagues scrutinised data from 15 studies comprising 2,473 patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19. Data were extracted by 2 independent authors in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines.

The crude case fatality rate of COVID-19 was 7.4%. The pooled prevalence rate of patients with COPD with COVID-19 was 2% and 9% for smokers with COVID-19. Patients with COPD were at a higher risk of more severe disease (risk of severity = 63%) compared with patients without COPD (33.4%), and had a higher mortality risk (60% vs 55%).

Of current smokers, 22% had severe complications compared with 46% of ex-smokers. In addition, current smokers were 1.45 times more likely to have severe complications compared with former and never smokers. Current smokers also had a higher mortality rate of 38.5%.

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to develop an informed understanding of the prevalence, severity and mortality of patients with COPD diagnosed with COVID-19,” the authors wrote.

“Although COPD prevalence in COVID-19 cases was low in current reports, COVID-19 infection was associated with substantial severity and mortality rates in COPD,” they added. “Compared with former and never smokers, current smokers were at greater risk of severe complications and higher mortality rate. Effective preventive measures are required to reduce COVID-19 risk in patients with COPD and current smokers.”

“Having a reliable estimate of the prevalence of COPD in COVID-19 cases, and likely outcomes, is crucial to ensure specific successful global preventive and treatment strategies for patients with COPD,” the authors added. “Bearing this in mind, in the included studies there was no report on COPD severity data and COPD-related comorbidities, which prevents us from assessing the impact of such essential information.”

Reference: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0233147

SOURCE: PLOS One

DrD's "Golden Milk"

Dear Friends,

For the past 3 years I have been drinking a glass of my "golden milk" (GM) each day, and have recommended it to thousand of patients with amazing, according to patients, results.

Here is the DrD's "secret" recipe:

1 cup cows milk 1 (or almond milk)
Honey to taste, but no more than 1 tablespoon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1½ teaspoons ground turmeric powder
1 tablespoon virgin coconut oi
1/3 teaspoon of organic cayanne pepper powder

The general body of medical knowledge confirms that the key ingredients in GM:

1. Loaded With Antioxidants

2.May Help Reduce Inflammation and Joint Pain

3.May Improve Memory and Brain Function

4. Curcumin in Turmeric May Improve Mood

5. May Protect Against Heart Disease

6. May Lower Blood Sugar Levels

7. May produce Healthy, Shiny Hair

8. May Reduce Risk of Cancer

9. Have Antibacterial, Antiviral and Antifunga Properties

10. May help build and repair muscles

11. May Help Alzheimer's Patients

12. Enhance Liver and Kidney Health

13. May function as Natural Stress Reducer

14. May Reduce Signs of Aging

15. May help to loose weight

16. Ginger and Turmeric May Improve Digestion

17. Calcium and Vitamin D Contribute to Stronger Bones

In my personal opinion it also tastes great, and instantly creates the feeling of fullness, thus reduces the feelings of hunger.

Have a glass of DrD's GM on me, and be well!

DrD

Academician Dorodny, Dorodny, Prof, Dorodny, NEW Institute, myths, , Dr.Dorodny, Victor Dorodny MD, mythology, investigative Mythologist, TRI-PAC, health consumer advocacy, medical/heath investigative mythology, medical myths, skin patches, inhaled, inhaled vitamins, PatchMD.com, health myths, healtcarING, health carING, PatchMD, PatchMD.com, Medical Scientist, Chief Medical Scientist, Investigative Medical Mythologist, Editor-in-Chief AMHSR, Mobility Scooters, www.thehouseofscooters.com, Victor Dorodny, AmazingDrD, #AmazingDrD, assisted mobility scooters, scooters, golden milk,turmeric, coconut oil, honey, cinnamon, cayanne pepper

              IS THE HEALTH CARING ALIVE AND WELL?

 

In 1995, while serving as the President of National Association of Managed Care Physicians (NAMCP) I have come with "Dr.D. Laws of Managed Care".

 

Unfortunately for healthcare consumers and providers during the past 24 years the system transitioned from managed healthcare, to mangled NOTcarING. However, because of divergent, and frequently conflicting, core values and business interests of main shareholders, Dr.D's Laws are in force and effect:

 

1.If someone is already paying a lot, let him or her continue.

2.Even if a lot of people complain about quality of managed care, it won’t contain cost.

3.Never provide coverage unless the treatment is unpleasant.

4.Quality is being in a waiting room with people who earn more money than you are.

4.The recipients of care do not ask for it, do not order it and do not pay for it.

5.The payers do not ask for it, do not order it and do not receive it/

6.The orderers of care do not receive it and do not pay for it

 

Please be aware, alert and protect your health consumer rights, and join the TRI-PAC!

 

Be well!

 

Dr.D.
Investigative Medical Mythologist, IMM

Founder & President, The NEW™ Institute

Chairman of TRI-PAC, National Health Consumers Advocacy

Chief Medical Scientist, PatchMD.com

__________________________________________________________________________________

 

Academician Dorodny, Dorodny, Prof, Dorodny, NEW Institute, myths, mythology, investigative Mythologist, TRI-PAC, health consumer advocacy, medical/heath investigative mythology, medical myths, health myths, healtcarING, health carING, PatchMD, PatchMD.com, Medical Scientist, Chief Medical Scientist, Investigative Medical Mythologist, health caring, mangled, notcaring, DrD, Dr.D, Dr.D.

NEW™ Institute forms an alliance with PatchMD

February 13, 2011, Malibu, California.--The NEW™ Institute has just formalized its strategic alliance partnership with PatchMD company (www.PatchMD.com).

The Institute will serve as the exclusive retained healthcare/medical/wellness consultancy for CBT Inc, PatchMD.

The purpose of the alliance is to provide an authoritative, and current resource for the members and supporters of the Institute,  and health consumers at large. It also assists the manufacturer of  food supplements (PatchMD) to educate their markets about the true benefits of their products through compelling and compliant advertising and marketing.

The National Institute of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and other agencies that we traditionally rely upon to serve as vanguards of medical authenticity are experiencing funding and manpower shortages.   

While these agencies are without doubt the most capable sources of evaluating legitimate health-benefit claims, they are buried by the sheer volume of their mandates, and have difficulty coping.

Prof. Dorodny, the founder of the non-profit NEW™ Institute (2003)  recognized the critical need for a repository of unbiased, timely medical research and information.  The goal of NEW™ is to provides such a repository of current, reliable, legitimate, hard information that empowers its members (manufacturers, consumers and providers of health services) to make good, safe decisions.

Such empowerment is the mission of the Naturopathic Evidence-Based Wellness (NEW™) Institute.

In the case of PatchMD's family of products we were pleasantly impressed by its new generation of transversedermal patch technology. It ensures a near ideal environment.

By having the transversedermal patch on over the course of a day, the key nutritional supplements and vitamin therapies achieve a whole new state of ingredient stability. 

In addition, PatchMD's transversedermal (TVD) delivery system requires a lower "bio-effective dose" to effectively deliver nutritional supplements and vitamins.

With an oral route of administration a large part of any drugs and vitamins are partly destroyed or neutralized in the stomach, intestine or liver before ever reaching the bloodstream. As a direct result, when taking supplements orally a significantly higher dose is needed to ensure the result needed, increasing the risk of side effects.

Finally, PatchMD's  innovative reservoir system allows each transversedermal patch to contain the most active and potent ingredients offered.

 Be Well!

Balancing Billing & Health CarING

TRI-PAC Health and Wellness Advocacy known for its health consumer advocacy is pleased to announce an important legislative victory for all Californians.

A California Judge upheld state recently enacted rules banning the practice of balance billing for emergency medical care.

Rules forbid providers from balance billing patients by making it an unfair billing practice; allowing State Department of Managed Care to pursue enforcement action against providers.

Both the CMA, the California Hospital Association and the Hospital Association of Southern California argued that the California Department of Managed Care, issuer of the ruling, exceeded its authority to issue and enforce the regulations.

The editorial board of Sacramento Bee also says Californians won a major health care victory on Wednesday. "Now, patients who end up in an emergency room cannot be billed for services that are covered by their health insurance -- care they already paid for through insurance premiums, deductibles and co-pays.”

While the CMA, supported by the hospitals, is trying to appeal the ruling we are appealing to the CMA and the hospitals to refrain from their unfair medical billing practices effective immediately.

We advocate; Hospitals, Physicians, and Other Provider Groups Obfuscate, Litigate, and Castigate; You decide!

Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC) has "a Lot" to hide.

No way to know if hospitals are prepared for disaster!?

Nov. 13, 2008, CHICAGO – The findings of a new study published today in the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness journal found that consistent, evidence-based performance measurements are needed to accurately evaluate hospitals’ ability to manage patient care during a disaster.

The study has been released early on the AMA disaster journal Web site and will be published in the journal’s December issue: “Although health care institutions regularly perform quality assessments of routine clinical services, few metrics are available to evaluate the quality of their emergency management initiatives,”

“The need for universally accepted,evidence-based performance measures continues to grow, as hospitals must be able to demonstrate their progress or needs for disaster readiness.”

Health care institutions have invested considerable resources in emergency management preparedness, but because major disasters are rare, they continue to be challenged in evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of their emergency programs.

Evidence-based preparedness policies are needed that model current health care quality improvement programs. One way to create such models is to evaluate hospital procedures during times that approach disaster levels.

Traditional hospital quality measures, like wait times and missed diagnoses, can be applied, and the results can be compared to peer hospitals to determine strengths and weaknesses.“It is important that performance standards be established for times of disaster to ensure uniformity across institutions systems, and regions...Ultimately, hospital emergency management strategies are essential to our nation’s preparedness.”

Upon receipt of the pre-publication copy of the report we have forwarded a copy to Mr. James Lott, EVP for Policy Development and Communications for the HASC and requested his comment on the issue, specifically regarding evidence-based performance measures either currently used and/or to be implemented by his member hospitals.

To our shock and surprise the written reply received form Mr. Lot was an angry personal one and did not address the issue: " ...we at HASC are reserved about responding to communications and queries from you."

Unfortunately, we can not separate Mr. Lot an HASC dislike for our Organization, its Leadership, Mission and Values, from the fact that members of the HASC, and HASC itself, are ill-prepared and ignorant while potentially jeopardising the lives and well being of patients, first responders, staff and visitors at their facilities!?

For questions regarding Emergency Preparedness of a particular Hospital in Southern California please call Mr. Lot at (213) 538-0777.

We advocate, you decide!

Long, long overdue!

Reported by Robert A. Donin, MPA, President.

After four years, North Coast state Assemblywoman Patty Berg late Tuesday earned thegovernor’s signature on a bill that requires doctors to tell terminally illpatients about their options at the end-of-life.

“It’s a wonderful day,” said Berg. “I’m so pleased that we were finallyable to do something to address the rights of dying people.”Assembly Bill 2747 succeeded where Berg’s other attempts had failed.

The bill says that a patient who learns they are dying of a terminal disease has theright to ask and be told about all the end-of-life options available to them —from pain-management to hospice care.

A recent nationwide study by cancer doctors found that only one in three terminallyill patients were told about their treatment and pain-management options by theirdoctors.

Those patients who did receive information were less likely to die in intensive careand more likely to receive hospice care.

Among supporters of the bill are TRI-PAC Health and Wellness Advocacy, the Medical Association; the CaliforniaPsychological Association; California Nurses Association; California Commission onAging; AIDS Project Los Angeles; Conference of California Seniors.