ATTENTION: IMPORTANT NEW COVID-19 UPDATE from the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Research Departments: there is a newly discovered biological weapon that neutralizes SARS-CoV-2, also known as COVID-19, by preventing it from entering human cells. No cell entry = no viral replication-- and very soon afterward death of the virus. A tiny, nano-sized antibody tagged "Ab8" is a molecule that stops COVID from binding to human cells, thus containing it until the cells die... while the Ab8, itself, ALSO does not actually bind to human cells. (This means there will be very low risk of adverse reactions from anyone treated with Ab8.) It has already successfully made it through the first 2 phases of clinical trials and appears to be the right agent to both prevent AND treat active COVID-19 cases. It looks like it will be released in both an inhalable aerosol mist and an injection form. Just goes to prove: good things often come in extremely small (in this case, nano-particle sized) packages! Everybody, keep your chins up! Good news is on the way. This is a game changer. :)
Time for some encouraging news! It appears people who already have antibodies to COVID-19 do NOT get sick when exposed to co-workers who become ill with the virus. (There appear to be high levels of immunity to it, after recovery.) Now for the best part: it's looking like a LOT of people may have these antibodies; so the "herd immunity" which kicks in when about 40%-50% of a population have recovered from a virus, is happening sooner than anyone dared hope. A lot of folks nationwide (and in Canada, too) seem to think they already contracted it back in January-March of this year; and here in WV, some are pretty sure they had it even earlier, around Christmas of 2019, after going to Disney World. If we have attained Herd Immunity levels, COVID's severity should diminish over time like Swine and Avian Flu strains. Both types of flu originated in the same place as COVID-19-- and also caused pandemics back in the 1970s and 80s. Combine our herd immunity ratios with the fact that 5 pharmaceutical companies (and as many Universities) are now engaging in human trials for a vaccine, and it means either way this will probably wrap up sooner, rather than later. Isn't that wonderful! P.S.: Celebrate a little, but remember: this good news DOESN'T mean we should abandon the safety protocols, just yet. But I am VERY optimistic. :)
After hearing everything about China's attempts to conceal the origins of COVID-19, it reminds me of several events-- from years ago. Do any of you still remember when there were instances of children becoming ill because of toxic substances in toys, pets dying because of contamination of cat and dog food, and when certain medications were recalled & pulled from shelves due to potential poisoning? All of those things had one thing in common: they all came from China. Our patients have been told for many, many years that ALL of our products, including our dental crowns, are carefully sourced from non-Chinese companies. We refuse to deal with Chinese laboratories, or with off-shore "American" labs that overnight-ship crown and bridge cases to mainland China. Why? Because we simply do not know what may be in them. For us, the test is this: if we think something might have harmful substances in it, we won't place it in our mouths-- and we certainly will not place it in yours. So for us (and for over the last 30 years) we use only crowns made out of verifiable, safe materials manufactured right here in the USA. Now, the downside of this policy is that Chinese crowns are lovely and relatively cheap. American made ones are a good bit more expensive. This means it's understandably tempting for a lot of dental practices out there to increase their profits by using something their patients will think is attractive; and which also costs a LOT less than an American-made crown. And, in fairness, there are a lot of patients out there who don't care about such matters, as long as the price for their crown is low. This is the perfect "caveat emptor" situation: let the buyer beware. The good news is, I'm sure our practice isn't the only one protecting patients in this manner. If you need a crown, ask a few questions and remember: there are still some dentists out there who won't compromise safety for profit. :)
We had an interesting interaction with someone this past week. A person whose opinion carries a lot of weight. He told of a mysterious respiratory illness he had experienced back in the late winter (before any of us had heard the name COVID-19) where he had the classic symptoms of that disease. At that time, he kept going to the doctors & they kept testing him and telling him "no, it's not the flu. It's some kind of respiratory thing, but it's definitely not regular influenza." Each day, he said he kept feeling worse and the dry cough and heaviness in his chest worsened. "I just felt terrible," he said. "Couldn't seem to shake it, and I could feel myself getting further and further down in a hole." He got an antibiotic, which helped but he was still slipping. One night, in desperation, he decided to use one of his children's asthma steroid nebulizer treatments. Bingo. It immediately got easier to breathe. He thinks that the steroid-- combined with the antibiotic-- caused him to radically improve and quickly shake off his mystery illness. This is extremely interesting to me, since there have been a lot of reports about hospitals in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia and Japan that have managed to keep their death toll down by early treatment of the symptoms of COVID. This quick intervention keeps their patients off ventilators-- which everyone knows is key. (If the patient's condition is serious enough to have to use a ventilator, there's a much, much higher risk of mortality.) Now, there's information out there about using Budesonide (an inhaled steroid) in some hospitals that have been hard-hit: and it, along with antibiotics and other very cheap to use medications (like good ol' hydroxychloroquin), seem to be turning the tide. One hospital that was running out of beds in its ICU, found that within days it was able to stabilize and clear the ICU of most of their COVID patients. The NIH and other panels will be officially vetting the results, but understandably, we understand that process might take many months. Saving lives in the meantime is the goal. Common sense says "if something works, it works." So, the takeaway is this: we may be able to use several cheap meds we already have to treat new cases as they emerge; thereby buying time until an effective vaccine arrives. Big Pharma expects to make billions on the treatment/cure... but maybe, just maybe, a quick, easy, cheap and readily available treatment can be had, with medications we already have on hand in large supply. We will probably be hearing more about this development on the news in the near future; so keep your chins up! The whole world is working together to beat this!
Take a deep breath, everyone! The photo of these boys is a reminder-- this isn't the first time the country has had to wear masks... and when the pandemic 100 years ago was over we all eventually got our normal lives back. :) In 1917, the Spanish Flu was absolutely gutting the U.S. and the death toll was horrific. Much, much worse than anything we are seeing today. Today, people are so stressed out they haven't stopped to remember we've successfully been through this routine before; and that the common flu last season (according to the CDC) infected up to 56 million in a 6 month period, That's almost 16.25 times higher than COVID's infection rate in the last 6 month period (3,416,428.) Moreover, last season with the common flu there were over 740,000 hospitalizations-- a lot more than we've seen from COVID-19 in the U.S. Far fewer COVID patients required hospitalizations. What does this all boil down to? 1.) We absolutely need to protect our elderly and those who have serious underlying health issues. They are vulnerable to this particular virus. If you're young, wear masks to protect them. Everyone else: use hand sanitizer and good hand washing techniques to protect YOU and THEM. And, practicing social distancing whenever possible isn't hard to do and can help protect us all. 2.) Good news! Children and young adults don't seem to be as susceptible to becoming seriously ill: and in most cases, may not even know they are infected with COVID. They are much more likely to die from seasonal flu, statistically. The risk to the young and healthy is so low that five out of five pediatricians interviewed last week on national news stated they would not hesitate to send their own children back to school in the fall. 3.) Thank heavens we live HERE! WV is only one of 4 states with a death toll-- for the entire COVID-19 epidemic to date-- of under 100. That will surely rise a bit, but with good sense measures, we will do fine... and someday, just like those two boys in the photo... we'll be able to retire our masks and have a normal life, again. :)
Anyone else feel like taking a dip? Sure do miss the beach, this year. Oh, well... West Virginia is a wonderful place during the summer!
Need a mid-Winter pick-me-up? :) Try one of our facial aesthetic services! For more information go to www.drstevencurry.com to check out the ways you can look better, revitalized, and more refreshed!
That's the wonderful part about "New" Years: we get to start all over again! The old year is over! Here's hoping YOUR New Year is absolutely the best one, ever! 🥰
How blessed we are... no matter the difficulties, no matter the trials: we have been given a gift beyond measure: the gift of hope! And to think it all started on a cold night in a cave, in a distant time a world away. May your Christmas be filled with God's choicest mercies and graces; your friends and family be many and full of health and happiness; and may your New Year be better than your best dreams!
Thanksgiving is upon us! Though you may be downsizing the guest list because out-of-staters are reluctant to travel home, here's hoping everyone has a happy, healthy holiday, wherever they may be! And remember... soon this whole COVID thing will be over and we'll be able to reclaim our lives. Life went back to normal after the 1917 Spanish Flu pandemic. And that wasn't the only pandemic. Our country has seen multiple Polio, Whooping Cough, Mumps, Diptheria, Measles... and later, Swine Flu, Avian Flu, H1N1, etc., pandemics. These terrible illnesses were usually cyclical, happening about the same time each year. News reporting wasn't 24/7 back then and they didn't call them pandemics in those days-- but that's what they were. They happened all over the country and all over the world and millions died. You may be too young, but we recall seeing people with leg braces from Polio; and knew that others had to spend months in hospital "iron lungs" because the polio virus paralyzed their chest muscles and they couldn't breathe on their own. When we were little, parents were terrified that children would contract Polio and everyone gave money to the March of Dimes. There was even a March of Dimes treatment clinic in Clarksburg. Vaccinations took care of all these scourges. So, COVID too, shall pass. Just hang on and keep doing what we all know to do; and next year after this is over, we'll be able to invite the whole county to dinner. We promise. :)
