Treatment of COVID-19

Most people suffering from mild to moderate COVID-19 report symptoms lasting up to two weeks. However, some patients experience lingering health issues even after recovering from the acute phase of Coronavirus. This prolonged constellation of symptoms has been referred as post-COVID syndrome (PCS) long COVID, long-haul COVID, post-acute COVID-19, long-term effects of COVID, or chronic COVID. And people suffering from Post-Covid syndrome (PCS) are referred to as “long haulers.”

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that people commonly experience different combinations of the following symptoms (Reference):

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Tiredness or fatigue
• Symptoms that get worse after physical or mental activities (also known as post-exertional malaise)
• Difficulty thinking or concentrating (sometimes referred to as “brain fog”)
• Cough
• Chest or stomach pain
• Headache
• Fast-beating or pounding heart (also known as heart palpitations)
• Joint or muscle pain
• Pins-and-needles feeling
• Diarrhea
• Sleep problems
• Fever
• Dizziness on standing (lightheadedness)
• Rash
• Mood changes
• Change in smell or taste
• Changes in menstrual period cycles

If you have PCS you may end up with all sorts of chronic inflammatory symptoms that can affect a multitude of systems in your body. And while many in the healthcare community are searching for answers as to what causes PCS and how can it be effectively treated. We may have some answers from the work of Dr. Shoemaker’s Surviving Mold group summarized in our blog.

In the research article, published findings report that patients that have experienced acute COVID-19 infections and now have “long haul” symptoms are profoundly similar to a condition called Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). 

What is Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS)?

Chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) is a chronic condition of inflammation related to an immune system response to a biological toxin such as exposure to mold, fungus, virus and bacteria.

Many people with CIRS are initially mislabeled as other conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS), leaky gut syndrome, depression, multiple sclerosis, dementia, paroxysmal orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) to name a few. 

And many people suffering from CIRS will eventually experience secondary symptoms related to immune dysfunction, hormonal imbalances and autonomic nervous system failure.

What is the Relationship with Post COVID Syndrome (PCS) and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS)?

Dr. Shoemaker’s group has pioneered the use of “transcriptonics” to evaluate gene activation in chronically ill patients. In Dr Shoemaker’s research, it was concluded that after running a transcriptonic analysis on Post COVID Syndrome (PCS) patients in the study, these individuals showed findings indicating they are suffering from Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). 

So What Is the Treatment Plan For Post COVID Syndrome (PCS)?

Firstly, every PCS patient should be using Ivermectin. Ivermectin has anti-viral, anti-parasitic, and anti-inflammatory properties, which are quite important in normalizing the post-infectious sequelae. Every patient needs to have adequate levels of vitamin D. Many patients will benefit from zinc, quercetin and vitamin C. 

The treatment for PCS requires an intelligent, systematic approach that includes the following:

• First, let us attempt to identify the multiple underlying factors that can contribute to chronic inflammation. Are there dietary issues? Are there environmental issues? Are there secondary, tertiary, and quaternary metabolic, hormonal, immune system and nervous system imbalances? These important factors can be determined using various laboratory and in-office testing procedures. 
• Avoid/remove the offending biological toxins from your internal and external environment
• Use special products to enhance excretion of biotoxins from your body
• Remove/improve those factors are contributing to your chronic inflammation. 
• Restore homeostatic control mechanisms that have been perturbed from chronic stress.  

All illness and symptoms result from chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation contributes to chronic stress. Chronic stress distorts how your body’s systems are working. It appears that Post COVID Syndrome (PCS) represents a state of chronic inflammation as a consequence of many factors. Most, young healthy people do not experience PCS. Therefore, it is not just the coronavirus that needs to be addressed but also all the other internal and external stressors that preceded the COVID-19 infection. COVID-19 is like the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. 

At Michael Rothman MD, we will not treat your Post COVID-19 Syndrome symptoms; instead Michael Rothman MD, who is board certified in both Internal Medicine and Emergency Medicine and has over 20 years of experience as a holistic doctor will find the cause of your symptoms via his Metabolically Directed Functional Medicine approach. His individually prescribed holistic treatments will uncover and treat the underlying metabolic abnormalities that are the true source of your problems.