5 ms·

I would guess that opportunistic bacterial co-infections are being suppressed by the azithromycin, which leaves more room for the immune system to respond direc

by kian 7y ago

I would guess that opportunistic bacterial co-infections are being suppressed by the azithromycin, which leaves more room for the immune system to respond directly to SARS-CoV-2. Viral Pneuomonia can easily lead to Bacterial Pneumonia. Combined with an attack directly on SARS-CoV-2, and you get a combination therapy that hopefully works.

didgeoridoo 7y ago
While your explanation seems the most likely, macrolide compounds like Azithromycin may actually have direct antiviral effects of their own: https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/45/2/428 https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/45/2/428
- kian 7y ago
  Thank you for that! I had no idea Azithromycin had those effects.
- masonic 7y ago
  That's against rhinovirus, not coronavirus.
  - didgeoridoo 7y ago
    The study focused on rhinoviruses because they are the dominant source of viral morbidity in CF patients. If their proposed MoA (interferon agonist in epithelial cells) is correct, there’s a good reason to believe the antiviral effect is nonspecific to rhinovirus.
JamesBarney 7y ago
I thought the same things when I saww these type of effect in antibiotics, but lots of antibiotics have lots of off target effects. Minocycline for instance might be helpful with depression and MS. And it's usually not through the bacterial co-infections route unless you find the same effect with all broad spectrum anti-biotics.
hinkley 7y ago
I recall vividly an article about the importance of physical fitness and in particular stability exercises in old age. The author proposed that a lot of people die from a broken hip, but you don’t see it in the death statistics because the proximal cause of death is pneumonia brought on by confinement to bed after the injury. The domino you have some control over is not falling and hurting yourself so badly in the first place. The flu doesn’t last as long, but it brings fluid to the lungs. Protecting from infection is huge.

by kian 7y ago

didgeoridoo 7y ago

While your explanation seems the most likely, macrolide compounds like Azithromycin may actually have direct antiviral effects of their own: https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/45/2/428 https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/45/2/428

kian 7y ago
Thank you for that! I had no idea Azithromycin had those effects.
masonic 7y ago
That's against rhinovirus, not coronavirus.
- didgeoridoo 7y ago
  The study focused on rhinoviruses because they are the dominant source of viral morbidity in CF patients. If their proposed MoA (interferon agonist in epithelial cells) is correct, there’s a good reason to believe the antiviral effect is nonspecific to rhinovirus.

JamesBarney 7y ago

I thought the same things when I saww these type of effect in antibiotics, but lots of antibiotics have lots of off target effects. Minocycline for instance might be helpful with depression and MS. And it's usually not through the bacterial co-infections route unless you find the same effect with all broad spectrum anti-biotics.

hinkley 7y ago

I recall vividly an article about the importance of physical fitness and in particular stability exercises in old age. The author proposed that a lot of people die from a broken hip, but you don’t see it in the death statistics because the proximal cause of death is pneumonia brought on by confinement to bed after the injury. The domino you have some control over is not falling and hurting yourself so badly in the first place. The flu doesn’t last as long, but it brings fluid to the lungs. Protecting from infection is huge.