In an open letter, 32 doctors and health experts from India, Canada and the US called on centres, state governments, Indian Medical Associations and medical professionals to stop the use of medicines and diagnoses without evidence to support the treatment of Covid-19.

“While considerable uncertainty remains in the outbreak of this novel disease, there is now a wealth of high-quality scientific literature that provides clear guidance for the clinical management of Covid-19. Despite the importance of this evidence and the triangular wave of , but we find that the mistakes of the 2021 response are repeated in 2022,” the doctor wrote in the letter.

These “mistakes” include prescribing drugs such as vitamin combos, azithromycin, doxycycline, hydroxychloroquine, favipiravir and ivermectin, which have limited evidence of their effectiveness against Covid-19.

“As the delta wave shows, this indiscriminate use of drugs is not without harm. Outbreaks of opportunistic fungal infections such as mucormycosis in India and aspergillosis in Brazil have been attributed to widespread misuse of inappropriate drugs,” the letter reads. Unnecessary CT scans, d-dimer and IL-6 laboratory tests are recommended, even in asymptomatic or mild cases, against hospitalization of Covid patients without clinical justification.

This practice not only places an undue financial burden on patients and their families, but “risks the lives of hundreds of thousands of other non-Covid patients who are unable to find beds for more urgent situations.” India relies heavily on government guidelines, which unfortunately promote expensive diagnostics and drugs with limited evidence. The public and the medical community are also affected by gross misinformation on social media.

“Update June 2021 DGHS evidence-based guidance. In particular, given the limited efficacy of monoclonal antibodies against Omicron variants and their continued widespread use, please provide specific guidance on the use of monoclonal antibodies,” urged the physician.

They further called on the government to develop and publish home care guidelines for rapid testing, isolation, isolation and release in all local languages.

Complete News Source : INDIA TODAY