"I have not taken a Covid-19 vaccine, although everyone in my hospital has taken it", claimed Dr Devan PP, currently Professor and Head of the Department of ENT at AJ Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Mangaluru.
In a candid interaction with this correspondent, he dispelled many notions in practice ever since the globe has been hit by the worst ever pandemic. He is of the firm opinion that in the present scenario it's building up your immune system while simultaneously adhering to necessary precautions which matters the most.
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| Image source: India Today, 11th May 2021 |
To persistent queries, if so what about the mammoth exercise underway to vaccinate the whole country, he blasts: "The present vaccines are not for a separate variant of the virus. And till now we are noticing multiple variants quite active all over. If the vaccines alone were enough to curtail the viral load, then how come you don't have one for HIV"?
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| Dr Devan PP |
Medical Fraternity has no clue: Dr Devan PP is pained at the loss of lives worldwide due to Covid-19 ranging from 1,000-3,000 deaths per day. At the same time, he's afraid about the practices being deployed to identify and treat the infection. On the whole, he feels the Medical fraternity has no clue on what's happening and what needs to be adapted to tackle the problem.
He minces no words in hitting at the tendency of doing RTPCR(Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) for detecting Covid-19 infections. "It's not worthwhile in investing in these tests. Karry Mullis who invented this method in 1983 has made it very clear that such tests should not be done for diagnosis. In fact, what is required is Rapid Antigen Test and not RTPCR".
While functioning as, In Charge of Covid-19 ward, he came across several instances wherein the outcome of the RTPCR tests made a mockery of the entire process. " There were many full-blown cases despite the findings of RTCPR tests being Negative", he reveals.
What's the meaning of undergoing such tests when such results make no sense in practice. What is required is a Rapid Antigen Test. But there is no one to listen, laments Dr Devan PP.
Baba Ramdev minted Rs 1,000 crores: About indigenous homemade remedies and Ayurvedic medicines to treat Covid-19 infections, he is categorical: "Maybe during initial stages of cold, flu and other symptoms, they might be helpful. However, such systems do not have enough data or R&D to substantiate the claims being made in the present scenario".
Then what about the much-hyped "Coronil Wonder Drug" from the Patanjali group? Dr Devan PP just laughs at the query. Baba Ramadeva, who went to the extent of dubbing Allopathy as a hoax was later compelled to regret his remarks. Initially, he tried to avoid getting vaccinated but was forced to take the doses. In the meantime, his drug minted Rs 1,000 crores!"
The rationale of Cardiologists on Covid Panels: Dr Devan PP, when inquired about the present practice of appointing cardiologists to head the Covid-19 Task Forces, took a dig at the tendency: "Covid-19 related initial infections are basically related to gasping for breath. It's the duty of Pulmonologists to remove the mucous blocking the lungs. Dr Shankara Chetty and Dr Emmanuel Taban in South Africa have succeeded in saving a large number of lives by adapting to this methodology. But placing cardiologists on Covid-19 panels is not mandated", he felt.
Dr Devan,s views make a lot of sense. I have followed a lot of his suggestions and found them useful. Particularly regarding building immunity.
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