Following a tactic that reportedly has helped patients in China, doctors throughout New York are giving their critically ill coronavirus patients massive doses of Vitamin C.
Long Island-based pulmonologist and critical-care specialist Dr. Andrew Weber from Northwell Health, he has been urgently giving 1,500 milligrams of intravenous Vitamin C to his intensive-care patients.
With the world's top scientists working night and day to find a treatment for coronavirus, the news of a simple, everyday prescription as medicine is making people elated and anxious.
Weber gives this injection of Vitamin C three or four times per day.
The New York-based doctor observed that the Vitamin C levels in COVID-19 patients exhibit a dramatic decrease if confronted with sepsis.
Sepsis results from an inflammatory response caused when a person's immune system transforms into overdrive and overreacts to an infection, which is in this case, the SARS-CoV2 virus that causes the novel coronavirus disease.
The reoccurring doses total to 16 times the daily prescribed amount by the National Institutes of Health.
"The patients who received Vitamin C did significantly better than those who did not get vitamin C," said Weber.
The overdose of Vitamin C is based off on experimental treatments in Shanghai, China and was found to be effective in cases.
Weber added, "It helps a tremendous amount, but it is not highlighted because it's not a sexy drug."
Weber's approach has not been as well-publicized as other treatments like the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine but is said to be likely essential to combat the coronavirus.
Reports showed that another simple solution is a healthy lifestyle that significantly decreases one's risk of being admitted to the hospital for the virus.
According to hospitals in New York, it is "significantly" improving the symptoms of individuals with COVID-19. Those treated with very high doses of the vitamin are doing much better than those that were not.
However, experts are warning that this treatment is only experimental and there lies no solid proof that Vitamin C can help combat the coronavirus.
Adult men are normally advised to receive 90 milligrams of Vitamin C daily, while adult women are recommended to take 75 milligrams, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Jason Molinet from Northwell Health confirmed that Vitamin C is being "widely used" as a coronavirus treatment but the exact dosage showed to vary from patient to patient.
"As the clinician decides," Molinet said.
Northwell Health, New York State's largest healthcare provider, has 23 hospitals.
Molinet added that about 700 patients are receiving treatment for coronavirus across the hospital network, but it is unclear how many are getting Vitamin C treatment.
25,665 cases of the coronavirus were tallied in New York with 14,904 in New York City.
According to Weber, Vitamin C is just one of the many treatments being administered to coronavirus patients. Treatments include hydroxychloroquine, azithromycin, and various blood thinners and biologics.
"There is some reason to hypothesize that some vitamins and supplements could reduce the risk and severity of COVID-19 because of benefits seen for other viral or respiratory disease," Dr. Walter Willett, professor at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, said.
