Doctor Column

Top Ten Questions About COVID-19 Vaccines by the ‘Average Joe’ January 5, 2021 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD “Kindly roll up your sleeve, I’m going to clean the area with an alcohol swab. You’ll feel a pinprick and it’ll be all over. I just want you to remain here for 15 to 30 minutes before leaving.” We’ve heard this spiel many times in the past before getting an injection. Pets and the Pandemic: Seven Benefits of Pets During COVID-19 December 15, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Karen and Peter looked forward to celebrating their 25^th wedding anniversary this past September in Europe. They planned to spend three weeks in Italy beginning in the Lake District of Northern Italy, then onto Venice and from there to Florence and Rome. They were crestfallen when the European Union put a “Do Not Enter Europe” sign on American tourists because of high incidence of COVID-19 in the United States The “Twindemic” Has Landed: COVID-19 and Influenza December 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Health experts have predicted the next few months of 2020-2021 will be a “dark winter” in the United States. The confluence, the explosive “twindemic” of COVID-19 and the Flu will cause millions of new cases, a surge in hospitalizations and thousands of additional deaths in this country. Monoclonal Antibodies: A COVID’-19 Nemesis? November 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD When President Donald J. Trump contracted COVID-19 in October of 2020, he was treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center with a cornucopia of drugs to combat his sickness. They included, as far as we know, Remdesivir, dexamethasone, a monoclonal antibody cocktail plus other medications and supplements to fight off the infection. Coronaphobia: The Emotional Effects of COVID-19 and Mrs. Michelle Obama October 15, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Former First Lady Michelle Obama announced in her podcast on August 5 that she’s suffering from “low-grade” depression. She said it this way: “I know I’m dealing with some form of low-grade depression because of the quarantine, because of the racial strife.” It’s “dispiriting” watching the day-in and day-out hypocrisy of this administration. She had difficulty sleeping and there were periods “where I’ve felt too low” and “where you just don’t feel yourself.” Convalescent Plasma for COVID-19 — “What Are Plasma’s Benefits?” October 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD COVID19 has had almost “carte blanche” to crisscross America from East to West leaving in its wake death and anguished families. Could the Upcoming Flu Season be a “Double Whammy?” The “Twindemic” of COVID-19 and Influenza? September 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD Although the Flu virus has played second fiddle to COVID-19 this year, it too is a lethal virus. We’ve become conditioned to accepting the “statistic” that every flu season, the virus kills many thousands of Americans. Health officials say it’s particularly important this year to get the Flu shot because of the potential “double whammy” of the Flu and COVID-19 joining forces to cause widespread sickness and loss of lives. The COVID-19 Sweepstakes: The International Race for a Coronavirus Vaccine August 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD The COVID-19 Sweepstakes has become the most famous international, scientific race in history. From China to the United States, from Canada to Australia, scientists are off and running to be the first to get a COVID-19 vaccine to the market. Forget the roses. The prize money in the COVID’s winner circle is worth billions of dollars to the pharmaceutical company that wins this race. Eight Steps to Mitigate a COVID-19 Medical Tsunami July 5, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD According to a June 23, 2020 report by Johns Hopkins University, there were 34,700 new cases of the coronavirus in the U. S. Five days later, that number jumped to 45,000 new cases of the virus. Dexamethasone Reduces COVD-19 Deaths Off-Label Use of Drugs June 25, 2020 Joseph R. Anticaglia, MD The current pandemic has energized scientists around the globe to come up with targeted treatments and effective vaccines for COVID-19. Investigators in the U. S. are searching for off-label uses of pharmaceutical drugs.

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