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SARS respiratory illness, first came on the world scene in China who sat on it for many months before reporting this vicious coronavirus (SARS-CoV). In February, 2003, China finally admitted it had an unparalleled killer epidemic on its hands. From February through June of 2003, SARS went global via airplanes and passengers. It spread to more than two dozen countries and the continents of Asia, Europe as well as North and South America. The case-fatality rate among persons with illness meeting the current WHO case definition of SARS is approximately 3.7 percent (as of 3/26/03).
WHO DIED AND WHO SURVIVED?
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control), USA say clearly that this virus is not going to disappear. Generally, patients over 40 with other illnesses are more likely to progress to the severe form of the disease.
As a matter of fact, they are expecting it to reemerge in 2003/fall. A total of 8,437 people have become sick with SARS. Of those, 813 have died. In the US alone, there were 192 cases and all people survived. Most SARS cases were among travelers who were country hopping via airplanes. In the US, it was the health care people and family members who were most immediately infected by the SARS person.
HOW DOES SARS TRAVEL?
SARS, although transmissible by close contact, has yet to mutate to become even more widely airborne virus, although I know it will with time. The whole reason a virus exists is to impregnate as many hosts as it can so it can ultimately survive. The more communicable the virus is, the more it can survive, so I see SARS evolving genetically in a short period of time of a year or two, to this new, more contactable level.
SARS is spread now by close person-to-person contact. Close contact is defined as having cared or lived with someone who has SARS via their respiratory secretions (sneezing and coughing). Close contact also include: kissing, hugging, sharing eating or drinking utensils or talking to someone three feet or less away from you. It does NOT include walking by a person or sitting across from them in a waiting room or office for a brief period of time. Scientists think that it is respiratory droplets that infect another person; as in a sneeze, for example. A sneeze is thought to travel, roughly, three feet. The virus can also spread on a surface or object contaminated with the infectious droplets or secretion. If a person then touches their eyes, nose or mouth, they can be contaminated and get SARS. Scientist speculate that SARS may spread more broadly through the air (airborne spread) or by other ways that are not yet known.
WHAT ABOUT SARS IN THE USA?
Through July 2003, a total of 192 SARS cases had been reported in the United States, including 159 suspect and 33 probable cases; of the 33 probable cases, only 8 had laboratory evidence of SARS-CoV infection. No SARS-related deaths occurred in the United States. SARS cases reported in the United States occurred primarily among people who traveled to SARS-affected areas; a small number of other people became ill after being in close contact with (that is, having cared for or lived with) a SARS patient while in the United States. There was no evidence that SARS spread more widely in the community in the United States.
The states, as of the writing of this book September, 2003, that have the most reported cases are California, Washington, Texas, New York. Fourteen states have no SARS reported in them yet--but I'm sure that will change shortly.
TRAVELING? HERE'S WHAT NOT TO DO
If a person has to travel, then CDC strongly recommends staying away from crowds or with large contacts of people to minimize the possibility of getting infected. At this point, they do NOT recommend the use of masks or other protective equipment in public areas.
If you must fly to a known SARS country, then the CDC recommends the following:
After your return:
DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE SARS?
Typically the time between exposure to the SARS virus and onset of symptoms is called the "incubation period." The incubation period for SARS is typically 2 to 7 days, although in some cases it may be as long as 10 days.
If you think you have SARS, do not wait. SARS moves very rapidly with some people; and some may get pneumonia within 48 to 72 hours of contracting it. Be safe and conservative. Call your doctor or health care provider. Tell them where you've been (especially if flying from one country to another or just coming off a domestic airline flight) and other people that you might have possibly come in contact with. It's vital that you get immediate help and the proper lab tests to confirm this, as well as on the correct antibiotic. Although homeopathy is a powerful alternative medicine do NOT try and self-treat with SARS. Instead, go to your physician, get diagnosed, get on the proper antibiotic and then work with your homeopath in a secondary way to take the correct homeopathic remedy. Homeopathy can work side-by-side with a drug with no side-effects to the person. It will always enhance and support the immune system, which is vital in contracting this illness.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF SARS?
In simple lay person terms, it begins with In general, SARS begins with a high fever (temperature greater than 100.4°F [>38.0°C]). Other symptoms may be a headache and over all feeling of discomfort. Body aches are common. Depending upon your "susceptibility" to SARS, some people may have a very mild respiratory reaction and symptoms at the outset of contracting it. They have found that 10 to 20 percent of people have diarrhea. From two to seven days, SARS patients will develop a dry cough that is what is known as a "nonproductive" cough (you cannot cough up the mucus that is filling your lungs nor can you hack it out of your throat region). Eventually, most develop full pneumonia which a person can feel a pressure, constriction, weight or heaviness of their chest area. There will be shortness of breath, as well.
KEY:
2 = Commonly present
1 = Can be present
SARS MIMICS MANY COMMON AILMENTS
What makes SARS even more potentially lethal is that it mimics a cold coming on or a bout of flu. And it may be three or four or even six days before you will realize it is something a lot worse and more profoundly affecting your health in a hurry. Imagine getting pneumonia 72 hours after onset. Unheard of, and yet, that is what SARS does; fills your lungs with fluid and mucus. Let's look at this:
SARS is considered "atypical pneumonia" and it is from an unknown etiology, (that) was recognized at the end of February 2003. In order for us, the person on the street to keep all this straight, let's look at pneumonia:
PNEUMONIA
Doctors consider it an infection or inflammation of the lungs. It is far more serious than the common cold and the big indicator is that it moves to your lungs (the cold you thought you had) and STAYS THERE. What happens next is that pneumonia involves the retention of fluid in the lungs. That's bad enough, but what does this mean? The more mucus we have in our lungs, the less the lungs are able to bring in oxygen or convert it so your red blood cells can carry it around your body to "feed" you with O2. The more fluids you have in your lungs, the less you are able to breathe in sufficient amounts of oxygen. That is why there is shortness of breath; you simply cannot get enough air into your lungs and you will continue to try and take deep breaths to get it--but it won't happen.
Fluid in the lungs can be noisy and obvious; it is call "rales" or rattling. You can hear it either when you inhale or exhale. Further, you will have a "weight" on your chest. For some, it feels like an elephant is sitting on you and you simply cannot get that breath of air into you even though you're panicked to do just that. Other people feel the fluid in the lungs as a constriction or band around them. Some will have pain upon inhalation or exhalation. There may be pain on one side of your chest or the other which is indicative of the lung that is over flowering with too many fluids that shouldn't be there in the first place. There are many individual symptoms that homeopathy recognizes that are Pneumonia.
To confuse us even more, not all
cases of pneumonia are SARS. There are thirty different causes of
pneumonia. The most common are: bacteria, viruses, mycoplasmas,
certain chemicals, and some infectious agents (pneumocystis, for example).
And, not all pneumonias are bacterial in cause. Half of them are
caused by a virus. To make it worse, pneumonia can be a chameleon
sneaking in under the guise of "flu symptoms." Take a look
at pneumonia symptoms and you'll see what I mean:
The key to knowing whether you have just a chest cold vs. pneumonia is usually within 48 hours your chest cold goes from bad to worse. This is when you'll get the shortness of breath, or feeling like you're breathless. If you didn't have a cough at first, you have one now and it worsens considerably. And if you didn't have a fever with your chest cold, you will now. The fever may spike and go very high, very fast because suddenly, your body is fighting to survive with all that fluid collecting in your lungs.
To make matters worse you might have contracted a viral type pneumonia, but it nails your immune system big time and in walks a bacteria to worsen your pneumonia.
BACTERIAL PNEUMONIA
You may get nasty chills, chattering teeth, a lot of chest discomfort ranging from a weight feeling on it to painful breath, plenty of green, thick mucous (or it may be very thin) or later, rust-colored mucous which means you've been coughing so much that bleeding is occurring within you. In some cases, viral pneumonia is complicated by the arrival of bacteria, which invade and cause all the symptoms of bacterial pneumonia, with severe chills, chattering teeth, chest pain, and copious green or rust-colored mucous. And worst of all, your temperature can shoot up to 105F no problem when bacterial pneumonia is involved.
Let's now compare the SARS symptoms to
"chest cold" and "pneumonia" symptoms and you'll see why
its tough to know whether you've contracted it or not:
- SARS often begins with a fever above 100.4°F and may include:
Depending upon your individual susceptibility to this virus, you may have a dry cough and breathing difficulty within 48 hours of contracting it. You may well be on your way to mechanical ventilation because it is striking you quickly and deeply.
Lastly, SARS, if you are not super susceptible to it, but enough to contract it, the virus may take a lot longer period to develop in your lungs (unlike "real" pneumonia which is 48 hours), so this in itself, is a red flag. If you are one of those people who it takes 4-6 days to culminate within your lungs to give you these severe respiratory symptoms and give you pneumonia-like symptoms, this is a sign it could be SARS and you should get to your medical doctor as soon as you can.
SARS AND ASTHMA
People, especially children, who have asthma have plenty to worry about if and when SARS comes to their neighborhood. If you have asthma I would strongly suggest you visit a professional homeopath to see what homeopathy can do to help you, as well as have talked to your doctor and have the proper medication(s) on hand.
Asthma affects our lungs. The bronchial tubes, much like highways into our lungs become super reactive to certain things. These buts are built to be responsive to anything harmful that we might breath into our lungs. These tubes are highly flexible and when threatened with any kind of pollution, they actually shrink in order to protect the vulnerable lung tissue. As we get out of the noxious air, the tubes should relax and go back to their fully opened state. Asthmatics have bronchi that give an exaggerated constrictive response to a pollutant that is breathed in. Consequently, if the person doesn't used a medication to ease the tubes so they open back up, they can literally suffocate to death.
The lining of the bronchial tubes may be inflamed as well. If the person is not on a medical prescription, this inflammation may always be there and that does not bode well for them if SARS happens to come along. It will simply exacerbate SARS and they will be worse off as a result--so it's imperative that if you have asthma that you are on the proper inhaler and/or medications to keep that inflammation nonexistent as we come into "flu" season when SARS will once again, rear its head.
If the lining is inflamed, then the asthmatic can have symptoms of a dry cough, breathing difficulty and other respiratory symptoms. Now, if they just "happen" to have a fever greater than 100.4F (38.0C), they actually may have SARS and not realize it--thinking it's "just the flu."
In other words if that fever is present: These asthmatic symptoms of inflamed lining are EXACTLY the same as SARS. And it could be SARS, without question.
The asthmatic may not be able to know they've contracted SARS but they think it's just an inflamed lining problem--and it isn't. This can put an asthmatic at super risk and they, more than healthy people who contract SARS, needs to get to their doctor immediately and not wait.
SARS AND THE COMMON COLD
How to tell the difference? Let's look at common SARS symptoms:
SARS often begins with a fever above 100.4°F and may include:
Remembering that your susceptibility plays a huge part in how fast you get SARS symptoms, some people get respiratory symptoms immediately and others start with a dry cough with shortness of breath two to seven days from onset.
Colds are considered as "minor infections" by the medical community. They can inhabit your head
and sinuses and nose, your throat or go south, into your upper
respiratory/chest area of your body. The good news is that SARS
resembles Flu more closely than it does a cold so let's look at Cold
symptoms:
Common cold symptoms include:
A young child may have a fever with their cold. And smokers usually have worse symptoms of the cold than do nonsmokers.
From a doctor or scientist standpoint, SARS
has certain symptoms that are put into a more formal or "medicalese"
form which you will see below:
CLINICAL AND SCIENCE DEFINITION OF SARS
EPIDEMIOLOGICAL CRITERIA
What this means to the lay person are the reasons behind getting the illness.
Travel (including transit in an airport) within 10 days of onset of symptoms
to an area with current or previously documented or suspected community
transmission of SARS
or
Close contact within 10 days of onset of symptoms with a
person known or suspected to have SARS.
U.S. Case Definition for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
The previous CDC SARS case definition (published July 16, 2003) has been
updated as follows:
The Exclusion Criteria have been revised to allow exclusion of cases with
a convalescent-phase serum sample (i.e., collected >28 days after symptom
onset) that is negative for antibody to SARS-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV).
Testing results from serum previously collected between 22 and 28 days after
symptom onset are acceptable and will not require collection of an
additional sample >28 days after symptom onset.
The Case Classification has been revised to exclude probable and suspect SARS cases with convalescent-phase serum samples that are negative for antibody to SARS-CoV.
Clinical Criteria
Epidemiological Criteria--Tracking SARS
Travel (including transit in an airport) within 10 days of onset of symptoms to an area with current or previously documented or suspected community transmission of SARS (see Table below), or-- close contact within 10 days of onset of symptoms with a person known or suspected to have SARS.
Table:
(1) Travel criteria for suspect or
probable U.S. cases of SARS Area
(2) First date of illness onset for inclusion as reported case.
(3) Last date of illness onset for inclusion as reported case
|
(1) Travel Criteria> |
(2) First Date of Illness Onset |
(3) Last Date of Illness Onset |
|
China (Mainland) |
November 1, 2002 |
July 11, 2003 |
|
Hong Kong |
February 1, 2003 |
July 13, 2003 |
| Hanoi, Vietnam | February 1, 2003 | May 25, 2003 |
| Singapore | February 1, 2003 | June 14, 2003 |
| Toronto, Canada | April 1, 2003 < | July 18, 2003 |
| Taiwan | May 1, 2003 | July 25, 2003 |
| Beijing, China | November 1, 2002 | July 21, 2003 |
The last date for illness onset is 10 days (i.e., one incubation period) after removal of a CDC travel alert. The case patient's travel should have occurred on or before the last date the travel alert was in place.
SARS Laboratory Criteria Defined:
When your lab sample is sent to see if you have SARS or not, you can fall into one of three categories below:
-
SARS is Confirmed
through detection of antibody to SARS-associated
coronavirus (SARS-CoV) in a serum sample, or detection of SARS-CoV RNA by RT-PCR confirmed by a second PCR assay,
by using a second aliquot of the specimen and a different set of PCR
primers, or isolation of SARS-CoV.
- Negative SARS
and absence of antibody to SARS-CoV in a convalescent-phase serum sample
obtained 28 days after symptom onset.
- Undetermined by laboratory testing either not performed or incomplete.
SARS Case Classification
For scientists, in order to follow this virus they have guidelines which are below.
OR
Exclusion Criteria That You Do Not Have SARS:
A case may be excluded as a suspect or probable SARS case if:
- An alternative diagnosis can fully explain the illness (you have a flu, cold, bronchitis, etc.).
- The case has a convalescent-phase serum sample (i.e., obtained before the 28 days after symptom onset) for which is negative for antibody to SARS-CoV.
- The case was reported on the basis of contact with an index case that was subsequently excluded as a case of SARS, provided other possible epidemiologic exposure criteria are not present.
SARS AND RELAPSE?
At this time scientists do not have a full understanding of the natural course of illness in persons infected with SARS-CoV. It will be important to learn what factors might influence illness progression and recovery. Such factors could be related to the virus itself, how the body's immune system reacts to the virus, how infection with the virus is treated, or other possibilities. CDC and other scientists are trying to learn the answers to these important questions.
ANTIBIOTIC CHOICES
The CDC recommends that patients with SARS receive the same treatment that would be used for any patient with serious community-acquired atypical pneumonia. SARS-CoV is being tested against various antiviral drugs to see if an effective treatment can be found. Right now, no antibiotic can stand up to SARS. Needless to say, pharmaceutical companies are rushing to try and find something that will stop it. This is one of several viruses (or bacteria) that do not respond to the known antibiotics we already have.
Numerous antibiotic therapies have been tried to date with little clear effect. Ribavirin (a viral antibiotic) with or without use of steroids has been used in an increasing number of patients. But in the absence of clinical indicators, its effectiveness has not been proven. Currently the most appropriate management measures are general supportive therapy, insuring the person is hydrated and treated for subsequent infections.
CARING FOR A SARS PATIENT
Available information related to the spread of SARS suggests that only symptomatic patients transmit the virus to others. The following infection control measures are recommended for patients with suspected SARS in households or residential settings. These recommendations are based on the experience to date and may be revised as more information becomes available.
- SARS patients should limit interactions outside the home and should not go to work, school, out-of-home child care, or other public areas until 10 days after the resolution of fever, provided respiratory symptoms are absent or improving. During this time, infection control precautions should be used, as described below, to minimize the potential for transmission.
- All members of a household with a SARS patient should carefully follow recommendations for hand hygiene (e.g., frequent hand washing or use of alcohol-based hand rubs), particularly after contact with body fluids (e.g., respiratory secretions, urine, or feces).
- Use of disposable gloves should be considered for any direct contact with body fluids of a SARS patient. However, gloves are not intended to replace proper hand hygiene. Immediately after activities involving contact with body fluids, gloves should be removed and discarded and hands should be cleaned. Gloves must never be washed or reused.
- Each patient with SARS should be advised to cover his or her mouth and nose with a facial tissue when coughing or sneezing. If possible, a SARS patient should wear a surgical mask during close contact with uninfected persons to prevent spread of infectious droplets. When a SARS patient is unable to wear a surgical mask, household members should wear surgical masks when in close contact with the patient.
- Sharing of eating utensils, towels, and bedding between SARS patients and others should be avoided, although such items can be used by others after routine cleaning (e.g., washing with soap and hot water). Environmental surfaces soiled by body fluids should be cleaned with a household disinfectant according to manufacturer's instructions; gloves should be worn during this activity.
- Household waste soiled with body fluids of SARS patients, including facial tissues and surgical masks, may be discarded as normal waste.
- Household members and other close contacts of SARS patients should be actively monitored by the local health department for illness.
- Household members or other close contacts of SARS patients should be vigilant for fever (i.e. measure temperature twice daily) or respiratory symptoms and, if these develop, should immediately seek healthcare evaluation. In advance of evaluation, healthcare providers should be informed that the individual is a close contact of a SARS patient so arrangements can be made, as necessary, to prevent transmission to others in the healthcare setting. Household members or other close contacts with symptoms of SARS should follow the same precautions recommended for SARS patients.
- At this time, in the absence of fever or respiratory symptoms, household members or other close contacts of SARS patients need not limit their activities outside the home.
CARETAKER PRECAUTIONS
If you have SARS and are being cared for at home, you should:
If you are caring for someone at home
who has SARS, you should:
QUARANTINE and ISOLATION CONSIDERATIONS
ISOLATION: FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE ILL
Isolation of people who have a specific illness separates them from healthy people and restricts their movement to stop the spread of that illness. Isolation allows for the focused delivery of specialized health care to people who are ill, and it protects healthy people from getting sick. People in isolation may be cared for in their homes, in hospitals, or at designated health care facilities. Isolation is a standard procedure used in hospitals today for patients with tuberculosis (TB) and certain other infectious diseases. In most cases, isolation is voluntary; however, many levels of government (federal, state, and local) have basic authority to compel isolation of sick people to protect the public.
QUARANTINE: FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN EXPOSED BUT ARE NOT ILL
Quarantine, in contrast, applies to people who have been exposed and may be infected but are not yet ill. Separating exposed people and restricting their movements is intended to stop the spread of that illness. Quarantine is medically very effective in protecting the public from disease.
States generally have authority to declare and enforce quarantine within their borders. This authority varies widely from state to state, depending on the laws of each state. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), through its Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, also is empowered to detain, medically examine, or conditionally release individuals suspected of carrying certain communicable diseases. This authority derives from section 361 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 264), as amended.
SARS AND ISOLATION
During the February - July, 2003 SARS outbreak, patients in the United States were isolated until they were no longer infectious. This practice allowed patients to receive appropriate care, and it helped contain the spread of the illness. Those who were more severely ill were cared for in hospitals. Those whose illness was mild were cared for at home. Individuals being cared for at home were asked to avoid contact with other people and to remain at home until 10 days after the resolution of fever, provided respiratory symptoms were absent or improving.
USING HOMEOPATHY ALONG WITH ANTIBIOTICS
This is the best case scenario as far as I'm concerned. Anyone who suspects they have SARS should get to their medical doctor immediately, be diagnosed and be on antibiotics. Homeopathy can then be administered as a SECONDARY support from an alternative medicine perspective. It will work with the antibiotics and support the floundering immune system.
It is VITAL that you have the name of a homeopath in your area. If you do not have one, then call the National Center for Homeopathy at (703) 548 - 7790 for the nearest homeopath in your state where you live.
If you have a computer, you can quickly go to http://www.homeopathic.org to the DIRECTORY OF HOMEOPATHS, find your state and click on it. If there is a homeopath in your state, they will be listed. Simply write down their name and phone number and call them.
WHAT THEN?
A homeopath will take your case and note your symptoms. S/he will then find the correct remedy for you to take. Understand that your medical doctor MUST be aware of this. You can look at your "team" and be aware that each "hand" must know what the other is doing. Three-way communication between the three of you is essential when dealing with an aggressive illness like this that can potentially kill. Do not omit that you are being treated by a homeopath at the same time as by your doctor. All parties must know for your best interests in care both short term and long term.
MATERIA MEDICA OF POTENTIAL REMEDIES FOR SARS SYMPTOMS:
Based upon the general symptoms that we've been able to cull from the CDC, I have plugged them into our homeopathic way of figuring out what remedies most closely parallel the symptoms of SARS.
Please understand that YOUR particular symptoms may vary somewhat and that is why you need a homeopath at your side to take your case and determine the specific remedy that is correct for you. This remedy may or may not be on this list and if it is not, that does not mean it won't work for you and your vital force.
These potential remedies remain UNTESTED. That means we don't have enough experience with SARS with the use of homeopathic remedies to know much at this juncture. That is why you need to have a homeopath available for personal help and guidance on what remedy is best for you.
These remedies below have various symptoms and each is unique. IF you cannot find a homeopath, then you should look at these remedies to see if you match one of them symptom-wise. We like a 75% match between a person's symptoms and the remedies symptoms. Only then would you consider taking it one time, one dose, to see if it will help you. And of course, it goes without saying that you are already under the care of a physician and on the antibiotics that are needed.
Most of these remedies can be found at any good health food store. All you need is a 30C potency, nothing higher. If it is the correct remedy, just taking 4-6 pills beneath your tongue, one time should show you that it's the right choice. How will you know? You will improve in some subtle ways. You might get more energy, for instance. Or one or more of your symptoms lessens. If this happens, then it's vital that you get to a homeopath for extended help and monitoring you and this remedy. DO NOT self-medicate through SARS. You simply do not know what you are doing and a professional homeopath must be there to monitor the situation.
If you have no available homeopath in your area, some will work with you over the phone on a consulting basis. Try to find the nearest homeopath and give them a call and ask them if they will phone consult with you on your case.
HOW TO USE THIS MATERIA MEDICA
Take each of your symptoms and write them down in detail and as clearly as possible. Then, for example, your cough: what is it like? Go to the remedies below and look at COUGH if there is one available for it and read it. Read all the remedies that have the COUGH available.
Does one of them match your symptoms exactly? If so, note this.
Do two or more match your symptoms? Then write these remedies down.
You must take your headache and do the same thing. And how you are feeling emotionally (this is found under MENTALS). Cross-compare your symptoms to each remedy's and see if you can find a match or near match (75%).
As you write down the remedy or remedies that mirror your symptoms, you will come out with a list. The remedy that is most often showing up is most likely the remedy you need. That is the one to try.
MATERIA MEDICA OF POTENTIAL SARS REMEDIES
REFERENCES:
Centers for Disease Control
Creel, Catherine