By Jane Orient, M.D.
There may be less about COVID in the news because of the war in Ukraine, but can you let your guard down?
New advertising pitches featuring heads of the American Medical Association and other groups urge parents to get their children vaccinated, and Pfizer and Moderna are seeking FDA (Food and Drug Administration) authorization for a fourth dose.
Life insurance companies are also seeing a highly significant rise in claims in the prime working-age group. The reason for the spike in deaths is not clear, but it is not from COVID. It happens to coincide with the vaccination push.
Pfizer is having to release a huge trove of documents on its COVID vaccine that it was trying to conceal for 75 years. These show nearly 160,000 adverse events.
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has been withholding large amounts of data, citing concerns that it might be misinterpreted by the public and lead to vaccine hesitancy. Long term effects of the COVID jabs cannot yet be known.
The most widely publicized effect, myocarditis/pericarditis, which occurs most commonly but not exclusively in young men, is treatable with anti-inflammatory drugs and exercise restriction. Early detection is essential to minimize damage to the heart.
Many other complications involve blood clotting, so a blood test for D-dimers, a measure of clots being formed and broken down, may be useful.
The COVID shots are believed to reduce the severity of disease but do not necessarily prevent it, so be aware that early treatment may still be needed.
Jane Orient, M.D. (janeorientmd@gmail.com) is the executive director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons and a policy advisor to The Heartland Institute.