The AIDS calamity-Caution on withdrawing ART and claims of HIV cure.

I believe that the reason for rebound viral upsurge after a patient goes off ARV treatment should be attributed to the fact that most 'antibiotics' including antiretrovirals, in effect, suppress the immune system as they interfere with our own cellular function, as a side-effect. When a patient eventually goes off it, the immune system which has been battered cannot adequately cope with even the low residual viral load. It is important to note here that viral infections have never been cured with existing conventional therapy. In fact antibiotics are contraindicated in viral infections and when antiviral drug is recommended for treatment, adherence is expected for long enough to allow adequate immunity to develop- if not for life- for fear of this rebound effect. Good immune health is the key but because HIV principally attacks those cells responsible for our own immunity, it leaves the body weak and unable to contain the virus. Therefore, there is little chance of spontaneous cure with HIV as we know it with other viral infections; a virus usually generates strong immunity in the body that deals with the virus - viral infections, in this respect, are said to be 'self-limiting'.

Professor Anomah Ngu should be given enough resources to prove his case, of course, within the bounds of ethics by generating enough data that will allow us make scientific judgment. He is not required to explain to us or convince us on how his treatment works; if he does fine. Put simply, he needs to prove that his treatment has worked beyond reasonable doubts, with limited adverse effects. We do not have a clue as to how some drugs we are currently using work. At best, we only find solace in mere speculation. Being the seasoned researcher and clinician he is, Professor Anomah Ngu more than any one else, is better placed to know and practice this tenet: we should not allow an outcome to be attributed to 'chance', hence the need for more controlled standardized trials that will allow us say with a good degree of certainty that what happened actually did happen, when a new treatment was given to a patient. This is the only way to dispel any controversies surrounding any claims of cure and cure we badly need.

Dr. Oliver Verbe Birnso (B.Sc.;M.Sc.;MBBCh)
Medical Doctor/Clinical Pharmacologist-Toxicologist, Reg. No.5541 Cameroon Medical Council.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Natural Way to Lose Weight and Keep It Off

Most people express the frustration of straining to lose weight only to gain it back in a twinkle of an eye. This is because most weight loss programs are strenuous and not natural. Going to the gym is not always much fun and although you may enjoy playing tennis everyday this may not always be a practical way to lose weight, given that you may have to work on a daily basis to earn a living. If your job involves standing and talking then you may not only have the benefit of earning an income but also an opportunity to lose weight, for close to eight hours. You are more than twice able to spend calories standing than sitting. You are even luckier if your job involves body movement, since physical exercise is the best way to lose weight. If you are overweight, it is advisable to begin any exercise program slowly and build up with time. Although endurance exercise like jogging, may help you lose weight fastest, you will only keep it off if you refrain from lavishly rewarding yourself ...
Read more

How Much of Stress Do We Need?

The G1 phase of the cell cycle determines if a cell is to differentiate or not. During this phase, the cell develops protuberances(cilia) which sense the environment, effect movement and  in turn stimulate autophagy(nerve and muscle cells are much elongated from these protuberances). Levels of Nrf2, which lower levels of free radicals, fall in this pro-differentiation state. The longer the G1 the more likely the switch to differentiation from cell cycling. When there is transient fall in energy resources or growth factors, there will be less proliferation and more pro-differentiation, and when those resources later become available, more pronounced differentiation will take place. Transient spike in psychological, physical or nutritional stress will cause the engagement of the 5-phosphate pentose pathway that yields the anti-oxidant NADPH, and as well produces intermediates for protein synthesis. This promotes cellular prolif...
Read more

Fitness and Holistic Health

The body has a way of matching activity and immunity to metabolism. This is brought about through the circadian rythm. Driven by cortisol and entrained by sunlight and physical routine, this is a natural rhythm that is entrenched to all biological systems. It is governed by the major biological clock proteins  as well as organ-specific clock proteins and their negative feed-back inhibitions, which organ-specific clock proteins are different for different organs, and hence we have different times at which different organs' metabolic activities and functions peak. The clock proteins affect metabolism at the level of transcription in the nucleus. The body has to manage the limited energy resources carefully so that each organ's and system's needs are adequately catered to. To do this, different tissues have optimal functional activities at different times. However, the circadian rhythm is usually reprogramed when life-threatening and stressful contingencies avail, such as c...
Read more