Anyone on DU that has Parkinson's and came down with COVID?

[Frustratedlady]

I'm terribly upset that a member of our family may have COVID. With his Parkinson's disease, he has enough problems. He has had both shots and a booster, which helps, but he is certainly vulnerable.

He says his stomach is upset, chest is tight and his bones ache, so he thinks it is the flu. He has had a flu shot, though. Also, he has had a few sessions of walking pneumonia and seems to catch it every few years. Since he walks a lot, he has been walking each evening in this cold and wind. We have a few options, but I'm still scared it could be COVID. He helped a guy move furniture the other night who later found that he had been exposed at that time at work. Hopefully, he wasn't contagious yet.

Any input would be appreciated.

I am getting pretty tired of hearing anti-vaxers say they have rights!

[Pantagruel]

1. You might want to consider:

&quot CNN)Pfizer's updated results for its experimental treatment for Covid-19 showed it cut the risk of hospitalization or death by 89% if given to high-risk adults within a few days of their first symptoms, the company announced in a news release Tuesday.

Pfizer hopes it can eventually offer the pills, under the name Paxlovid, for people to take at home before they get sick enough to go to the hospital. Paxlovid combines a new antiviral drug named nirmatrelvir and an older one called ritonavir.
After a month of follow-up, the study found five hospitalizations and no deaths among 697 people who received the drug within the first three days of symptoms. Among 682 who received placebo, 44 were hospitalized, including 9 who died. All of the adults in this study were unvaccinated.

FDA advisers vote to recommend authorization of a pill to treat Covid-19
If given within the first five days of symptoms, the efficacy was similar: 88%. These results hold up against a similar announcement from the company last month, when not all the data had come in yet."

[Frustratedlady]

3. Yes, we are considering everything. Unfortunately, all the drugstores are out of test kits.

My daughter is checking all over the place to find one. He just woke up with the symptoms, this morning, and thinks it is the flu. We are trying to get ahead of the worst of it if it is C19 with whatever is available.

Thanks for your input.

[elias7]

2. Couple of thoughts...

Your family member can get the rapid antigen test, and if negative, get the PCR test, with results back usually in 24-48 hrs.

Was you family member exposed to someone with Covid? The guy he was moving furniture with?

If definite exposure and now having symptoms, he would meet my criteria (even if he has not been tested yet) for an infusion of monoclonal antibodies, which could be ordered by his PCP or probably just gotten through your local ER.

[Frustratedlady]

4. Thanks for the info. I was aware of the fact there were remedies available, but had yet

to search for what terms to ask for.

The person he was working with had complained of a sinus infection and ear ache, originally. That was the stage he was at when they tried to finish up the project. However, later the next day or so, he went to the ER and got his test, which was positive. Both men are generally strong and healthy, with the exception of Parkinson's. Both are fully vax'd.

[Tomconroy]

5. Maybe go to the emergency room and see what they say?

[Efilroft Sul]

6. My wife's aunt had Parkinson's and died from COVID, and my wife's mom has Parkinson's as well.

Since the Reply line is short, let me add some details.

My wife's aunt was much further along with Parkinson's than your family member, as she was already in a nursing home. She died at the end of May 2020 when nursing homes were a ground zero and there were no vaccines. So, knock on wood, your relative has several advantages that ours did not have and I hope he's merely experiencing flu symptoms. My wife's mom has the same comorbidities as the aunt, so we watch her like a hawk and do everything for her. If we didn't, her carelessness around others would surely be fatal.

Best wishes to you all.

[Frustratedlady]

7. His wife called a few minutes ago and had taken an early lunch to find a test kit.

(All our drug stores were out, but Wal-Mart reportedly had some. Turned out, they were all sold.) So, she took her neighbor up on her offer to use one of her kits. She tested her husband and he was NEGATIVE! Phew!

However, he is in bed with what they are hoping is the flu. Christmas is on hold for now.

Thanks for the comments. I hope those tests are good/accurate.

[Efilroft Sul]

8. Glad to hear about the negative test result, and may he get well soon.