Lung and kidney damage caused by COVID-19, not antiviral drug
By The Associated PressSeptember 21, 2021 GMT
CLAIM: Lungs filling with fluid and kidney failure are actually side effects of remdesivir, a treatment approved for COVID-19, not symptoms of the disease itself.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. Critical COVID-19, not the drug remdesivir, has been known to cause fluid in the lungs and renal failure.
THE FACTS: Remarks made by a former chiropractor are circulating online, spreading false information about an antiviral medicine used to treat COVID-19.
Bryan Ardis falsely claims that COVID-19 is not killing millions of Americans, and that the deaths are actually being caused by the use of remdesivir to treat hospitalized patients. His inaccuracies about the drug have been widely shared in text and video posts on Twitter and Facebook...
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Dr. John Mellors, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, said the patients who got remdesivir in those trials showed no evidence of kidney damage compared with the group that didn’t get the drug.
Before even using the drug, patients must undergo kidney and liver tests to make sure it is safe for them, so experts would have noted if the drug was responsible for deaths like the posts online suggest.
