AARP Weekly Corona Virus Tele-Town Hall, Experts answer your questions

[AARPTeri]

AARP will host a weekly live Coronavirus Information Tele-Town Hall on AARP.org on Thursdays at 1 pm (ET). Please bookmark this page and join us each week for the latest information on the Coronavirus.

You can also listen to the first one hosted on 3/19/2020 - here 

(Link:  https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2020/tele-town-hall-coronavirus.html)

[aruzinsky]

Why aren't hyperbaric chambers used to treat coronavirus patients?

https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04327505

[LydiaN586309]

Thank you, AARP for this!

[rickg53]

There are warnings and advice given to us that seems illogical, incorrect, or inconsistent.  Please help me understand some of the following.

1.  We can expect the current stay in place rules through April.

What will be different in May?   August?  December?  Shouldn't we prepare to continue isolation through NEXT April when a vaccine might be available?  What conditions need to exist before we can be safe out in public?

2. Hoiw do they estimate a figure of 100,000,000 deaths?

US Pop: 350 millioon

60% will become infected: 210M

10% hospitalization: 21M

1.5% mortality: 3.15M 

And that assumes there is enough medical personnel, beds, respirators and respiratory therapists?

3.  The production of additional respirators will be important.

There ae 110,000 Respiratory Therapists in the US.  There aren't enough trained people to run these machines.  What's being done about that?

4. Today only those with Covid-19 or medical professionald or those caring for patients with Covid-19 need to wear masks.

The only difference is the number of contats or the chance of contact.  Since 20% of those with Covid-19 will be symptomatic and others will be presymptomatic, shouldn't everyone be wearing a mask to prevent transmission?  And if the mask is effective to a doctor, why won't it be effective for me.

5. We hear estimatmes that the hospitals may be completely full around May 1.

For those worried about being triaged and turned down by the hospitals, might it not be a better (albeit selfish) strategy to try to become infected NOW?