UPDATE: More than 1,000 coronavirus cases arise in Fresno, Valley. Here’s the latest
Almost 500 new coronavirus cases in Fresno on Friday, and more than 1,000 across the central San Joaquin Valley, pushed the region to the precipice of a quarter million confirmed COVID-19 infections to date since the first local patients were identified almost 18 months ago.
The Fresno County Department of Public Health reported 470 new cases in its Friday update, for a total of 2,539 since Sunday and more than 9,200 so far this month. These are the latest cases in a summer surge that began in early July, within weeks of California reopening its economy and eliminating the state’s color-coded, county-by-county system of restrictions on businesses and activities based on how widely coronavirus was spreading in a county.
Fresno County’s case total since March 2020 now stands at 113,854, with the trend raising the possibility of reaching 115,000 or more before the Labor Day weekend, perhaps as early as Sept. 1.
Also on Friday, county health officials acknowledged nine additional deaths attributed to COVID-19 in Fresno County, for a total of 11 so far this week, 26 since Aug. 1, and 1,770 over the past year and a half.
In neighboring Valley counties, Friday updates included:
Kings County: 117 new cases, 2,311 since Aug. 1, and a total of 26,031 to date; no additional deaths, 262 to date.
Madera County: 85 new cases, 1,131 since Aug. 1, and 18,348 to date; no additional deaths, 250 to date.
Mariposa County: 12 new cases, 281 since Aug. 1, 781 to date; no additional deaths, 10 to date.
Merced County: 239 new cases, 3,031 since Aug. 1, 36,352 to date; no additional deaths, 506 to date.
Tulare County: 96 new cases, 3,577 since Aug. 1, 54,015 to date; no additional deaths, 867 to date.
Valleywide, 249,381 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed by laboratory testing since March 2020; of that total, 3,665 people have died from complications of the respiratory disease caused by the virus. With an average of almost 1,000 cases per day this week through Friday, the region’s case total could push beyond 250,000 this weekend or early next week.
Unproven treatments
Fresno County interim health officer Dr. Rais Vohra and other Valley health officials sounded the alarm Friday about an increase in the number of people who have resisted getting vaccinated against COVID-19 but are turning to unproven, alternative remedies including the veterinary deworming medicine Ivermectin.
“We’re getting some very concerning signals from poison control (centers), from CDC (U.S. Centers for Disease Control) that people are taking it upon themselves to self-medicate with alternative cures to COVID,” Vohra said Friday. “I want to warn against that. It’s potentially dangerous and gives people a false sense of security”
“People are seeking out veterinary medications like Ivermectin, which is used for worms in mammals like horses, and other medications like fluvoxamine and melatonin,” Vohra added. “These medications can have side effects if they’re not taken properly, and they haven’t been proven to work.”
“And they may actually delay people from seeking care that could actually help them, like monoclonal antibody treatment that can neutralize the virus,” he said.
In Visalia, Kaweah Health chief nursing officer Keri Noeske said the hospital has admitted COVID-19 patients who had been taking Ivermectin but still required hospitalization.
“If a doctor decides to prescribe Ivermectin, they will have the knowledge to dose it accurately and know if it will adversely interact with other medications or conditions for a patient,” Noeske said. But, she added, “we are not using Ivermectin here because it is not supported by rigorous research and medical societies at this time.”
Dr. Karen Haught, Tulare County’s public health officer, issued a public health advisory Friday warning against the use of Ivermectin. based on “concerning reports from local hospitals” about people self-medicating with the livestock medication.
“Ivermectin is a medicine traditionally used to treat worms and parasites in people and animals,” Haught said. “Ingesting Ivermectin meant for veterinary use can be especially dangerous” because it is typically meant for large animals and may contain doses that are much higher than what’s safe for people.
Haught added that Ivermectin toxicity can cause nausea, vomiting, belly pain, diarrhea, headache, blurred vision, dizziness, fast heart rate, or low blood pressure. “These symptoms may progress to severe health problems including tremors, seizures, hallucinations, confusion, loss of coordination, coma and death,” she said.
