How does President Trump’s COVID-19 treatment compare to treatment in Pittsburgh?

PITTSBURGH — While President Trump was at Walter Reed Medical Center for COVID-19, he received a number of drugs to help combat the virus.

Three of those include dexamethasone, remdesivir and experimental antibodies that are still being tested in clinical trials.

“Dexamethasone and remdesivir are commonly used today for hospitalized patients with COVID 19. The antibody from Regeneron is an experimental therapy that the president received under what’s called ‘compassionate use.’ It’s not generally available to the public,” said Allegheny Health Network emergency medicine technician Dr. Arvind Venkat.

The day Trump was released from the hospital, he tweeted that under his administration, “really great drugs” were developed.

But the average person may not have access to the same drugs and health care.

You can now customize your WPXI News App to receive news alerts. CLICK HERE to find out how.

“None of us except the president has a whole team of doctors who are only focused on one of us. None of us can readily get experimental therapies when we get sick,” Venkat said.

The president also mentioned not to be afraid of COVID-19 or let it dominate your life, something Venkat agrees with to an extent.

“I would agree that we can’t allow COVID-19 to control us, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t act that it doesn’t exist. And there is a need to protect ourselves,” Venkat said.

But something they differ on is another tweet the president sent this morning comparing the flu to coronavirus.

In fact, Twitter marked the tweet as misleading and that it potentially is spreading harmful information related to COVID-19.

“From everything we understand about COVID, it is both more infectious and more lethal than the typical seasonal flu,” Venkat said. “The combination of the flu season and a continued COVID outbreak is something that the health care system will be very challenged to deal with and more importantly, it could very adversely affect the general public.”

The doctor told us his advice for the president would be to self-isolate and quarantine, and that’s the guidance anyone who tests positive should follow

Cox Media Group