What is a safe lymphocyte count; 500, 800 or 1000/mm3? In your peripheral blood, you have circulating leukocytes or white blood cells which help fight infections. When you get your blood results back you often get told your total white cell count or WCC. However, the WCC is a composite and includes different populations of cells. The white cells can be divided into the lymphocyte and non...
Although the following story is fiction a variation of it is playing out in many hospitals across the world right now. Can you help Dubs make a decision? COVID-19 is pushing us to places we don’t want to go, but we have to prepare for the inevitable. Dr Claire Dubois or Dubs as her friends preferred to call her was exhausted. She had been working for 14 hours with only short breaks to feed...
I want to apologise to my students and colleagues for not delivering on certain teaching and academic tasks; I will get there. I have had to spend the last 48+ hours starting the process of reskilling and learning new skills for when I am redeployed onto the front-line of the NHS. Our hospital is being reconfigured as if we are preparing for war. There are red or hot floors that are for managing...
Calling all HCPs who want to learn about managing MS during the COVID-19 epidemic. Please register for the following webinars via the MS Academy website. We plan to run a series of these over the coming weeks and months. The next one is on managing highly active and rapidly evolving severe MS in the current environment.
CoI: multiple
We have created a specific COVID19 & MS Microsite to curate relevant information for people with MS and their families. The site is being updated on a daily basis. Please use this site to ask clinical questions related to COVID-19 or use the form below. Please note the answers to questions will then appear on the COVID-19 & MS site. Thanks.
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CoI: multiple
If you live in the UK and have MS you may receive a letter from the NHS stating that you are potentially in the ‘extremely vulnerable group’ in relation to COVID-19. The reason for that is they are using GP databases and other sources of information to identify patients who may be on immunosuppressive therapy. If you receive one of these letters don’t be alarmed and please...
In my inbox this morning there were several emails from people with MS asking the same questions. What should I do; self-isolate or continue as is? Should I stop my DMT or continue it? Am I at increased risk of COVID-19 or not? If I get COVID-19 am I at risk of developing serious disease? Should I purchase a ventilator? I have symptoms of COVID-19 what should I do? Are there any patients with MS...
The yin and yang of COVID-19. I have spent day 2 of London’s lockdown doing MS-related webinars; i.e. attending meetings virtually. For every negative, there is a positive, the yin-and-yang of COVID-19. Environmental activists are claiming SARS-CoV2/COVID19 is simply nature’s way of fighting back. We have pushed planet earth and its environment to the brink and it is responding as...
Just to let you know the COVID-19 & MS microsite (MS-Selfie) is now live. I also started to respond to questions via the Q&A page. Hopefully, by curating information in one place, it will stop the repetition of questions and allow pwMS to learn from each other.
I have a backlog of over 50 questions to plough through but will try to get them done over the next few days.
CoI: multiple
It never ceases to amaze me how practical, level-headed and together the Australian MSology community is. The following Australian COVID-19 guidelines are the best I have seen to date and in line with my thoughts on this subject.
CoI: multiple