These are good questions. The following is not medical advice. It’s just framing the situation you’re describing in a little more detail.
The Paxlovid trial had about 1,000 participants. Soon, we’ll be giving it to tens or hundreds of thousands of people who are seriously ill. This will give us more data about safety.
For an individual patient over the next couple months, one challenge is that Paxlovid must be taken so early that you can’t be sure about the trajectory of your illness. More severe symptoms tend to kick in after Paxlovid’s window of efficacy expires. You have to infer your likelihood of severe illness from your risk category and the severity of your symptoms vs. the number of days you’ve been sick.
If you are in a low-risk category, it’s unlikely you’ll have the opportunity to take Paxlovid before we have a lot more data. If you do, you’ll be weighing the risk of rare unknown side effects against the low chance of developing a more serious illness. At that point, I can only say to consult with your doctor.
These are good questions. The following is not medical advice. It’s just framing the situation you’re describing in a little more detail.
The Paxlovid trial had about 1,000 participants. Soon, we’ll be giving it to tens or hundreds of thousands of people who are seriously ill. This will give us more data about safety.
For an individual patient over the next couple months, one challenge is that Paxlovid must be taken so early that you can’t be sure about the trajectory of your illness. More severe symptoms tend to kick in after Paxlovid’s window of efficacy expires. You have to infer your likelihood of severe illness from your risk category and the severity of your symptoms vs. the number of days you’ve been sick.
If you are in a low-risk category, it’s unlikely you’ll have the opportunity to take Paxlovid before we have a lot more data. If you do, you’ll be weighing the risk of rare unknown side effects against the low chance of developing a more serious illness. At that point, I can only say to consult with your doctor.