Bengaluru doctor offers contrarian view on coronavirus struggle

BENGALURU: People should not unnecessarily panic over Covid-19 as stress affects health, and over time, everyone will develop natural immunity to the virus, said orthopaedic surgeon Dr Nagaraj HN from Deepak Hospital.
He is one of the few people who advocate that life must continue uninterrupted and the extreme fear over coronavirus was not required. He prefers not to wear a mask or personal protection equipment while examining patients in the OPD. The World Health Organization (WHO) and many other health experts recommend mask use.
Dr Nagaraj, 63, treats and operates on patients without asking for a Covid-19 test. He believes the test is necessary only if a person has symptoms. “The Covid-19 death rate is just 0.5 per cent. Only about 4 per cent of the total infected are developing severe symptoms and need hospitalisation and care. For the rest, it’s just like common flu, which should be treated like it was done so far. Now, those who genuinely need medical care are out of the hospital and that’s causing all the fear and chaos,” said Dr Nagaraj, who has been conducting research on cell biology and stem cells since 1992.
Unnecessary fear and stress, he believes, will affect immune response and increase the severity of the infection, which, in turn, will keep doctors away from work. “Treating the symptomatic, even before the test result, is the need of the hour,” he said.
Dr Nagaraj prefers visors over masks. “Wearing a mask for over 20 minutes in temperatures above 18 degree Celsius can lead to an increase in carbon dioxide load on the human body, resulting in breathing difficulty. Visor is a better option. Masks can be worn for a short period while interacting with vulnerable people, like senior citizens who have comorbidity,” he said.
His hospital is on the verge of closure as only 12 out of 150 staffers are currently turning up for work. “Until recently, I was able to persuade my doctors. Now, they have left due to unnecessary fear, stress and lack of awareness about the scientific aspects behind the virus. Stress reduces immunity by 40 per cent, as established by multiple studies,” he said.
On Friday, only a handful of staffers were seen at the hospital. “Patients with cancer and kidney condition are scared to visit hospitals and their condition will only worsen, a huge collateral damage in the pandemic,” he said.
Dr Nagaraj has doubts about the effectiveness of ventilators in severe Covid-19 cases and wonders how helpful any vaccine would be, considering viruses mutate constantly.
On treatment approach, he said: “Let us only isolate infected people and those whose immunity is compromised, and allow the rest of India to start working. This is far more practical and will prove Indians to be more forthright with truth and we will not be defeated by the fear.”