Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is an infectious viral disease that
affects the respiratory system of humans. The
SARS
Coronavirus
(SARS-CoV) is responsible for this virulent disease.
It is an acute, rapidly progressing, pan-inflammatory infection which,
predicated upon the quasispecies involved, may present distressful mortality
outcomes.
This complex syndrome makes the way to develop
severe respiratory distress and desaturation of oxygen in the patient.
Ozone: Antipathogenic properties
Recently, there has been renewed interest in the potential of ozone for viral
inactivation in vivo. It has long been established that ozone neutralizes
bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites in aqueous media. This has prompted the
creation of water purification processing plants in numerous major
municipalities worldwide. Ozone's unique physicochemical and biological
properties, and environmentally-friendly aspects, have since been applied to a
panoply of industrial uses such as the packaging of pharmaceuticals, the
fumigation of homes and buildings (sick building syndrome), the treatment of
indoor air in operating rooms and nursing homes, and the disinfection of large
scale air conditioning systems in hospitals.
Some viruses are more susceptible to ozone's action than others. It has been
found that lipid-enveloped viruses are the most sensitive. This makes intuitive
sense, since enveloped viruses are designed to blend into the dynamically
constant milieu of their mammalian hosts. This group includes, hepatitis B and
C, herpes 1 and 2, Cytomegalus, HIV 1 and 2, Influenza A and B, West Nile virus,
Togaviridae, Eastern and Western equine encephalitis, rabies, and Filiviridae
(Ebola, Marburg), among others.
The envelopes of viruses provide for intricate cell attachment, penetration, and
cell exit strategies. Peplomers, finely tuned to adjust to changing receptors on
a variety of host cells, constantly elaborate slightly new glycoprotein
configuration under the direction of portions of the viral genome, thus adapting
to host cell defenses. Envelopes are fragile. They can be disrupted by
medical
ozone and
its by-products.
Several studies have reported the safety and the benefits of ozone
administration in vivo. Wells et al. (1991) showed that ozone-treated HIV-spiked
Factor VIII maintained its biological capacity; and that, concomitantly; there
was an 11 log reduction in detectable virions. The improvement of liver enzymes
in hepatitis C patients after several months of ozone therapy was described. An
80% hepatitis C viral load reduction in 82 patients using AHT was reported by
Luongo et al., 2000.
It is remarkable, however, that to date, no adequate double blind study has
addressed ozone therapy in viral conditions such as hepatitis B and C, HIV, or
herpes.
SARS and Ozone
Because of its acuteness, SARS is likely to require proactive viral culling.
With an estimated 10 billion SARS viral particles generated daily - a
reproductive magnitude is commonly observed in viremic episodes in enveloped
viruses. It is suggested that ozone
therapy
administration may likely need to be more
intensive than in chronic infections, such as hepatitis B and C. Whereas the
latter conditions have been addressed with AHT frequencies ranging from once
daily to once weekly, SARS may require more accelerated attention, either with
AHT or with EBOO/RHP.
SARS and sterilization of the environment
SARS Virus can be highly
concentrated in the air being spread from the infected patients and thus it
creates possibility of infecting a large number of people who are
within the vacinity of an
infected person. So, it needs complete care in regard to the safety of the
public
at large
to prevent mass spread of this disease. Ozone has an effective antiseptic
property, it is widely used to disinfect or sterilize surgical
apparatus, water and indoor or outdoor environments. And for SARS,
Medical
Ozone is
obviously the easiest solution. Sufficient use of
Medical
Ozone inside or outside of the
possibly infected area just confidently ensures the total disinfection from
the
SARS
virus. It just kills the virus and keeps away any further risk of affecting
any
more
of the public.