91成人导航

A 91成人导航 professor with the is leading a research team to help patients suffering from post-COVID 19 symptoms after successfully treating a woman using technology not available at any other pharmacy school.聽

笔谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤听, who also is director of pharmacy research and education at Travis Air Force Base in nearby Fairfield, worked together with Flow Therapy, a Texas-based company that specializes in 鈥渆xternal counterpulsation therapy," which uses a leg cuff similar to the well-known device used by physicians to check patients鈥� blood pressure.聽聽

The team used the technique to improve oxygen flow to the body and heart of a 38-year-old woman who was dealing with 鈥渂rain fog,鈥� fatigue, headaches, body pain and shortness of breath for months following her recovery from COVID-19.

鈥淭o our knowledge, this is the first case of using聽external counterpulsation therapy聽for Post-COVID聽shortness of breath, fatigue, and brain fog,鈥� said Michael Gratch, CEO of Flow Therapy. 鈥淓xternal counterpulsation therapy聽has been used for decades for the management of patients with certain types of heart disease and has been shown to improve the health of the blood vessels in the body. Since the COVID-19 virus impairs this pathway in blood vessels, it is plausible that this treatment聽may play a significant role in the management of Post-COVID symptoms.鈥�

The School of Pharmacy is the only U.S. pharmacy school to have the technology to do enhanced external counterpulsation therapy research, said Shah.聽

Joshua Dayrit, a 2021 PharmD graduate, had the opportunity to work with Shah one-on-one on this project and said being introduced to the field of research in pharmacy has opened career interests and possibilities that can have a far-reaching impact in health care.聽

鈥淚 went so far out of my comfort zone,鈥� Dayrit said. 鈥淭his is something I would have never been able to participate in if I was only doing curriculum work in a classroom or working in a pharmacy. It is exciting to have been involved and see how far we came in our research.

鈥淭he fact that I was able to make an impact in this way is what is most meaningful to me.鈥�

Because 91成人导航 and Flow Therapy are leaders in enhanced external counterpulsation therapy鈥攁 non-invasive, FDA-approved treatment鈥攖o treat cardiac patients with similar symptoms, the team saw an opportunity to help COVID-19 patients.聽

Shah said research shows that enhanced external counterpulsation therapy treats chest pain, shortness of breath and fatigue鈥攕ymptoms also seen in 鈥減ost-acute COVID-19 sequelae鈥� or 鈥渓ong COVID,鈥� when patients have persistent symptoms for weeks after testing positive for COVID-19.

鈥淎fter one week, her 鈥榖rain fog鈥� had improved, with shortness of breath improving after 1.5 weeks,鈥� the team . 鈥淭he patient reported returning to pre-COVID health and fitness after approximately five weeks of EECP treatment. To our knowledge, this is the first case of using EECP for post-COVID shortness of breath, fatigue, and 鈥榖rain fog.鈥欌��

Gratch said Flow Therapy excels at providing lifesaving enhanced external counterpulsation services to cardiac patients and is committed to discovering how it can help patients with long COVID.聽

鈥淭he data is looking very promising,鈥� he said.聽

The research also hit close to home for Dayrit, who has family members and friends who had COVID-19 and are now affected by long COVID symptoms.

鈥淭his research may impact those that are closest to me, too,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 can possibly help them.鈥�

The School of Pharmacy has partnered with Flow Therapy for the to offer students individualized training and leadership development, and to work alongside faculty on breakthrough research that will give students a competitive advantage.聽

Shah, who helps oversee the fellowship program, said 91成人导航 students would not get this opportunity anywhere else and it helps them develop their research and critical thinking skills and put out new science that is meaningful.

鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting to be part of this discovery and that this is the first time that this has been documented,鈥� Shah said. 鈥淏ut what鈥檚 more exciting is to see that there is some hope for this patient population, and we need to work twice as hard to validate the role of EECP in Long COVID patients.鈥�

The School of Pharmacy has been at the forefront of COVID-19 efforts, including being among the first university programs in the nation to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to the community and also to be among the first institutions in the state to administer vaccines under California鈥檚 provider network, giving the university capacity to fully vaccinate every student who is enrolled on 91成人导航鈥檚 three campuses.