Infectious Disease Doc: Ibuprofen Is OK, Homemade Masks Are Not

We had our weekly update with Dr. Eliesel Lacerda De La Cruz, the Infectious Disease Specialist at Southcoast Health.

We asked him about a viral video that we saw over the weekend warning about the use of ibuprofen when sick with the COVID-19 coronavirus. The video warns that people who take ibuprofen have been found to have an increased mortality rate for COVID-19.

Dr. Lacerda De La Cruz says that while there have been anecdotal reports of people who take Advil or Aleve having worse outcomes, there is no clear link to it.

"In a call that I had with CDC last week, the experts did not say that this should not be used. So, their conclusion is that there is not enough evidence to not use medications like ibuprofen for COVID-19," he said. "If Tylenol is working for you, that is great, but if you need to use something like ibuprofen to get your fever down and to get your symptoms better, there's no reason for you not to use it."

Dr. Lacerda De La Cruz also weighed in on the current trend of people and businesses volunteering to sew masks for healthcare workers to help make up for the short supply. While the doctor thinks it's a nice gesture, the masks won't do much to protect those who wear them.

"I think the evidence is clear that they are not the greatest protection, and some of the places where people needed to use those masks, they also had a face shield made of plastic on top of that, so you'd have an added layer of protection," he said. "But the fibers of cotton are loose, it doesn't trap enough organisms to be protective. The virus is likely to go through the mask. Bottom line is that as kind as people are to spend their time and money sewing those masks with love, they really aren't recommended for protection."

What does the doctor see for the upcoming week? What is herd immunity, and does he feel the SouthCoast is doing enough to flatten the curve? Get those answers and more by listening to the full interview with Dr. Lacerda De La Cruz: