Bahia Doctor Dies of Heart Failure After Self-Medicating with Hydroxychloroquine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A 55-year-old doctor died in Ilhéus, in southern Bahia State, days after he medicated himself with a combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin.

Gilmar Calazans Lima recorded the first symptoms of Covid-19 on April 10th, when he began to experience headaches. Last Thursday, April 16th, he was admitted to the Costa do Cacau regional hospital in Ilhéus, where he was an employee.

As he had mild symptoms and was stable, the doctor had material collected for testing, was released and instructed to quarantine at home. The test result, positive for the novel coronavirus, came back on Saturday, April 18th.

On his own and unprescribed by the hospital, the doctor started to use a combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin.

According to relatives, he had been improving clinically over the last few days. Symptoms such as fever and shortness of breath had already been controlled.

However, on Monday morning, April 20th, he suddenly felt unwell and was rushed to the hospital, where he was admitted with cardiac arrest. The doctor underwent resuscitation for approximately 45 minutes, but his heart rate failed to stabilize and he died.

When commenting on the case on Tuesday, the Secretary of Health of Bahia, Fábio Vilas-Boas, said that the use of the drug should be preceded by cardiological evaluation and an ECG.

“It is known that chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine can lead to potentially fatal severe cardiac arrhythmia,” Vilas-Boas said.

According to the health department, Gilmar Calazans Lima was hypertensive and diabetic, but his conditions were adequately controlled. He was the 45th victim of Covid-19 and the first health professional to die of the disease in Bahia.

Since April 8th, the Bahia Health Secretariat authorized treatment with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin in SUS (Unified Health System) patients.

However, the use of the drug is intended only for hospitalized patients. Before starting medication, the patient must follow a number of protocols that include tests and cardiological evaluation.

Source: Folhapress