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Talking Therapeutics

A Pharmacist’s First-Hand Experience With Paxlovid

Douglas L. Jennings, PharmD, FACC, FAHA, FCCP, FHFSA, BCPS

Volume 15, Issue 1

As the world reopens, old activities from the ‘before times’ are becoming increasingly available. One such delight is in-person conferences, and I was able to partake in the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation annual meeting in Boston.

Unfortunately, I brought back an extra souvenir from my trip: COVID-19. Given my history of asthma, I decided to seek a prescription for Paxlovid upon testing positive. What follows below is my first-hand experience with this novel agent.

Before we talk about the drug, here’s a pro tip: be suspicious of anyone with symptoms. I was infected by the person sitting next to me on the train home. He was manifesting some mild symptoms like coughing and sneezing, but he was wearing a high-quality medical mask, so I did not try to move my seat as the train was quite full.

This was my mistake. The new subvariants are very contagious, basically on par with measles. Not even a high quality medical mask (KN95, KN94) can protect you for extended exposure like a 3-hour train ride.

My symptoms (cough and congestion) started on a Sunday afternoon, which is when I tested positive. The next morning, I did a video visit with a provider to obtain the prescription for Paxlovid, which was delivered free of charge to my apartment later in the afternoon (kudos to Alto Pharmacy in New York City).

My symptoms steadily worsened on Monday, and I grew concerned I may have a bad course of the disease. I started my first dose of Paxlovid on Monday evening.

On Tuesday morning, I took my second dose; by now, everything I ate or drank had a metallic taste. This is definitely something for pharmacists to council their patients about. This is very prominent, and it’s happened to other patients taking Paxlovid whom I’ve talked to.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this story is what happened next. By Tuesday evening, after only 2 doses, my symptoms were almost gone. I went from being on around-the-clock antihistamines, decongestants, and nasal sprays to being comfortable with no drug therapy. It was really profound. By Wednesday, I felt well enough to stream a yoga class in my living room.

Based on my personal experience, I believe patients can expect to see some improvement in their symptoms within a day or two. I did not expect this to happen so fast, and other colleagues who also recently took this drug reported the same experience.

A point of interest for pharmacists is the drug interactions with this agent are a real thing. I’m a pharmacist, only taking a few prescription medications, but there was a lot to consider when factoring in over-the-counter medications that patients may be taking as well. I think the biggest role for pharmacists involved in dispensing Paxlovid is supporting our patients with respect to drug-drug interactions.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Population Health Learning Network or HMP Global, their employees, and affiliates. Any content provided by our bloggers or authors are of their opinion and are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, association, organization, company, individual, or anyone or anything. 

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