Thread by @drabbyphilips

1/
Harmless #Placebo
64 yr old gentleman. Has mild fatty liver. On meds for high BP. Healthy, farmer. One fine day, he's lethargic. Lost appetite. Feeling under the weather
Gets blood tests done after GP consult. Liver test AST 224 ALT 138. GP says bad fatty liver, starts VitE

2/
Comes back after 14 days. Worsening appetite. Rechecks blood. AST 542 ALT 432. GP refers to me. I ask for alcohol use. Gentleman says never in his life. His family supports him. I ask for #ayurveda #herbals. Says he doesn't believe in that sh*t. I'm impressed. But no diagnosis

3/ Checks for autoimmune liver disease markers, viruses. All negative. Ultimately convinces the elderly man to go for a liver biopsy. He does and the report says. Autoimmune liver disease. Repeat blood markers still negative. Pathologist says ask for drugs. So I do that again.

4/This time more in depth. I ask everything from turmeric to what he ate, cooked, bathed it. The works. Nothing. Then sheepishly, his wife says. He has been on #immuneboosting for #COVID19. As ordered by Government. So thought it was harmless. Here is what he was on👇
#homeopathy

5/
Our good old placebo friend.
But not quite placebo.
Alternative meds can screw up the immune system leading to new onset diseases such as drug triggered autoimmune hepatitis (blood tests may be negative) which can only be confirmed on liver biopsy
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/P…

6/
Next time someone tells you #Homeopathy is no effect, no side effect, prove them wrong.
#homeopathy isnt only absolutely useless, it can lead to rare disease conditions and harm.
World Homeopathy Day is coming
Keep this in mind.
#MedTwitter #livertwitter #ayush #MedEd