Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP James L. Holly, M.D. Southeast Texas Medical Associates, LLP


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Assigning cause of death on a death certificate is not as easy as you might think

It has been frustrating not to know how public health officials are determining cause of death for the coronavirus pandemic.

The following are some of my thoughts about death certificates in the pandemic.

03.31.2020

Dr Michael Levitt, Stanford University Biophysicist, argues that one of the problems with the coronavirus test is that it is very sensitive.

That means is that the test detects very small amount of virus.  Therefore, a person may die of an automobile accident but be found to be positive for coronavirus.  

In time, everyone may be positive for coronavirus but everyone is neither sick from the virus nor are they dying from it.

Note

I have complained for a month that we are not being given the proximate cause of death for the patients who are dying “with,” but maybe not “from,” coronavirus.

To understand the complexity of death certificates see the following.:

https://www.facebook.com/1073053942/posts/10218610842396923/?d=n

https://www.facebook.com/1073053942/posts/10218633262077401/?d=n