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Non-Tech : Bill Wexler's Dog Pound -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: pz who wrote (3705)	9/19/1999 11:51:00 AM
From: Hank	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 10293

The problem with this abstract is that it initially states that over 200 viruses can cause the common cold but most are caused by rhinoviruses. What it fails to mention is the fact that there are over 100 different rhinovirus serotypes. There was no attempt to establish the diversity of serotypes present in the test population or to even verify the fact that the test subjects were suffering from a rhinovirus infection. Nor was there any explanation as to how and where the test subjects were selected. If they were all chosen from the same geographic location, such a single college campus, then the probability is high that they were all suffering from the same rhinoviral serotype (assuming they WERE in fact suffering from a rhinovial infection). The point to this is that a zinc based treatment may not be equally effective against all rhinovirus serotypes. Without a study that is clearly designed to test the effectiveness of Zicam against all known rhinovirus serotypes, it is very likely that the overall efficacy of this treatment may be significantly less than what is suggested in this abstract. Since Zicam was specifically designed to inhibit rhinovirus absorption, we can also assume that the treatment is worthless against other viruses which can cause cold symptoms.