ubiq wrote-nobody has ever seen complications from HCQ?
I wrote-He says the negative side effects are “theoretical in HIS experience.” So he is treating patients before they get desperately sick who do not need necessarily hospitalization immediately but look as though they might need hospitalization if he doesn’t treat them immediately.
JOHNS HOPKINS RHEUMATOLOGY does not mention heart disturbances at all, and says that retinal damage can occur only in 1 out of 5,000 people who take the drug for five years or more, and they recommend an eye check at start of medication with hydroxychloroquine and six monthly thereafter.
The LUPUS website does not even mention heart effects.
I am sure doctors are aware if a patient has a pre-existing heart condition, but for new patients it is inadvisable to wait for testing before giving the medication, if the life would hang in the balance with the threat of coronavirus. The risks have to be weighed.