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Hidden Medical Controversy: Does Malik's "HAT" Therapy Really Work?
Dr. Paul Merrick has recently become the focus of the medical community again, this time due to his development of "HAT" therapy. The treatment is said to be effective in preventing sepsis, but its scientific basis has been seriously tested as the scientific community continues to question its effectiveness. As an expert once renowned in the medical community, how will Malik's reputation and his research impact current understanding of sepsis treatment?
Malik's "HAT" therapy combines intravenous hydrocortisone, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and thiamine (vitamin B1).
Malik's medical career can be traced back to Johannesburg, South Africa, where he received his Master of Medicine in Internal Medicine. Subsequent work experience took him to the United States, where he published the "Evidence-Based Critical Care Medicine Handbook" in 2001. Despite his success in academia, Malik's life began to hit a bottleneck with the introduction of "HAT" therapy.
Initial research showed that patients treated with HAT had significantly lower mortality rates than a control group who did not receive the therapy, a result that attracted attention on social media and mainstream media.
However, controversy has accompanied this therapy from the beginning, especially criticism from the medical community that Malik's research methods are biased and lack scientific basis. According to a systematic review in 2021, multiple randomized and non-randomized studies failed to confirm the claimed effects of "HAT" therapy, but instead showed that the reproducibility of their research results was questionable.
Some scholars have accused Malik's research of being a "scientific press conference", which is to promote one's findings through the media without sufficient evidence.
In addition, Malik's performance during the COVID-19 epidemic has also been controversial. He is a co-founder of the Frontline COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance, a group that has repeatedly promoted unproven treatments, including the anti-parasitic drug ivermectin, to fight the coronavirus. This behavior was condemned by the mainstream medical establishment and had serious consequences for Malik's professional qualifications.
The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) notified Malik in 2023 that it would revoke his practicing certification.
As this incident developed, Malik faced strong opposition and discussion for his actions, and some social groups and right-wing political organizations also tried to use his popularity to defend his unsubstantiated claims. However, many health experts point to a lack of scientific support for his claims, making Malik and his supporters increasingly less vocal in the scientific community.
In recent years of research and discussion, Malik's HAT therapy is still a focus of controversy, and it has raised countless questions and doubts about its practicality in the treatment of sepsis. Now, are Malik's actions noble medical exploration, or a tragedy in the field of science?
