Research strikes back! It has not been long until the world´s first potential antizombitic medicines appeared. Some were derived from already existing drugs, others were completely new substances. Even though we still do not fully understand the pathogenesis of the disease and we cannot fully reverse its progression, a group of new therapeutic approaches has occurred on the market. Below you will find some examples. Assess results of studies and answer the questions bellow.
If it can't be cured, try cutting it off. Inspired by anecdotal cases from case reports (and zombie movies, although none of the team admits it), the surgical department at a large university hospital in an infected city attempts to prevent the zombie transformation by amputating bitten limbs. All patients who arrive at the central emergency department with one bitten limb are accepted for the study. Immediately upon arrival, the patient is taken to the operating room and the limb is amputated. If the patient refuses amputation, he is given a broad-spectrum antibiotic. Patients in this study were followed up in a closed ward for 60 days.
Study results after 60days:
| Human | Zombie | |
| Amputation within 2 hours since being bitten | 34 | 0 |
| Amputation within 8 hours since being bitten | 59 | 18 |
| Amputation within 24 hours since being bitten | 67 | 234 |
| Amputation within longer than 24 hours since being bitten | 5 | 153 |
| Antibiotics | 0 | 8 |
The whims of nature must be chased away by natural forces. With this motivation, a local doctor, with years of holistic medicine practice, started to treat his bitten patients. Everyone who presented themselves with the symptoms of a bite have been administered a special mix of Ayurvedic-Chinese herbs for home use and acupuncture bite treatment, twice within 12 days with an additional treatment in 6 days as well as a final review in a week. A week later, he verified by telephone whether the patient was still human. Out of 63 patients treated in this way, only 12 patients transformed during the follow-up period into a zombie, however, some of them (7) also received only one of the two recommended acupuncture sessions due to financial reasons. It is also questionable, whether they followed the recommended home herbal regime. The physician and many other experts believe that although this is only a pilot test, the results are hopeful and deserve a more in-depth examination.
Everything was tried, from old classics, through forgotten procedures to biological treatment. For the time being, the so-called Milwaukee protocol, a not very effective combination of antiviral therapy with ketamine and amantadine, previously tested for rabies, has been used to control the disease. Even in the case of the disease Z it is not very effective, but it manages at least a limited number of patients to reverse their fate.
Not long after, the first targeted therapy arrived to the market - Zombaway. The company that developed the drug bases its effectiveness on the following trial:
The 660 bitten patients were randomly divided into two groups, each consisting of 330 persons. The groups did not differ in the distribution of gender, age or other important characteristics. 330 of them were administered the Milwaukee protocol and were followed for 100 days, during which 45 patients underwent a transformation into zombie - so there was a total transformation risk of: 45/330 = 0.13. The second group was also administered the protocol, but after 15 days (during which 21 people turned into Zombies), Zombaway was added. Only 16 people have changed during the following days. The people who got the Zombaway had the transformation risk of: 16/309 = 0.05. Overall, the relative risk of transformation into zombies for Zombaway users was 0.05 / 0.13 = 0.14 compared to the Milwaukee protocol.
At the same time, a competing company came to market with its new product: Zombill. They also invested into a clinical trial, which was supposed to support their results:
940 individuals were randomized into two groups, each consisting of 470 patients. The first group was assigned to the Milwaukee protocol and monitored for 100 days. During the follow-up time, 61 people got transformed into zombies - the transformation risk was then 61/470 = 0.13. The second group was also on the Milwakee protocol, but after 15 days (during which 25 people got transformed into a zombie), Zombill was administered. During the following period, 27 persons got transformed, the relative risk statistically evaluated by “intention to treat” analysis was 0.09. The relative risk of zombie transformation in the Zombill group compared to the Milwaukee protocol group was therefore 0.09 / 0.13 = 0.69.