Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Most people infected with the virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment. However, some will become seriously ill and require medical attention. Older people and those with underlying medical conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, or cancer are more likely to develop serious illness. Anyone can get sick with COVID-19 and become seriously ill or die at any age.
The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is to be well-informed about the disease and how the virus spreads. Protect yourself and others from infection by staying at least 1 meter apart from others, wearing a properly fitted mask, and washing your hands or using an alcohol-based rub frequently. Get vaccinated when it’s your turn and follow local guidance.
The virus can spread from an infected person’s mouth or nose in small liquid particles when they cough, sneeze, speak, sing or breathe. These particles range from larger respiratory droplets to smaller aerosols. It is important to practice respiratory etiquette, for example by coughing into a flexed elbow, and to stay home and self-isolate until you recover if you feel unwell.
The CDC echoes WHO comments on the use of corticosteroids and further states that its use may increase viral replication if used in similar viruses to COVID-19 as MERS-CoV
If patients are present with SARI, the WHO recommends prescribing empiric antimicrobial that can cure any possible cause within 1 hour of screening for confirmed sepsis. This treatment should be based on a clinical diagnosis - whether the community or hospital has developed pneumonia - and treated according to local guidelines: . In contrast, Wang et al. have suggested that misuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics should be avoided unless there is evidence of secondary bacterial infection: .
Recently, pioneering laboratory experiments suggested that there may be drugs already used for other viruses that may be effective in COVID-19. Remdesivir - a broad-spectrum antiviral - is an analogue of adenosine that can break newborn RNA viral chains into premature rupture, and has been tested for the treatment of the Ebola virus. When remdesivir is injected into Vero E6 cells infected with COVID-19, the antiviral effectively blocks the virus. When tested in human cell lines (Huh-7 cells) the virus is effectively inhibited [60]. This supports the CDC's statement that remdesivir has in vitro activity against COVID-19 .More research is needed to confirm the use of Remdesivir against COVID-19, however the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is currently conducting randomized controlled trials regarding the use of remdesivir in patients with COVID-19 infection, with side effects pending.
Another common drug that may work on COVID-19 is chloroquine; It is traditionally used as an anti-malarial drug as well as to fight autoimmune diseases. The mechanism of action of chloroquine raises endosomal pH above that required for viruses and cell adhesions while also interfering with the proliferation of cell receptors in similar viruses such as SARS-CoV. When chloroquine is introduced into Vero E6 cells infected with COVID-19, it appears to cure infection in both the entry and post-infection stages. Chloroquine may also improve cell turnover, which may increase the effectiveness of the drug in vivo. Generally, chloroquine is cheap and safe to use, and it is widely distributed throughout the body systems including the lungs when taken orally.
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