The coronavirus, which first appeared in China in 2019, is responsible for an infectious respiratory disease, known as COVID-19, that can range from mild to more fatal conditions, such as pneumonia.
Older people, especially those over the age of 60, may experience the most severe side of the disease, but the virus affects everyone, at different ages, so it’s important to be aware of any of the symptoms that may indicate it. infection such as high fever, persistent cough and shortness of breath.
- COVID-19 is transmitted through drops of saliva or respiratory secretions.
- So good hygiene habits are required to avoid contracting the infection and pass it on to others.
- Some of the best hygiene practices are covering your mouth coughing and/or sneezing.
- Washing your hands regularly and avoiding contact with your face.
- Mainly your eyes.
- Nose and mouth.
COVID-19 symptoms range from mild flu to more serious infections. If you think you may have been infected, answer the following questions to find out what to do next:
In more severe infectious cases, more general symptoms, such as muscle pain and gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting, may also occur. A reduction in your lymphocytes, platelets, and neutrophils can be detected in your blood test.
In addition to the above symptoms, many patients have reported a significant loss of smell associated with coronavirus infection, however, studies that prove this symptom are not yet known. Loss of smell is a condition known as anosmia. Anosmia can occur in cases of temporary or permanent irritation. nasal mucosa, which is very common in viral respiratory infections.
The WHO World Health Organization has established that the diagnosis of COVID-19 should include clinical and epidemiological factors, for clinical parameters, the person has a fever and other symptom of influenza and at least one of the epidemiological factors that are: having been somewhere with known cases of COVID-19, in contact with a positive suspected case or in direct contact with a confirmed case of a person infected with COVID-19.
After an initial evaluation, the Consultant may request a COVID-19 test to confirm whether it is an infection caused by the new coronavirus or not, this test may be through respiratory secretions or a blood test, depending on the type of test, the results may take up to six hours to become available.
If you think you may be infected with COVID-19, you should contact your local health authorities so they can guide you through your symptoms. In mild cases, you will be asked to stay home and self-isolate and it is only recommended that you search helps in the hospital in the most serious cases, where people suffer from shortness of breath or are immunosuppressed.
If you need to go to a hospital or gp’s office, you should
Once you are in the hospital, it is important to keep some distance with others, especially in waiting rooms, as this prevents the spread of the virus.
It is important to inform everyone you have been in contact with in the last 14 days, such as friends and family, if they suspect an infection, so they can be alert to any symptoms.
Coronavirus can be transmitted through contact with infected or person-to-person wild animals by inhaling droplets that have coughed or expired. Or even fecally-orally, SARS-Cov can also be excreted in the faeces.
There is no specific treatment for COVID-19, only recommendations such as hydration, rest and a healthy and balanced diet. Some studies have been conducted to test the efficacy of certain antiviral drugs such as ribavirin, interferon alfa and ritonavir against the coronaviruses responsible for SARS and MERS; however, it has only been tested in vitro, not yet for the general population.
So far there is no vaccine, although the development of one and other drugs that can act against COVID-19 has already begun, so the best way to act is to be preventive, avoid contact with people with symptoms of respiratory infection, avoid contact with sick animals, wash your hands frequently, touch avoid eyes, nose and mouth , and cover your mouth and nose by sneezing or coughing to prevent the virus from spreading.
The risk of serious complications from COVID-19 is higher in people over the age of 60 and in all people with weakened immune systems, so in addition to the elderly, there is also a part of the risk group:
Being in a high-risk group does not mean that there is an increased risk of infection, it does mean that the risk of developing serious and life-threatening complications is higher. Therefore, in times of epidemic or pandemic, these people should, as far as possible, self-isolate thee or distance thee from social problems to reduce the risk of contracting the disease.
& Quot; Coronavirus & quot; is the name given to a group of viruses belonging to the same family, the Coronaviridae. These viruses are responsible for respiratory infections that can be mild or severe, depending on the coronavirus responsible for the infection.
The new Chinese coronavirus is known in the scientific community as SARS-CoV-2 and the infection caused by the virus is COVID-19. Other known diseases caused by other types of coronavirus include SARS and MERS, responsible respectively for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.
So far, there are 7 types of coronavirus, including
This type of coronavirus is the most recent and has been first identified in China, however, there are other cases to report in Italy, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Iran and the United States, there is still not much information about it. this type of coronavirus, but it is known that, like SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, it causes a serious respiratory infection, which can lead to respiratory failure and subsequent death.
With regard to how this virus spreads, it was verified that people in a food market in Wuhan, China, where the sale of wild animals infected with the virus was made, ensured the transmission from animal to person. present on the market, came into contact with infected people, also became ill and confirmed the hypothesis that COVID-19 is also transmitted from person to person through inhalation of saliva droplets and direct contact.
These types are often associated with mild colds and are responsible for mild respiratory diseases that a person’s immune system can easily fight. These viruses can be transmitted from person to person and cause mild colds or mild pneumonia, depending on the activity of the person’s immune system.
These types are related to serious respiratory infections in which the person normally needs to be hospitalized to be monitored and prevent complications. These viruses are transmitted from animals to humans and, as a result, lead to a sharper immune and inflammatory response. with more serious complications.
Apart from that, the severity of infection with these viruses may be related to the individual’s immune system, as it is more common in people whose immune system is weakened due to HIV, or cancer treatments, mainly in MERS-CoV. MERS-CoV was in Saudi Arabia in 2012, however, the virus has managed to spread easily to other Middle Eastern countries.
The first case of SARS-CoV infection occurred in 2002 in Asia, and the virus was immediately associated with a more severe respiratory infection due to its ability to spread rapidly among the population. Learn more about SARS.