Treating Covid-19 Patient At Isolation Center

They keep taking covid-19 patients to isolation centers. They say covid-19 does not have a cure. This raises some questions in the minds of Nigerians. Why don't they leave these patients at home? What are they giving them as treatment in the isolation centers?

Isolation centers

These questions deserve answers. This blog post will do well to answer those questions.
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Samples of suspected covid-19 patients are taken from them at their houses. Some of them walk into the isolation center for tests. Unconfirmed cases are held at a tent outside with a bed. They remain here until their case is confirmed positive or negative.

Those who test negative both in their houses or in the tent are encouraged to observe all the prevention of the covid-19. Those in the tent are sent home.

Confirmed cases are divided into three categories. They are asymptomatic, mild and critical cases. Asymptomatic and mild cases share a common wardroom with different beds. Critical cases have special corners with possibly ventilators. They are all provided with facemasks.

Reason For Public Isolation

Most patients are asked to self isolate especially when they are asymptomatic. They are given nutritional advice as well as lifestyle modifications. They are provided with a phone number to call for any information or when they have complications. However, they are advised to come to the isolation center if they pose a risk to the general public and their family.

Treatment At Isolation Centers

All covid-19 patients are given quality food that is nutritional. The food is believed to enhance their immunity to fight off the infection. Many survive it without drugs. But there are covid-19 patients that may require drugs. Those that carry symptoms, those that had previous health conditions and those that contracted new infection that began to manifest during this period.

Treatment For Covid-19 Symptoms

There are different symptoms of covid-19. Each covid-19 patient's symptoms vary. All of them do not exhibit the same symptoms. Treatment is dependent on the symptoms each manifest. However, there is little information about covid-19 and drugs that can make it worse or even help to relieve the symptoms. And since different persons can react differently to a particular drug especially in the face of a new infection, treatment is presently on trial and error.

For example, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) can be given to covid-19 patients that are experiencing pain and fever. However, some groups prefer the mildest of them all, which is ibuprofen. Still some suggest people should go for paracetamol. The reason is because no one is very sure if even the ibuprofen or paracetamol can harm covid-19 patients unknowingly. But from current guidelines, all NSAIDS are currently producing good results.

Treatment For Previous Disease

After discussing how symptoms are treated, let us look at treatment for past medical conditions that are active in covid-19 patients. There is a strong link between covid-19 virus and angiotensin converting enzymes (ACE). It has been shown that the virus is more prominent in location the enzymes are more concentrated. This is a bad one for hypertensive patients.

Treating Critical Cases

Some cases degenerate into critical situations. This could be the virus making other health conditions more difficult to manage. In such situations, the drugs may either be increased or change of therapy. In other conditions it causes complications like pneumonia. This makes it difficult to breathe. The situation led to the use of a ventilator. But the truth is that majority of cases that get to this stage don't survive.

Some antihypertensive agent acts to block the action of ACE. There are serious debates if the drug can indirectly encourage the effect of covid-19 virus. Although, this has not been confirmed. This is making some medical doctors shift to other antihypertensive methods. However, there was a word of caution. Hypertensive patients already on any of the ACE agents before covid-19 should continue with it.
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Treatment Of New Infection

It will not be impossible for covid-19 patients to get infected with malaria or other common infections. In such a case, the drugs will still depend on the experience of the medical doctor in charge. There is no antimalarial drug that is known to make it worse or improve the situation. However, the majority of medical doctors prefer to use chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine.

Looking at all the methods used in handling covid-19 patients, it is clear that those patients should always talk to a medical doctor before using any drug or supplement. For example, corticosteroids are contraindicated in covid-19 patients. The only patient that can take corticosteroids are those already on it before covid-19 infection. For example, asthma patients previously on corticosteroids can continue. But no covid-19 patient should start any new corticosteroids. The reason is because steroids can affect the body immune system. This is based on evidence based information on corticosteroids on Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

Experimental Drugs

Around the world, different countries are trying to use some drugs to treat covid-19 patient. They are all experimenting with these drugs to see which will improve the conditions of covid-19 patient. In Nigeria, some are given zinc and vitamin C tablet which help cell development. They also use chloroquine and another antiviral agent. There is plan underway to start experimenting with herbal concoction.

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