Just to put this to bed.
THERE IS NO EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR COVID-19 OTHER THAN SUPPORTIVE CARE. THIS IS WHY THE ISOLATION AND LOCKDOWNS ARE HAPPENING.
There have been small scale trials with a variety of agents. These include chloroquine, antivirals, anti-HIV meds and others. All have been less than 50 people with generally poor results and no significant improvement in mortality, length of stay or duration of intubation. We are looking at everything that might help and doing everything to find more effective treatments. There's nothing yet though.
Everyone reacts differently to the virus those that are most unwell suffer due to cytokine storm and the onset of adult respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary oedema and multi-organ failure. These are the ITU cases with poor prognosis. Initial treatment is oxygen as needed, antibiotics (to cover concurrent and later developing bacterial pneumonia), fluids as needed and help them though. Similar to flu management expert we have antivirals that help with flu.
Symptoms and manner of spread are similar to flu however COVID-19 is roughly 3 times more infectious and 3-10 times more deadly.
To put it in context.
1 person with flu infects on average 1.3-1.5 others. After 10 cycles of spread that's 14 people from 1 index case. Now for COVID-19 this is as follows:
1 person infects roughly 3 people and those 3 infect and so for 10 cycles that 1 index case would spread to 59,000 people.
Just think about that for a minute.
No health system can cope with the numbers if unconfined spread occurs there are just too many that are too unwell and not enough ventilators available. It would be catastrophic. That is why we are trying to flatten the curve so we can cope with the numbers. Thousands (probably hundreds of thousands all told) will die but it would be millions without isolation procedures.
Stay inside, keep your distance and don't listen to hacks on the internet. If you have symptoms isolate, call your GP and go from there. Leave it with the professionals not the toilet paper hoarders.
THERE IS NO EFFECTIVE TREATMENT FOR COVID-19 OTHER THAN SUPPORTIVE CARE. THIS IS WHY THE ISOLATION AND LOCKDOWNS ARE HAPPENING.
There have been small scale trials with a variety of agents. These include chloroquine, antivirals, anti-HIV meds and others. All have been less than 50 people with generally poor results and no significant improvement in mortality, length of stay or duration of intubation. We are looking at everything that might help and doing everything to find more effective treatments. There's nothing yet though.
Everyone reacts differently to the virus those that are most unwell suffer due to cytokine storm and the onset of adult respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary oedema and multi-organ failure. These are the ITU cases with poor prognosis. Initial treatment is oxygen as needed, antibiotics (to cover concurrent and later developing bacterial pneumonia), fluids as needed and help them though. Similar to flu management expert we have antivirals that help with flu.
Symptoms and manner of spread are similar to flu however COVID-19 is roughly 3 times more infectious and 3-10 times more deadly.
To put it in context.
1 person with flu infects on average 1.3-1.5 others. After 10 cycles of spread that's 14 people from 1 index case. Now for COVID-19 this is as follows:
1 person infects roughly 3 people and those 3 infect and so for 10 cycles that 1 index case would spread to 59,000 people.
Just think about that for a minute.
No health system can cope with the numbers if unconfined spread occurs there are just too many that are too unwell and not enough ventilators available. It would be catastrophic. That is why we are trying to flatten the curve so we can cope with the numbers. Thousands (probably hundreds of thousands all told) will die but it would be millions without isolation procedures.
Stay inside, keep your distance and don't listen to hacks on the internet. If you have symptoms isolate, call your GP and go from there. Leave it with the professionals not the toilet paper hoarders.