JAKARTA - The COVID-19 pandemic to date has infected half of more than half a million people in the world. The virus known as SARS-CoV-2 attacks the lungs and causes pneumonia for the sufferer.
Launching The Guardian, Prof. John Wilson, a respiratory doctor and President of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians, explained that corona virus infection starts from the respiratory system through droplets (splashes of mouth fluid from sneezing or coughing) or contaminated objects. In the first case people cannot distinguish this disease from a cold or a mild cough.
In fact, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), around 80 percent of corona virus patients experience mild symptoms. "That means a person has a fever and cough and possibly milder symptoms such as headache or conjunctivitis," says Wilson.
Although most of the cases are mild, but COVID-19 can infect the upper respiratory tract which usually blocks the lungs "People with mild symptoms can still transmit the virus but may not be aware of it," he added.
But in more severe cases, the impact of this corona virus can directly damage the lungs. Patients positive for COVID-19 will experience fever and cough accompanied by sore throat and dry cough.
In this condition the corona virus infection has gradually replicated towards the lower respiratory chest arena (respiratory tree) and into the bronchial tubes. When the bronchial tubes are swollen due to inflammation, the circulation of oxygen to the body will also be problematic.
"The lining of the lower breathing becomes injured, causing inflammation. This irritates the nerves in the airway. Just a speck of dust can induce a cough. But if this gets any worse, it just passes through the lining of the airway and goes to the air exchange unit, which is at the end of the air passageway. If infected, they respond by feeding inflammation into the air sacs that are at the bottom of our lungs, "explains Wilson.
At this stage, the patient can experience severe shortness of breath which will develop pneumonia from the COVID-19 virus itself. In this condition, lung function will decrease which has implications for the congenital disease of COVID-19 patients.
The WHO says the elderly and people with problems such as high blood pressure, heart, lung or diabetes problems are more likely to catch the more serious COVID-19. So far, the use of a ventilator is expected to maintain lung function in producing oxygen levels for corona virus patients.
"People are already testing all kinds of drugs and we hope that we might find that there are different combinations of viral and anti-viral drugs that can be effective. There is currently no established treatment apart from supportive care, which we provide to people in intensive care, "said Professor Christine Jenkins of Lung Foundation Australia.
On the other hand, Dr. Keith Mortman of George Washington University Hospital managed to visualize the lung organs of a patient infected with COVID-19. Using virtual reality (VR) technology, doctors and researchers can see the spread of the coronavirus in the lungs.
Mortman used CAT (Computer Aided Tomography) or CT Scan of one of his patients who tested positive for COVID-19. The visualization shows how the corona virus spreads throughout the lungs. This is what causes COVID-19 patients to experience difficulty breathing, so they need a ventilator.
"The areas highlighted in yellow on the video represent parts of the lung that are infected and inflamed. From the scans, it is clear that we know that the damage is not localized to a single area, but instead covers large swaths of both lungs and shows how quickly and aggressively the infection can persist. , "explained Dr. Mortman.
According to him, the corona virus has left such a level of damage to the lungs. At least if recovered, a patient will experience decreased respiratory function of up to four percent of normal lungs.
Given the dangers posed, Dr. Mortman, asked people to stay at home and carry out self-quarantine. If you have to travel, always wear a mask and avoid physical contact with other people.
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