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FAQs about COVID19
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General FAQs
1. What is a coronavirus?
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that may cause illness in animals or humans.
In humans, several coronaviruses are known to cause respiratory infections.
The most recently discovered coronavirus causes coronavirus disease COVID-19.
2. What is COVID-19?
COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus.
This new virus and disease were unknown before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019.
3. What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains,
nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually.
Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don't feel unwell.
4. How does the COVID-19 disease transmit from person to person?
The disease can spread from person to person if they breathe in the small droplets containing the virus when that person with
COVID-19 coughs or exhales. These droplets land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19
by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth.
5. Can the virus that causes COVID-19 be transmitted through the air?
Studies to date suggest that the virus that causes COVID-19 is mainly transmitted through contact with respiratory droplets
rather than through the air.
6. Can COVID-19 be caught from a person who has no symptoms?
It is possible to catch COVID-19 from someone who has, for example, just a mild cough and does not feel ill.
7. What can I do to protect myself and prevent the spread of disease?
You can reduce your chances of being infected or spreading COVID-19 by taking some simple precautions:
- Regularly and thoroughly clean your hands for at least 20 seconds with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap
and water.
- Maintain at least 1 metre (3 feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
- Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth. Hands touch many surfaces and can pick up viruses. Once contaminated, hands can
transfer the virus to your eyes, nose or mouth. From there, the virus can enter your body and can make you sick.
-Cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. Then dispose of the used tissue
immediately.
- Stay home if you feel unwell. If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention and call in
advance. Follow the directions of your local health authority.
-T raveling to places – especially if you are an older person or have diabetes, heart or lung disease.
Why? You have a higher chance of catching COVID-19 in one of these areas.
8. Are antibiotics effective in preventing or treating the COVID-19?
No. Antibiotics do not work against viruses, they only work on bacterial infections.
9. Are there any medicines to cure COVID-19?
There is no evidence that current medicine can prevent or cure the disease. There are several ongoing clinical trials that
include both western and traditional medicines.
10. Will wearing a mask protect me from the COVID-19?
Not really. Only wear a mask if you are ill with COVID-19 symptoms (especially coughing) or looking after someone who may have
COVID-19. The most effective ways to protect yourself and others against COVID-19 are to frequently clean your hands,
cover your cough with the bend of elbow or tissue and maintain a distance of at least 1 meter (3 feet) from people.
11. Can humans become infected with the COVID-19 from an animal source?
It’s possible. Handle raw meat, milk or animal organs with care to avoid contamination of uncooked foods and avoid consuming
raw or undercooked animal products.
12. Can I catch COVID-19 from my pet?
There is no evidence that a dog, cat or any pet can transmit COVID-19.
13. How long does the virus survive on surfaces?
Studies suggest that coronaviruses (including preliminary information on the COVID-19 virus) may persist on surfaces for
a few hours or up to several days.
14. Will warm weather stop the outbreak?
At this time, it is not known whether the spread of COVID-19 will decrease when weather becomes warmer.
15. Is Teku-based hospital, Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital, the only hospital allocated for testing and treatment of COVID-19 in Nepal?
No. The Government of Nepal has allocated two hospitals, STIDH(Teku) hospital, and Patan Hospital, where you can get tested for
Covid-19 infection. Teku hospital is, however, given the first priority since it specializes in dealing with all kinds of
infectious diseases like COVID-19. They work closely with the National Public Health Laboratory which is also situated in
Teku that performs the confirmatory testing for COVID-19. Do remember that you do not have to go to Teku hospital to take
the swab specimen as other hospitals can take a specimen and send it to NPHL.
For the treatment of COVID-19, all hospitals can manage beds, ICUs and ventilators for severely infected patients.
Since there is no evidence that current medicine can prevent or cure the disease, each case can be managed by all the
hospitals, giving antiviral and antibacterial therapy.
16. With how many testing kits is the Teku hospital equipped currently?
The last news suggests that the Teku hospital is equipped with about 1500 test kits. 522 tests were performed until yesterday.
17. Is the swab testing carried out in Nepal or sent abroad? What is the medium of transportation of the specimens?
Swab testing is done in Nepal. In some cases, the samples of the positive cases are transported to a WHO reference lab
in the region for re-confirmation. The doctors are, however, immediately notified when a case shows a positive result.
The specimens as they are highly contagious are transported using the Viral Transport Medium (VTM). In simple words,
it as a tube with rubber seals and has chemicals inside it to prevent the specimen from disintegrating.
It is generally Tripple packed in virus transport package. If the sample can be taken to the laboratory within four days,
they may be kept at +4 °C and frozen at -70 °C on arrival if they are to be stored. Otherwise, they should be frozen at or
below -70 °C until they can be transported to the laboratory via air shipping.
18. If the test sample is transported to the laboratory outside Nepal, how long does it take for the reports to arrive in Nepal?
It depends on cases but it is not very quick. It generally takes two hours or so to perform the test and can generally
take a week to get the final result. The positive cases are reported to doctors immediately so that you are
immediately transferred to the isolation room and treated accordingly.