With the number of new coronavirus cases getting recorded every day causing haywire among the general populace, the key to safe recovery still remains on early diagnosis and starting the right treatment at the right time. Owing to the inaccuracy in diagnostic tests giving false positives and negatives in certain cases, it is now more than ever that people should emphasize monitoring even the slightest of symptoms and adhere to WHO-recommended protocols and guidelines.
While in the majority of cases, an infection due to the original SARS-CoV-2 virus usually starts off as an asymptomatic or mild form, however, in most of the cases due to the mutant strains, COVID fuelled cytokine storm, happy hypoxia could also be serious complications that can turn the infection into a severe or critical form in a short span of time and make them require immediate hospitalization and often lead to eventual deaths.
Well, although severe symptoms should be monitored timely and followed up with preventive measures, a patient should also abstain from making certain mistakes that might complicate the case while recovering from the infection.
We bring you a list of slip-ups that a person must steer clear off if he or she is diagnosed with Covid-19 infection:
Avert Making These Goof-Ups To Prevent Escalation Of Covid-19
Living In Denial
There is no denying that the initial symptoms of coronavirus might mimic those of a common cold or flu or sometimes even allergy, but now is not the time to just sit back and guess. Lack of awareness and living in denial could be a big blunder and literally cost one’s health and life at the time being. Hence, it is extremely essential to forego of misconceptions and get tested for the Covid-19 infection as timely detection can not only save a person from spreading the infection onto others, but also attend to concerning symptoms in time.
Not Consulting A Specialist Doctor
Another mistake most people who are diagnosed with Covid-19 do is to consult a general physician and not a specialist doctor related to coronavirus treatment. Although the symptoms might be mild or similar to cold or flu, it is necessary not to take it lightly and consult a specialist from the time you start noticing the symptoms as he or she can effectively help guide the patient about the medicines which may help alleviate the symptoms, when to conduct further tests, scans and the warning signs when one should require external oxygenation or hospitalization.
Self-Medication
Self-medication without any consultation is one of the major mistakes most Covid positive patients are doing in recent times. This is mainly seen in patients undergoing home quarantine or self-isolation period when they just pop in some anti-pyretic or anti-inflammatory medications considering the infection as some kind of flu. Although steroids are being recommended in a lot of serious, hospitalized cases to tone down the inflammation and severity, not all forms of covid infection require them. Hence, patients should only consume the medications prescribed by the treating doctor as unsupervised steroids or any other medicines can often reduce the body’s own immunity to produce antibodies in time and sometimes even complicate the infection causing the lethal mucormycosis, or black fungus infection.
Delayed Testing
Alongside living in denial, people often misjudge the symptoms and decide not to get tested in fear of a concrete result. And this delay in testing and diagnosis is also one of the primary reasons why even the healthiest of people in their prime ages are later turning up with deteriorated symptoms and severe case complications. Sometimes, this delay in getting the test report may also happen from the diagnostic centre, in such cases, ensure that you follow proper precautionary guidelines, consult a specialist and follow self-isolation and other preliminary measures.
Failing To Monitor Symptoms
Once you test positive with the infection, make sure you monitor your symptoms every 2-3 hours and keep a track of the records. Even the slightest fluctuation in the SpO2 readings, showing a dip in oxygen levels (lesser than 92%) can become a pressing cause of concern and require immediate hospitalization. Similarly, a fever that doesn’t come down by Day 6-7 is also a warning sign and needs further consultation with a specialist. Hence, patients should not be conceited and chart their symptoms on an hourly basis to avoid severe complications.
Also Read: COVID-19: Watch Out For Critical Symptoms That May Require Hospitalization
