COVID-19 Outbreak
We are facing one of the biggest outbreaks in human history and unfortunately we are witnessing history. Life has stopped in cities, workplaces and schools are closed. Over three billion people are in quarantine and hundreds of thousands of people affected by the epidemic. Tens of thousands of people died. Once again, we have seen how great an infectious disease can be for humanity. Despite the developing and advancing science and technology for hundreds of years, countries have become helpless and inadequate in the face of this huge epidemic. Unfortunately, our country has received its share from this disaster and is still receiving it.
In this relentless war of man and virus, man's mind will prevail even if he has suffered great damage. When the virus is well understood how it behaves against changing situations, how it is transmitted, how it is not transmitted, which cells it prefers more, who it affects more and how the virus dies, the struggle turns out to be in human favor. The science of epidemics and virus science clearly tells us what we should actually do, but feelings of fear and panic can sometimes interfere with rational practices. With this epidemic, everything will change and nothing will be the same. Life style, social relations, human movements, collective entertainment, workplace and home life will be reshaped, and there will be radical changes in order to break this epidemic, control it, and then avoid such deep wounds in similar outbreaks.
Viruses
They are the smallest microorganisms that cannot reproduce on their own but can reproduce in another living cell. Viruses enter our body in different ways (respiratory tract, blood, sexual contact etc.) and enter and settle in the tissues that they prefer and love (This is called the affinity of the virus). For example, hepatitis viruses settle in the liver, influenza virus in respiratory cells, HIV blood cells that cause AIDS. After entering our body, it takes a certain period of time to multiply and damage tissues; This period is called the incubation period.
Coronavirus (Coronavirus)
Coronaviruses are a mild self-healing respiratory tract infection (catarrhal). They have caused illnesses that have passed from person to person for centuries and did not cause serious health problems.
However, some coronaviruses that cause disease in animals and cause severe and serious outbreaks when they are transmitted to humans have been identified. The first of these is the SARS-coronavirus, which is the agent of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that made an epidemic in 2002-2003. It made more than 8000 people ill in 29 countries and caused the death of 774 people. The second major coronavirus epidemic was caused by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, which started in 2013, affecting 26 countries, especially Saudi Arabia. Although the number of cases has decreased, this epidemic still continues. To date, it has caused illness in more than 2500 people and has caused the death of 866 people.
Covidien-19
First, the coronavirus is the cause of the epidemic that started in the Wuhan region of China in December 2019. It is a virus that causes respiratory infection and is spread heavily from person to person.
We are facing one of the biggest outbreaks in human history and unfortunately we are witnessing history. Life has stopped in cities, workplaces and schools are closed. Over three billion people are in quarantine and hundreds of thousands of people affected by the epidemic. Tens of thousands of people died. Once again, we have seen how great an infectious disease can be for humanity. Despite the developing and advancing science and technology for hundreds of years, countries have become helpless and inadequate in the face of this huge epidemic. Unfortunately, our country has received its share from this disaster and is still receiving it.
In this relentless war of man and virus, man's mind will prevail even if he has suffered great damage. When the virus is well understood how it behaves against changing situations, how it is transmitted, how it is not transmitted, which cells it prefers more, who it affects more and how the virus dies, the struggle turns out to be in human favor. The science of epidemics and virus science clearly tells us what we should actually do, but feelings of fear and panic can sometimes interfere with rational practices. With this epidemic, everything will change and nothing will be the same. Life style, social relations, human movements, collective entertainment, workplace and home life will be reshaped, and there will be radical changes in order to break this epidemic, control it, and then avoid such deep wounds in similar outbreaks.
Viruses
They are the smallest microorganisms that cannot reproduce on their own but can reproduce in another living cell. Viruses enter our body in different ways (respiratory tract, blood, sexual contact etc.) and enter and settle in the tissues that they prefer and love (This is called the affinity of the virus). For example, hepatitis viruses settle in the liver, influenza virus in respiratory cells, HIV blood cells that cause AIDS. After entering our body, it takes a certain period of time to multiply and damage tissues; This period is called the incubation period.
Coronavirus (Coronavirus)
Coronaviruses are a mild self-healing respiratory tract infection (catarrhal). They have caused illnesses that have passed from person to person for centuries and did not cause serious health problems.
However, some coronaviruses that cause disease in animals and cause severe and serious outbreaks when they are transmitted to humans have been identified. The first of these is the SARS-coronavirus, which is the agent of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that made an epidemic in 2002-2003. It made more than 8000 people ill in 29 countries and caused the death of 774 people. The second major coronavirus epidemic was caused by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, which started in 2013, affecting 26 countries, especially Saudi Arabia. Although the number of cases has decreased, this epidemic still continues. To date, it has caused illness in more than 2500 people and has caused the death of 866 people.
Covidien-19
First, the coronavirus is the cause of the epidemic that started in the Wuhan region of China in December 2019. It is a virus that causes respiratory infection and is spread heavily from person to person.
The name of the virus is named SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2) by the World Health Organization and the disease caused by this virus is COVID-19.
This epidemic was declared by the World Health Organization on January 30, 2020 as a global emergency health condition, and on March 11, 2020, it was declared as a pandemic, global epidemic disease.
Symptoms and Findings in COVID-19 Disease
COVID-19 disease is a disease with sore throat, high fever, headache, chest pain and cough, and later in the disease with shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. In addition, patients may present with different signs and symptoms such as nausea-vomiting, diarrhea, muscle and joint pain, and anorexia.
It is observed that the disease progresses with mild symptoms and signs indistinguishable from upper respiratory tract infections in children and adolescents, however, it is observed to be more severe in patients with lung disease, advanced age, diabetes, hypertension or those who suppress the immune system.
Although the incubation period of COVID-19 disease varies between 2 and 14 days, it has been observed that this period is 5-6 days for most of the patients.
Course of COVID-19 Disease
According to the data obtained from the people who have the disease, the disease has a slow course, but it is more severe in people over 65 years of age and chronic disease compared to young and healthy people, and it can cause deaths in this group especially with the respiratory failure syndrome.
The age ranges of patients who died in two countries with high deaths, Italy (1625 patients) and China (1023 patients) (1):
From these data, it is seen that the mortality rates in the group over 60 years of age suddenly increased. In this age group, more diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension cause higher mortality rates due to this disease.
Protection from Coronavirus
The coronavirus is transmitted mainly through breathing, to a lesser extent by contact. The greatest risk of transmission is exposure to secretions, droplets that occur during coughing, sneezing, speech. In addition, these secretions and droplets remain contaminated for a while, and the contact of the person who touches them takes them to the areas that we call the mucosa, which are less defensive (mouth, nose, eyes). For this reason, people should not be in public areas so that they do not infect each other, and if they have to meet people, they should distance them (at least 1 meter).
In order to protect other people from coronavirus infection, those who have any signs and symptoms must first apply to a healthcare institution by avoiding people and wearing masks. In addition, it is necessary to wash the hands regularly with water and soap or use an alcohol hand disinfectant, close the mouth and nose wipes during coughing and sneezing and wash the hands after throwing the used wipes into the trash.
This epidemic was declared by the World Health Organization on January 30, 2020 as a global emergency health condition, and on March 11, 2020, it was declared as a pandemic, global epidemic disease.
Symptoms and Findings in COVID-19 Disease
COVID-19 disease is a disease with sore throat, high fever, headache, chest pain and cough, and later in the disease with shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. In addition, patients may present with different signs and symptoms such as nausea-vomiting, diarrhea, muscle and joint pain, and anorexia.
It is observed that the disease progresses with mild symptoms and signs indistinguishable from upper respiratory tract infections in children and adolescents, however, it is observed to be more severe in patients with lung disease, advanced age, diabetes, hypertension or those who suppress the immune system.
Although the incubation period of COVID-19 disease varies between 2 and 14 days, it has been observed that this period is 5-6 days for most of the patients.
Course of COVID-19 Disease
According to the data obtained from the people who have the disease, the disease has a slow course, but it is more severe in people over 65 years of age and chronic disease compared to young and healthy people, and it can cause deaths in this group especially with the respiratory failure syndrome.
The age ranges of patients who died in two countries with high deaths, Italy (1625 patients) and China (1023 patients) (1):
| Age Range | Mortality Rate in Italy | Death rate in China |
| 0-9 Years | %0 | %0 |
| 10-19 Years | %0 | %0,2 |
| 20-29 Years | %0 | %0,2 |
| 30-39 Years | %0,3 | %0,2 |
| 40-49 Years | %0,4 | %0,4 |
| 50-59 Years | %1,0 | %1,3 |
| 60-69 Years | %3,5 | %3,6 |
| 70-79 Years | %12,8 | %8,0 |
| 80 Years and Older | %20,2 | %14,8 |
Protection from Coronavirus
The coronavirus is transmitted mainly through breathing, to a lesser extent by contact. The greatest risk of transmission is exposure to secretions, droplets that occur during coughing, sneezing, speech. In addition, these secretions and droplets remain contaminated for a while, and the contact of the person who touches them takes them to the areas that we call the mucosa, which are less defensive (mouth, nose, eyes). For this reason, people should not be in public areas so that they do not infect each other, and if they have to meet people, they should distance them (at least 1 meter).
In order to protect other people from coronavirus infection, those who have any signs and symptoms must first apply to a healthcare institution by avoiding people and wearing masks. In addition, it is necessary to wash the hands regularly with water and soap or use an alcohol hand disinfectant, close the mouth and nose wipes during coughing and sneezing and wash the hands after throwing the used wipes into the trash.
Surfaces touched against the coronavirus (mobile phones, tables, computers, door handles, power switches, benches, toilets, taps) should be cleaned and disinfected daily.
Vinegar has no lethal effect against viruses. Bleach (diluted 1 percent: 1 part bleach 99 parts water) shows a lethal effect against viruses. It is used for surface cleaning and should not be used for hands and face. In hand disinfection, hand disinfectants prepared with this purpose (with chlorhexidine or alcohol) should be used.
Apart from this, they should be fed healthy, plenty of liquid should be consumed and treatment of existing diseases should not be neglected.
The quarantine / isolation
Quarantine or isolation is to keep the disease in a separate place for people to prevent it from transmitting from person to person. It can be in the form of keeping the patient apart, as well as in the way that non-patients are kept apart, so as not to be sick, not to go out. Since the incubation period of COVID-19 disease can be extended up to 14 days, people with suspected disease should be isolated or quarantined for 14 days and kept separate from others.
Coronavirus Diagnosis Methods
The diagnosis of COVID-19 disease is made by the physician evaluating the signs and symptoms. The signs and symptoms of the disease can be confused with other respiratory infections. Therefore, it is necessary to make a diagnosis with laboratory methods. This test is carried out in laboratories determined by the Ministry of Health by taking a throat swab sample. It has a definitive diagnostic feature in patients with few or mild symptoms and signs of the disease.
In patients where the disease involves the lungs, coughs or shortness of breath, in addition to these tests, the diagnosis is made by computed tomography of the lung.
Treatment of COVID-19 Disease
COVID-19 disease is a new disease that we see after December 2019. There is no vaccine or treatment specific to this disease. However, both the treatments used in other coronaviruses, SARS and MERS diseases, and some of the drugs used in other virus diseases also benefit in COVID-19 disease. Some of these drugs are given by the Ministry of Health after diagnosis of COVID-19.
COVID-19 Do Not Darken Our Life, Our Society
In the fight against COVID-19, we all have duties. As an individual, it is necessary not to meet other people, to avoid getting together to break the chain of contamination. It is necessary to apply the measures implemented with the suggestions of the scientific committees, to take all the necessary measures to avoid getting sick, and to immediately apply to a health institution without letting other people get infected after the disease findings begin.
Vinegar has no lethal effect against viruses. Bleach (diluted 1 percent: 1 part bleach 99 parts water) shows a lethal effect against viruses. It is used for surface cleaning and should not be used for hands and face. In hand disinfection, hand disinfectants prepared with this purpose (with chlorhexidine or alcohol) should be used.
Apart from this, they should be fed healthy, plenty of liquid should be consumed and treatment of existing diseases should not be neglected.
The quarantine / isolation
Quarantine or isolation is to keep the disease in a separate place for people to prevent it from transmitting from person to person. It can be in the form of keeping the patient apart, as well as in the way that non-patients are kept apart, so as not to be sick, not to go out. Since the incubation period of COVID-19 disease can be extended up to 14 days, people with suspected disease should be isolated or quarantined for 14 days and kept separate from others.
Coronavirus Diagnosis Methods
The diagnosis of COVID-19 disease is made by the physician evaluating the signs and symptoms. The signs and symptoms of the disease can be confused with other respiratory infections. Therefore, it is necessary to make a diagnosis with laboratory methods. This test is carried out in laboratories determined by the Ministry of Health by taking a throat swab sample. It has a definitive diagnostic feature in patients with few or mild symptoms and signs of the disease.
In patients where the disease involves the lungs, coughs or shortness of breath, in addition to these tests, the diagnosis is made by computed tomography of the lung.
Treatment of COVID-19 Disease
COVID-19 disease is a new disease that we see after December 2019. There is no vaccine or treatment specific to this disease. However, both the treatments used in other coronaviruses, SARS and MERS diseases, and some of the drugs used in other virus diseases also benefit in COVID-19 disease. Some of these drugs are given by the Ministry of Health after diagnosis of COVID-19.
COVID-19 Do Not Darken Our Life, Our Society
In the fight against COVID-19, we all have duties. As an individual, it is necessary not to meet other people, to avoid getting together to break the chain of contamination. It is necessary to apply the measures implemented with the suggestions of the scientific committees, to take all the necessary measures to avoid getting sick, and to immediately apply to a health institution without letting other people get infected after the disease findings begin.