[COVID-19 - A RECENT REVIEW]

Harefuah. 2020 Jun;159(6):394-397.
[Article in Hebrew]

Abstract

Corona disease sprang into our lives towards the end of 2019. In November/December 2019, in Wuhan, Hubei province in China, a SARS-like viral disease with a high adhesive capacity and the potential to endanger the life of the patient was reported. It soon became clear that the disease was very contagious and new hospitals were being built on the site and a General closure was underway. Many doctors from all over China were recruited and sent to the isolated area. Local medical reports were acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)-like, and patients needed respiratory support for oxygenation and some needed ventilation on respiratory devices with significant mortality rates. The disease has since spread to many parts of the world, mainly towards Europe. Hospitals have received hundreds of patients, to the point of partially collapsing the glorious Italian healthcare system. Italy and Spain reported a lung disease that causes severe oxidative disruption but no disruption in ventilation unlike ARDS. Initial post-mortem shows that the main cause of death is thromboembolic. Heart involvement with myocarditis and even heart attacks are beginning to be reported. Various drugs are involved in the treatment plan and are often known to fail. Even promising remedies such as Remdesavir, which is an antiviral drug, are beginning to receive reports from controlled trials, which are not as successful as originally expected. All in all, we continue to wander in the dark, both about the disease and certainly, regarding the treatment. The primary treatment involves maximum efforts for respiratory, hematologic, nephrologic and cardiologic support. In this review, I will try to describe the disease and the enigma concerning suggested treatments.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Betacoronavirus
  • COVID-19
  • Controlled Clinical Trials as Topic
  • Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology*
  • Coronavirus Infections / pathology
  • Coronavirus Infections / therapy*
  • Humans
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / epidemiology*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / pathology
  • Pneumonia, Viral / therapy*
  • SARS-CoV-2