The head of the infectology department at the São Paulo State University (Unesp) of Botucatu, Alexandre Naime, said in an interview with CNN, that it is essential that authorities provide an emergency scheme in view of the high number of Covid-19 and Flu cases in Brazil.
For the specialist, states and municipalities should be responsible for planning to care for patients with the flu syndrome.
“It is essential that, even in this scenario of chaos in relation to the overcrowding of emergency care systems, that city halls and state secretariats provide the emergency scheme – as is already happening in many cities, many private hospitals, even – for this demand be properly resolved,” he said.
The infectologist also highlighted the difficulty in differentiating the initial symptoms caused by the new coronavirus and influenza. According to Naime, clinical evaluation is insufficient to distinguish the cases.
“It is impossible in a clinical evaluation to be able to differentiate whether an individual who has fever, malaise, body pain, sore throat, a runny nose, is due to Influenza or due to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes to Covid. Therefore, the laboratory evaluation is super important.”
Regarding the treatment of mild cases of illnesses, the doctor stated that, in most cases, observation and medication of symptoms is recommended.
Naime stressed that antibiotics should not be used, as these drugs are intended to fight bacteria. Both covid and flu are caused by viruses.
On the other hand, “individuals who have comorbidities and, especially, people who have not been vaccinated for Covid, for any reason, have to be monitored very strictly, because they are at risk of progression to severe Covid”, said the expert.
*Under supervision of Layane Serrano
Reference: CNN Brasil
