It’s been more than seven months that people are being flooded with various aspects of COVID-19. Yet, a few patients relied on self-medication and the disease only aggravated in them. Professor of Pulmonology at Government and General Hospital, Erragadda, Dr M Narender said that fearing stigma, some patients bought drugs over the counter or followed a prescription issued to other COVID-19 patients. When their health condition worsened, the patients were rushed to government hospitals.
Stressing that this was observed only in a few patients, the pulmonologist cautioned people to consult doctors who have been attending COVID-19 patients immediately after testing positive. “The kind of medicines prescribed, their dosage change from patient to patient depending on age, severity of COVID-19, co-morbidities such as diabetes, and other factors. One prescription does not serve all patients. Self-medication can worsen their health condition and can have long-term effects also,” Dr Narender said.
Doctors who attend to COVID-19 patients stressed multiple times that regardless of whether COVID-19 is mild or severe, consulting the doctors immediately after testing positive for the disease helps in early recovery. Since there is no cure for COVID-19, doctors are relying on drugs or medical procedures to treat complications arising out of the infectious disease.
A few medicines are given to avoid worsening of the infectious disease. Severity of infection, presence of diabetes, hypertension or other complications, are taken into consideration before prescribing medicines. Dr Narender said that a patient neglected medicines prescribed to him and started to consume an alternative form of medicine. “He developed complications and died,” the pulmonologist said.
