Antibiotic prophylaxis is the use of antibiotics (usually) before surgery, to prevent a bacterial infection. Empiric antibiotic therapy is often given to patients who have an unidentified proven or suspected infection. The responsible organism(s) or bacteria have not yet been confirmed, but treatment is required.
Am I more at risk of COVID-19 if I am overweight or obese?
Current evidence does not suggest that having excess weight increases people’s chances of contracting COVID-19. However, a recent report from Public Health England confirms that you would be at more serious risk of severe illness or even death if you did contract COVID-19 and were excessively overweight or obese. Being severely overweight puts people at greater risk of hospitalisation, being …
What’s the difference between vaccines and antibiotics?
Both vaccines and antibiotics and are very useful in helping us stay healthy. But, there are several key differences between vaccines and antibiotics that we think you should know. Vaccines offer protection against potential future infection. They induce a protective immune response in your body. The specific, protective immune cells have a memory element to protect for any future infection …
Can thermal scanners at airports and entrances of buildings detect if I have COVID-19?
No – thermal scanners are good at detecting fever i.e. those people who have a higher temperature than normal body temperature. Fever is one of the symptoms linked to COVID-19 – but there are many other possible causes of fever.
Should I wear a mask while exercising?
No, you should not wear a mask while exercising. The WHO says you shouldn’t wear one when exercising as masks may reduce the ability to breathe comfortably. The mask could become wet more quickly as a result of sweat, which can make it difficult to breathe and could cause the growth of micro-organisms. Maintaining social distance from others during exercise …
I read that you can get pleurisy if you wear a face mask for too long. Is that correct?
No – you will not get pleurisy, an inflammation of the tissue around the lung, by wearing a face mask for too long. There have been several other myths like this in circulation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many myths around masks and carbon dioxide and oxygen levels have been spread too. The WHO says that while the prolonged use of …
How long does Coronavirus survive on surfaces?
The most important thing to know about coronavirus on surfaces is that they can easily be cleaned. Common household disinfectants will kill the virus. Studies have shown that the COVID-19 virus can survive for up to 72 hours on plastic and stainless steel, less than 4 hours on copper and less than 24 hours on cardboard. Always clean your hands …
Will coronavirus outbreaks be more likely in winter like the flu virus?
Scientists have attempted to answer this question by studying the transmission dynamics of other human coronaviruses and by analysing the effect of weather on COVID-19. Firm conclusions are not yet possible but initial studies suggest that coronavirus transmission is likely to be more frequent during the winter months.
Can my dog contract COVID-19?
Several dogs and cats (domestic cats and a tiger) in contact with infected humans have tested positive for COVID-19. In addition, ferrets appear to be susceptible to the infection. In experimental conditions, both cats and ferrets were able to transmit infection to other animals of the same species. But, there is no evidence that these animals can transmit the disease …
There is a lot in the media about pneumonia at present, especially in connection with the Coronavirus. Can I protect myself against pneumonia?
There are two main types of pneumonia: bacterial and viral. As COVID‑19 pneumonia is caused by a virus, antibiotics are ineffective to prevent or treat. However, pneumonia can arise due to a secondary bacterial infection, and antibiotics may be prescribed when serious and/or it is unclear whether the pneumonia is bacterial or viral in origin. The pneumococcal vaccine offers some …
What commonly happens to coronavirus patients at ICU?
What happens to coronavirus patients in ICU will vary depending on the individual patient’s needs. In COVID-19 people are commonly transferred to intensive care due to low oxygen levels, requiring additional support to ensure enough oxygen is delivered to the body’s vital organs and tissues. In this situation patients may require intubation and mechanical ventilation. Sometimes, other methods of assisting …
I’ve just been offered a cystoscopy for next week. I’ve said yes but I’m absolutely terrified of going into hospital due to the coronavirus and my husband being high risk and myself and my son are asthmatic. What should I do?
Where treatments and procedures are essential, hospitals are ensuring that these patients are treated in areas well away from COVID-19 patients, and extensive hygiene and infection control practices are applied (see your hospital website or call the admissions office for more information). Since you and your family members are all considered to be at higher risk than the general population, …
What is cytokine storm? Does it cause secondary bacterial infection in the lungs or sepsis?
A ‘cytokine storm’ refers to the overproduction of inflammatory proteins. These inflammatory proteins are an important part of the immune response (the body’s response to infection). However, in a cytokine storm the overproduction of these proteins are harmful. Sepsis is defined as life threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. When we hear sepsis being talked …
Can cash become contaminated with coronavirus (coins and notes)?
Like any other surface that large numbers of people come into contact with, notes can carry bacteria or viruses. However, the risk posed by handling a polymer note is no greater than touching any other common surface, such as handrails, doorknobs or credit cards. It is therefore important to think about all other money related surfaces you come into contact …
Can you get sepsis from COVID-19 alone – or is a secondary bacterial infection always present?
Sepsis is a life-threatening reaction to an infection. It happens when your immune system overreacts to an infection and starts to damage your body’s own tissues and organs. The overreactive immune response causing sepsis can be triggered by any infection, bacterial or viral, including COVID-19.
Why are people put on ventilators?
The majority of COVID-19 patients experience mild symptoms. However, some patients are admitted to hospital because they have a more serious illness which may include breathing difficulties. As there is no treatment for COVID-19, they are given supportive care which aims to maintain the function of the body’s vital organs to keep the individual alive while the disease progresses and …
What are the long term effects of contracting COVID-19?
As COVID-19 is a new disease we still do not know the long-term effects. There is active research into this area but the results will not be available for some time. We know from experience with other diseases that people with critical illness requiring a long term stay in intensive care can experience long term consequences, such as psychological effects …
How long after acquiring the virus would you test positive on a swab result?
The virus test detects active infection and works best during the first seven days of symptoms. The virus can be detected in a COVID-19 swab taken from the nose or throat, even before symptoms of illness first appear. This is why people can be infectious for a few days before the onset of symptoms, which usually appear about 5 days …
I’ve read that they are trying to see if repurposed drugs can treat COVID-19 patients. What are repurposed drugs?
Repurposed drugs are drugs that were developed for treating one disease but are used to treat another. For example a drug being developed to treat diabetes was found to kill drug resistant bacteria. The hope with COVID-19 is that an existing drug can kill the virus and therefore be used to treat infected patients. There are approximately 1500 drugs in …
My family member was prescribed an antibiotic (Co-amoxiclav) while they had COVID-19, but I didn’t think antibiotics worked against a virus?
Co-amoxiclav is used to treat bacterial infections. It is an antibiotic treatment that has proven useful in treating secondary bacterial infections in COVID patients. Antibiotics do not treat any viruses, including Coronavirus. However, they are absolutely essential for treating bacterial infections. Some bacterial vaccines do exist to protect against certain bacterial infections. They are very useful for treating patients who …