Covid – 19 -

COVID-19

COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, which is a respiratory pathogen.
Most people (80%) recover from the disease without needing hospital treatment.

Symptoms are usually mild. Some people become infected but only have very mild symptoms or none at all.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are:

Symptoms	Coronavirus(COVID-19) Symptoms range from mild to servere	Influenza(FLU) Abrupt onset of symptoms	Cold Gradual onset of symptoms	Seasonal Allergies Symptoms improve or worsen depending on environment
Fever	Often	Often	Rare	Sometimes
Fatigue	Sometimes	Sometimes	Sometimes	Often
Cough	Often (usually dry)	Often (usually dry)	Mild	Often
Sneezing	No	No	Often	Often
Aches & Pains	Sometimes	Often	Often	No
Runny or Stuffy Nose	Rare	Sometimes	Often	Often
Sore throat	Sometimes	Sometimes	Often	No
Diarrhea	Rare	Sometimes in Children	No	No
Headaches	Often	Rare	Rare	Sometimes
Shortness of breath/ Difficulty breathing	Often	Rare	Rare	Rare
Loss of taste and smell	Often	Rare	Rare	Rare

1. For Patients And Asthma

People with asthma should continue all of their inhaled medication, including inhaled corticosteroids, as prescribed by their doctor.
In acute asthma attacks patients should take a short course of oral corticosteroids if instructed in their asthma action plan or by their healthcare provider, to prevent serious consequences.
In rare cases, patients with severe asthma might require long-term treatment with oral corticosteroids (OCS) on top of their inhaled medication(s). This treatment should be continued in the lowest possible dose in these patients at risk of severe attacks/exacerbations.
Biologic therapies should be used in severe asthma patients who qualify for them, in order to limit the need for OCS as much as possible.
While a patient is being treated for a severe attack, their maintenance inhaled asthma treatment should be continued (at home AND in the hospital).
Patients with allergic rhinitis should continue to take their nasal corticosteroids, as prescribed by their clinician.
Reference: Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) 2020

COPD patients should follow basic infection control measures including social distancing, hand washing and wearing a mask or face covering.
Inhaled corticosteroids, long-acting bronchodilators, roflumilast, or chronic macrolides should continue to be used as indicated for stable COPD management
Systemic steroids and antibiotics should be used in COPD exacerbations according to the usual indications.
Reference: Global Initiative for the Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention of Chronic Obstructive Lung .
Disease: The 2020 GOLD Science Committee Report on COVID-19 & COPD, https://doi.org/10.1164/rccm.202009-3533SO. PubMed: 3314655