Professor Calibate: This is so far the only real treatment for coronavirus

How to protect yourself from the coronavirus, what are the symptoms of the disease, what complications can probably be everyone who watches TV shows and even reads popular literature knows nothing less than doctors. Of course, each of us has read or heard that one of the most important tasks is to stop the spread of the virus, and this requires a timely diagnosis of the infected and sick so that they can be isolated and contacted as soon as possible.

Anyone in their right mind should probably agree that, at this point, as long as we don’t have effective drugs or vaccines, this is the only way to stop the pandemic.

Whether we are already infected with the virus is shown by a positive molecular test based on the polymerase chain reaction. The reliability is certainly not 100%, but we don’t have anything better yet, which is why everyone uses this lab test to detect the virus in the human body.

And if our body is successfully fighting the virus or if we are already infected with COVID-19 is shown by another study that uses so-called ‘rapid tests’, which show that our immune system has already responded to the coronavirus and has produced specific antibodies to suppress it. or destroy it. antivirals – antibodies.

Is it possible to use rapid tests instead of molecular tests? Understandably not, because COVID-19 infection will generally only be positive after 14 to 50 days. It is understandable that one infected person could infect hundreds more in that period of time. And to successfully combat the spread of the coronavirus, it is necessary to diagnose and isolate those infected as soon as possible. This is the basis of the main strategy against the coronavirus.

So many may rightly wonder why use the rapid tests that our Ministry of Health has bought for up to six million euros. Perhaps a purchase is completely unnecessary?

There are, of course, differing opinions, but in the future, I think perhaps, these tests could be used in large epidemiological studies to determine what proportion of the population is superinfected with COVID-19, around 20 percent. it could recur asymptomatically. Unfortunately, as immunity does not develop for a year and even longer throughout life, but only for 3-4 months, we will not have exact data on how many people have actually recovered, or we will have to repeat such tests more often.

In my opinion, rapid tests would be very important for the selection of people with a history of coronavirus infection. They could be used as donors for the development of plasma banks with COVID-19 infection.

Why is this necessary and should immediate action be taken? Because effective medical treatment is not yet available. The only realistic treatment for coronavirus patients is to use blood plasma from patients who have already had the infection and high levels of antibodies that can fight COVID-19. After all, it does not require complicated technologies, staff training, new facilities. Each blood center can better cope with this task.

Despite the enormous efforts being made by scientists around the world to test the effects of existing old drugs on the virus or to develop effective new drugs, no major breakthroughs have yet been seen in this area. Even after the vaccine is developed, it is not clear for how long the body will have adequate amounts of antibodies to protect us from infection. Therefore, even with the vaccine, cases of coronavirus infection are possible. In the absence of effective medical treatment, I believe that in the case of patients, in the emergency, treatment with blood plasma will be very important.

Currently, rapid tests by the Ministry of Health are being forcibly imposed on teachers, and a decision has already been made to evaluate the staff of the children’s rights service. The proof is of course possible, but I don’t really see any particular logic in that. Well, what is found is that some of the staff have already contracted a coronavirus infection. This will mean that for several months, as long as the correct amount of antibodies circulates in their body, those people will not get a coronavirus infection and they will not infect others. And then “successfully” you can re-infect and infect others.

As I have already written, there is a high probability that schools and kindergartens can easily become sources of coronavirus infection, as there are likely to be many cases among children without a clear clinical picture of the disease. As a result, both staff and children will easily become infected. In these establishments, in my opinion, constant testing of all staff is especially important to detect cases of coronavirus infection as early as possible. Therefore, molecular studies are necessary.

And let’s leave the rapid tests for future epidemiological investigations, for the selection of donor blood banks.