COVID-19 General Q&A

What is the novel coronavirus?

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that can cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases like Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The 2019 novel coronavirus, called 'SARS-CoV-2' (previously referred to as 2019-nCoV), is a new strain that has not been identified in humans before. The disease that is caused by SARSCoV-2 is called 'COVID-19'.

Source: World Health Organisation (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019) European Respiratory Society (https://www.ersnet.org/)

How does the virus spread?

People can catch COVID-19 from others who have the virus. The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales. These droplets land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth. People can also catch COVID-19 if they breathe in droplets from a person with COVID-19 who coughs out or exhales droplets. This is why it is important to stay more than 1 meter (3 feet) away from a person who is sick.

Source: World Health Organisation (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019)

What are the symptoms?

Typical symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, difficulty breathing, muscle pain and tiredness. More serious cases develop severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis and septic shock. Generally, older people and those with underlying conditions (such as hypertension, heart disorders, diabetes, liver disorders, and respiratory disease) are expected to be more at risk of developing severe symptoms. The evidence from analyses of cases to date is that COVID-19 infection causes mild disease (i.e. non-pneumonia or mild pneumonia) in about 80% of cases and most cases recover; 14% have more severe disease and 6% experience critical illness.

Source: European Respiratory Society (https://www.ersnet.org/) European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en)

How can people avoid infection and reduce spread of the virus?

Anyone can contract the virus, therefore it is important to take steps to prevent further spread of SARS-CoV-2. The public should follow standard infection prevention recommendations, including by:

Regular hand washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds at a time

Avoiding touching your face, especially the mouth, eyes and nose

Covering the mouth and nose with the inner elbow when coughing or sneezing

Avoiding crowded places

Staying at home if you feel unwell - even with a slight fever or cough

Avoiding close contact with persons showing symptoms of respiratory illness, including coughing or sneezing

Wash your hands frequently

Regularly and thoroughly clean your hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and water.

Why? Washing your hands with soap and water or using alcohol-based hand rub kills viruses that may be on your hands.

Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth

Why? Hands touch many surfaces and can pick up viruses. Once contaminated, hands can transfer the virus to your eyes, nose or mouth. From there, the virus can enter your body and can make you sick.

If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing seek medical care early

Stay home if you feel unwell. If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention but always call your healthcare provider by phone first.

Why? Calling in advance will allow your health care provider to quickly direct you to the right health facility. This will also protect you and help prevent spread of viruses and other infections. If you have had close contact with a person who has COVID-19, contact your healthcare provider by phone for advice and inform them that you have been in contact with someone with COVID-19. They will provide guidance on further steps to take.

Source: European Respiratory Society (https://www.ersnet.org/); European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en); World Health Organisation (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public)

What is social distancing and how can it help against the spread of the virus?

Social distancing aims, through a variety of means, to decrease or interrupt transmission of COVID-19 in a population (sub-)group by minimising contact between potentially infected individuals and healthy individuals, or between population groups with high rates of transmission and population groups with no or a low level of transmission.

Maintain at least 1 metre (3 feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.

Why? When someone coughs or sneezes they spray small liquid droplets from their nose or mouth which may contain virus. If you are too close, you can breathe in the droplets,including the COVID-19 virus if the person coughing has the disease.

Source: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en); World Health Organisation (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019)

Should I consider self-isolating to avoid catching the virus?

Self-isolating means staying indoors as much as possible and avoiding contact with others. The advice on self-isolation is different in different countries at the moment, but the following are sensible steps:

If you have symptoms of fever, cough or a chest infection you should self-isolate.

If you do not have symptoms, avoid contact with anyone who is sick, even if they “just have a mild cold”.

Stay at home as much as possible, including working from home if this is feasible.

If you are in an area with a high number of COVID-19 cases, you may be asked to do a more strict isolation.

Source: European Lung Foundation (ELF https://www.europeanlung.org/en/); World Health Organisation (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019)

Should I stop taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines, like ibuprofen (NSAIDs)?

When starting treatment for fever or pain in COVID-19, patients and healthcare professionals should consider all available treatment options including paracetamol and NSAIDs; patients who have any questions should speak to their doctor or pharmacist.
Each medicine has its own benefits and risks which are reflected in its product information and which should be considered along with EU national treatment guidelines, most of which recommend paracetamol as a first treatment option for fever or pain.

In line with EU national treatment guidelines, patients and healthcare professionals can continue using NSAIDs (like ibuprofen) as per the approved product information. Current advice includes that these medicines are used at the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible period.

The EMA consider that there is currently no reason for patients taking ibuprofen to interrupt their treatment, based on the above. This is particularly important for patients taking ibuprofen or other NSAID medicines for chronic diseases.

Source: European Medicines Agency (https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/news/ema-givesadvice-use-non-steroidal-anti-inflammatories-covid-19)