As coronavirus spreads, 5 important things to know right now

Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease and critical care physician, fielded a range of questions from the Tribune-Review on Monday morning. Adalja is a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. He works on pandemic preparedness, emerging infectious diseases and hospital preparedness.

What are the most essential items for people to have at home right now?

The most essential items for people to have at home are their prescription medications, a one- to two-week supply of non-perishable food, and various other household goods.

Are we still 12-18 months away from a vaccine, in your opinion?

We are likely 12 to 18 months away from the vaccine. Clinical trials are beginning shortly, however it takes a lot of time to get through those trials and to manufacture to scale.

In your opinion, which businesses should remain open?

It is hard to determine exactly which businesses should or should not remain open. We are trying to accomplish social distancing and obviously businesses where social congregation is part of their core function are going to face challenges. If businesses are able to practice social distancing, they can likely remain open safely. It’s important to remember that the directive in Pennsylvania does not apply to the whole state and there are many essential businesses that should remain open in impacted counties.

What available treatments are available right now for people with covid-19?

There are currently no specific treatments for the novel coronavirus available. Treatment consists of supportive care in the hospital and could include intravenous fluid, supplemental oxygen, and other ICU interventions. Medications administered could include anti-nausea medication and fever reducing medications.

If you have symptoms and tested negative, when should you be tested again, if at all?

If you have symptoms and test negative, it’s important to understand what you might have, especially if it is influenza and you could benefit from antiviral therapy. Therefore, most algorithms will test you for other viruses first. If you test negative, you likely have a virus that’s not captured by testing devices. There really wouldn’t be a need for repeat testing unless you develop new symptoms after recovering.

It is important to remember that there are other respiratory viruses still circulating.