How should the elderly be monitored after they are infected with the new coronavirus? What symptoms require prompt medical treatment... In response to netizens' concerns about the treatment of the elderly after being infected with the new coronavirus, The Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council invited Li Yanming, director of the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine at Beijing Hospital, to provide further interpretation.
Why are the elderly at high risk of severe illness after infection?
Li Yanming introduced that the cold weather in winter is the season with high incidence of respiratory infectious diseases. The elderly are a vulnerable group and a high-risk group for severe respiratory infectious diseases. Winter is also the season of high incidence of influenza, and its severe cases mostly occur in the elderly. Coupled with the current new coronavirus infection and the influence of various factors, the proportion of severe cases among the elderly after infection is significantly higher than that of other groups .
How should the elderly be monitored after infection?
Once the elderly develop a fever or are infected with COVID-19 at home, monitoring must be strengthened, especially the attention of family members.. This is because the elderly may not have as obvious a reaction to body abnormalities compared to young people. For example, some elderly people may have a raised body temperature, but they may not know that they have a fever.
Li Yanming introduced that elderly people may develop "silent hypoxia" after being infected with the new coronavirus. The family felt that his respiratory status seemed to be okay and quite stable, but his blood oxygen saturation may have been relatively low. Friends who are accompanying disabled elderly people are particularly reminded to monitor the elderly's body temperature, heart rate, pulse, and changes in peripheral blood oxygen saturation. If blood oxygen saturation drops, seek medical attention promptly. The earlier you seek treatment, the greater the success rate of treatment.
After the elderly are infected, what situations should they seek medical treatment in time?
If you are an elderly person living alone, you need to understand the overall condition of your body, including basic heart rate, blood pressure , pulse rate , respiration, peripheral blood oxygen saturation, etc. You must monitor closely and seek medical advice promptly if it worsens.
We should pay attention to the changes in the general living conditions of the elderly, such as whether they are able to eat well, how their bowel movements are, whether they have urinary incontinence, whether there is a significant reduction in the amount of urine, etc.
Pay special attention to the mental state of the elderly. Li Yanming said that because the elderly sometimes cannot accurately express their discomfort, if the elderly have obvious lethargy, communication difficulties, do not recognize people, do not know where they are, and express illogical expressions, these are some dangerous signs.
Li Yanming said that after an elderly person at home is infected with the new coronavirus, if symptoms such as fever, cough, and difficulty breathing persist or worsen, including a significantly poor mental state, they need to seek medical treatment in time; if some new abnormalities occur, such as difficulty breathing, they also need to seek medical treatment in time; Elderly people with underlying diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, diabetes, and coronary heart disease are prone to worsening of their condition once infected. When underlying diseases worsen, they also need to seek medical treatment in time.
Li Yanming reminded that if you are older than 80 years old and have particularly serious basic diseases, if you are not well controlled and have not been vaccinated against the new coronavirus, once you are infected, your family members should be more careful when observing and caring for them, and if there is a problem, you should seek medical treatment in time.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
