Home quarantine sufficient for patients with mild symptoms, say doctors

Hyderabad: Home treatment for coronavirus infection is possible and effective, say doctors, but the risk of transmission is mitigated only if there is a separate room and bathroom for the patient. More doctors are suggesting home isolation for patients with mild symptoms of cough, fever, cold, diarrhoea and headache.

Home treatment requires having a pulse oximeter, a home machine for blood pressure and a notebook to note the symptoms. Video-counselling is given on a daily basis to understand the changes and effectiveness of the medicines. People are advised to completely rest, that is, to sleep on the bed and move only if they have to go to the washroom, and eat alone in their room and allow the body and mind to rest.

Dr Sunita Narreddy, consultant in infectious diseases at Apollo Hospital, said, “Lots of fluids must be consumed to maintain hydration. It is very important that a person is isolated, which means that he/she is completely alone and that there is no one living in the same room as them. A caregiver has to follow protection of masks, sanitisation and also distance. This will protect family members and also curb the spread of infection.”

Breathing exercises are extremely important and must be done twice a day. The caregiver also has to monitor temperature, oxygen levels and blood pressure. If oxygen levels are below 90 then it requires attention and a hospital must be contacted.

Dr Nishant Sinha, pulmonologist at Continental Hospital, said, “We make the patients walk 100 steps after a week to check if there is breathlessness. This is monitored via video counselling and is also an indication that patients are doing well at home and recovering. The management at home requires following the instructions and keeping the treating doctor informed of any change. If patients do that, they can be treated well.”