With the lockdown eased up on the general public, Goa is slowly starting to slip back to its original state. As the number of Corona cases are reducing in recent times in Goa, the Pandemic based virus takes us by surprise once again.
Symptoms of Covid-19 are not restricted to the respiratory system anymore, many patients are presenting with bizarre symptoms, Dr. Jagdish Kakodkar, head of the department of preventive and social medicine at Goa Medical College (GMC) -Bambolim, said.
“We have seen patients experience only loss of smell. One complained of only loose motions and no fever at all. A woman experienced urinary disturbances and another complained of pain in the abdomen that could have easily been mistaken for acidity,”
“Some present with just a rash, particularly children. There were those who came to the eye specialist with conjunctivitis and others with joint pains, calf pains, hiccups, tiredness, malaise, body ache, and some with only an episode of dizziness. All these are now considered symptoms of Covid-19,” Kakodkar said during a webinar held on Saturday.
He also advised consulting a doctor to confirm whether the symptoms experienced by the patient could be of Covid-19 or not.
With this seen, the Goa Medical College changed its screening protocol last week after it was observed that there were fewer people with typical symptoms of Covid-19 such as common cold, fever, and cough.
Kakodkar also said, “Doctors keep educating themselves. Covid is now a masquerading agent and comes in different forms. People who have these kinds of symptoms are under the false impression that they don’t have Covid. They stay at home and land up in the hospital only when they develop complications. Sometimes, they die within minutes and hours,”.
He added that Covid-19 is particularly gnarly to those with cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, hypertension, and cancer if tested positive, to be managed at home.
“The death rate is several folds higher in people with these diseases. Such patients can be managed at home only if the treating doctor monitors their parameters three times a day, checking sugar, blood pressure, ECG, and oximeter readings frequently,” he said.
He requested the people to take special care of the elderly, pregnant women, children below the age of 10, and those with comorbidities.
Dr. Kakodkar was speaking at a webinar, ‘Covid-19; Safety and Prevention’ organized by Damodar College of Commerce and Economics, Margao, as part of Vidya Vikas Mandal’s golden jubilee celebrations.
