‘What to take for Covid?’: the answer to this and four other questions about the disease

For those who managed to go through the more than two years of the pandemic without having caught Covid-19, the current moment does not seem very favorable: since mid-May, cases in Brazil have increased again.

The good news, however, is that the death toll remains low.

Amid the so-called fourth wave, interest in Covid-19 at Google rose in May in Brazil compared to the previous month, up 20%.

According to the search engine, one term in particular saw a significant increase: “Covid test”.

The search for this term increased 70% in the comparison between May and April, and 190% compared to March. In the last 90 days, the peak of interest was reached in the first week of June, and searches have been increasing since the beginning of May.

In this context, Brazil rose in the world ranking of interest in Covid-19.

In the first week of June (1st to 7th), the country was the 11th most searched country for Covid-19 in the world ranking.

To give you an idea, in the 30 days prior to June 7, we occupied the 22nd position. Ninety days before that date, we were in the 34th position.

At the request of BBC News Brasil, Google has compiled the most recent questions searched about Covid-19 in Brazil. Many of them mention testing or how to act if you have the disease.

Check below what Brazilians asked Google the most between June 1st and 7th, as well as the answers to these questions.

1. What to take for Covid?

It is not news that Brazilians like to self-medicate. But care must be taken.

The use of medicine at home by those with Covid should aim to relieve the symptoms of the disease. Think, therefore, of antipyretics (to lower the temperature and control the fever) and analgesics (to relieve possible muscle pain throughout the body). That is, paracetamol and ibuprofen, for example.

Antiviral drugs, such as rendesivir, paxlovid or molnupiravir, with proven effectiveness for the treatment against coronavirus, are intended for use in a hospital setting.

And it doesn’t hurt to remember: the so-called covid kit (chloroquine, ivermectin, nitazoxanide, azithromycin and even some vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin D, vitamin C and zinc), whose use was defended several times by President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) during the height of the pandemic. pandemic, does not have its proven effectiveness to fight the virus and is not recommended by the Brazilian Medical Association (AMB). In addition, it can lead to serious health problems, studies show.

2. When to take the Covid test?

It will depend on the type of test and whether or not you have symptoms.

There are three types of test:

PCR: It is considered the most efficient for diagnosing Covid-19, because it detects the genetic material of the virus in the sample in real time. But it is more expensive, since it has to be sent to a specialized laboratory, and your result can take up to 72 hours. It is usually indicated for those who need to know if they are infected and have not yet shown symptoms.

The collection is done through a nasal swab and must be done within eight days after the onset of symptoms. In this case, it is usually 90% accurate.

If there are no symptoms, the ideal is to wait five days after the last contact with the infected person. Otherwise, the chance of a false negative is higher (that is, when the diagnosis for Covid is negative, but the patient is infected with the virus).

Antigen: Done through a nasal swab in pharmacies and health facilities, it is also called “rapid test”. It is indicated for those who have symptoms, as it detects the presence of the virus in its replication phase.

For those who have symptoms, the test should be done between the 1st and 7th days. For those who did not have symptoms, the recommendation is to do so from the 5th day of contact with the person contaminated by Sars-CoV-2.

The advantage of this test is that it is ready in 30 minutes. However, if the viral load is low, the probability of a false negative increases.

Self test: works in the same way as the antigen test, but you buy it at the pharmacy and do it at home, on your own. The guidelines for performing this test are the same as for the rapid test.

The Ministry of Health warns, however, that the self-test should not be used “if you have symptoms such as shortness of breath, low levels of oxygen saturation (below 95%), cyanosis (bluish color in nails, skin, lips) , lethargy (deep sleep), mental confusion, signs of dehydration”.

In such cases, it is recommended to seek a health service as soon as possible.

3. How is the Covid self-test performed?

In the self-test, the individual performs all the testing steps, from sample collection to result interpretation, without the need for professional help, carefully following the information in the instructions for use.

In the case of Covid-19, self-collection of saliva or non-deep nasal swab samples is allowed.

The nasal swab is a thin swab that has a cotton tip on which the sample will be collected from the introduction into the nose (both nostrils) in a not too deep way.

Therefore, if your self-test indicates this type of sample, guidance on how to properly obtain it will be available in the instructions for use.

4. Where to take the Covid test?

It depends on the type of test. PCR tests are normally performed in hospitals as they depend on laboratories, while professional antigens in pharmacies and health clinics. Self-tests can be purchased and done at home on your own.

5. How many days of Covid isolation?

Isolation must be done for seven days, as long as there are no respiratory symptoms and fever, for at least 24 hours and without the use of antipyretics, according to the latest guidance from the federal government, from January this year.

Anyone who performs testing (RT-PCR or rapid antigen test) for Covid-19 with a negative result on the 5th day, can leave the isolation, before the deadline of 7 days, provided that they do not have respiratory symptoms and fever, for at least 24 hours. , and without the use of antipyretics.

If the result is positive, it is necessary to remain in isolation for ten days from the onset of symptoms.

For those who on the 7th day still show symptoms, testing is mandatory.

If the result is negative, the person must wait 24 hours without respiratory symptoms and fever, and without the use of antipyretic, to leave the isolation.

With a positive diagnosis, isolation should be maintained for at least ten days from the onset of symptoms, being released from isolation as long as there are no respiratory symptoms and fever, and without the use of antipyretic, for at least 24 hours.

Anyone who has not been tested until the 10th day, but has no respiratory symptoms and fever, and has not used an antipyretic for at least 24 hours, will be able to leave the isolation at the end of the 10th day.

For all cases in which isolation is ended on the 5th or 7th day, additional measures must be maintained until the 10th day, such as wearing masks, washing hands, avoiding contact with immunocompromised people or who have risk factors for aggravation. of Covid-19.

‘This text was originally published in https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/geral-61910972‘