My neighbor is “yang”, what should I do? How long will you be in quarantine? Expert response

1 Neighbor is “yang”, what should I do?

2I am a close contact, how long do I usually have to isolate?

3How to avoid cross infection at the close isolation point?

4How do I know if I have Covid-19?

5I work in the company, how can I prevent the new crown?

6 Omicron has 200 sequelae? Will it kill?

7 Omicron, what medicines are used?

8I have been diagnosed with the new crown, how long should I be in quarantine?

9What should I do with my clothes after leaving the isolation treatment center?

Data image courtesy of Xinhua News Agency

Today Xiaoxuan invited the Department of Infectious Diseases, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University , Professor Hu Bijie, director of the hospital infection management department, explained the issues that citizens are concerned about.

Q1 My neighbor is “yang”, what should I do?

First of all don’t panic. Wait for the notification from relevant departments such as CDC or neighborhood committee. During this period, pay attention to good environmental ventilation, standardize the wearing of masks, and maintain a safe social distance. In addition, nucleic acid or antigen detection can be performed under conditions.

Q2 I am a close contact, how long do I usually have to isolate?

Although the incubation period of Omicron is relatively short: the shortest is 1 day, the average is 3 days, and the longest is about 6-7 days. However, according to the national requirements, 14+7 (centralized isolation + home medical observation) is still required.

Q3 At the close isolation point, how to avoid cross infection?

During the quarantine period, you should obey the arrangement and do not leave the room without permission. Behaviors such as walking in the corridor are absolutely prohibited. At the same time, improve your immune function, especially during the isolation period, maintain a good mood and adequate sleep, and do some activities in the house properly, which can enhance your resistance and help fight the virus.

Q4 How do I know if I have the new crown?

Omicron is very different from the original new coronavirus 2 years ago. The proportion of true pneumonia is very low. Most of the CT tests show normal results, and most of the infected people are asymptomatic. Symptoms, a small number of infected people have fever symptoms. Now the “gold standard” for diagnosing the new crown is nucleic acid testing. However, ordinary citizens cannot achieve nucleic acid testing every day, so there is another way to do it is antigen testing. Shanghai distributed antigen kits to all citizens a week ago.

The advantage of antigen detection is that it can be detected by itself, but the disadvantage is that its sensitivity is relatively low, especially in the incubation period on the first day of the onset and one week after the onset of the onset, its test results are often negative. However, within 5 consecutive days from 1 to 2 days after the onset of the disease, it is a period of time when the virus is highly infectious, and the antigen test can be positive, and the case can be detected in time. Therefore, it is recommended that you keep an antigen kit at home, and you can test it when you have doubts or when there are people with fever around you, and you can test it multiple times if necessary.

Q5 I work in the company, how can I prevent the new crown?

At present, it is very important to standardize the wearing of masks, ventilation, hand hygiene and surface disinfection. There are many new asymptomatic infections every day, and there may be a risk of infection at any time. At this time, you should be careful about whether you will be infected by colleagues who work together, especially if the office space is relatively small. The high risk factor of being infected at work is eating, because it is inevitable to take off the mask, and it is especially recommended that everyone must eat at off-peak hours.

Q6 Omicron has 200 sequelae? Will it kill?

This statement greatly exaggerates its after-effects. As a viral infection, Omicron is largely confined to the upper respiratory tract compared to the type of virus that frequently invaded the lower respiratory tract two years ago. As long as the patient’s immune function is normal, sequelae rarely appear, and they can basically recover completely. At present, more than 95% of the infected people in Omicron are asymptomatic and mild, only 3-5% of the common type, and the severe and critical types are rare.

Q7 Omicron, what drug is used for treatment?

Mainly asymptomatic and mild, basically no medication. If you have sore throat, muscle aches, or fever, you can use cold antipyretics. A small number of people may have bacterial infections, and oral antibiotics are sufficient. There are high-risk factors, such as elderly patients, we must focus on protecting these groups. If there is an infection, according to expert evaluation, within 5 days of onset, the use of nematevir/ritonavir tablets (Paxlovid) can effectively inhibit the development of severe disease and avoid the death of patients. At the same time, traditional Chinese medicine can also play an important role, and early use in high-risk groups can effectively curb the aggravation of the disease.

Q8 I have been diagnosed with the new crown, how long should I be quarantined?

The nucleic acid turns negative, and the interval is more than 24 hours, and you can be discharged from the hospital twice in a row. It is usually about 2 weeks from the onset of the nucleic acid to negative, and the latter stage is basically non-infectious.

Q9 What should I do with my clothes when I leave the isolation treatment point?

There is talk of throwing away or burning it, which is unnecessary. The virus can survive on many surfaces for 1-2 days at room temperature, and the clothes are put in suitcases or plastic bags, and they are no longer infectious after a few days.

Source: Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University | Author Hu Bijie

Process Editor: TF099