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    Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic
    Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic
    Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic
    Ebook213 pages2 hours

    Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic

    By Ligong Lu

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    About this ebook

    This is a popular science book written to help address the panic caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). With illustrated texts, it gives, in plain language, a detailed and precise introduction to COVID-19. The chapters of the book include Microorganisms Around Us, Useful Facts about the Novel Coronavirus, The Immune System We Survive on, Various Factors Affecting Immunity, How to Keep A Well-balanced Immune System, Methods of Preventing Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia and Other Infectious Disease, Psychological Adjustments During an Epidemic, Diagnosis and Treatment of the COVID-19, Rehabilitation of Discharged Patients, etc. From the perspective of health management, the Book strives to help the readers fight through darkness of the epidemic by equipping them with a correct understanding of the situation, basic knowledge in dealing with the spread, skills of self-adjustment and tips of reducing psychological stress.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDesign Media Publishing (UK) Limited
    Release dateMay 21, 2020
    ISBN9781912268795
    Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic

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      Book preview

      Health Guide for COVID-19 Pandemic - Ligong Lu

      Contributors

      LI Zhaohui

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      ZENG Zhiwei

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      CUI Min

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      LV Jiancheng

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      YANG Haixuan

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      LI Yong

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      ZHAO Wei

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      XIN Yongjie

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      ZHAN Meixiao

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      CHU Jing

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      DONG Qichao

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      WENG Yuqing

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      PENG Yongjun

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      YU Xiangrong

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      ZHOU Zhiling

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      XUE Kedong

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      HE Yan

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      WU Chunxiao

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      ZHANG Zhenlin

      (Zhuhai People's Hospital)

      WANG Xiaoyan

      China Medical City

      WANG Wei

      Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Air Force Medical University

      ZHANG Ning

      Integrated TCM & Western Medicine Department, the Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing

      ZHAO Sicheng

      InterMed Language Culture Company Ltd

      HUANG Jianfei

      Medtrans Consulting Center

      WANG Duo

      InterMed Language Culture Company Ltd.

      DING Ning

      Medtrans Consulting Center

      SHEN Jie

      InterMed Language Culture Company Ltd.

      LI Xiaonan

      InterMed Language Culture Company Ltd.

      WANG Wengai

      Dean of the Foreign Language Department of Taiyuan Tourism College

      Preface

      This is a popular science book written to help address the panic caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). With illustrated texts, it gives, in plain language, a detailed and precise introduction to COVID-19. The chapters of the book include Microorganisms Around Us, Useful Facts about the Novel Coronavirus, The Immune System We Survive on, Various Factors Affecting Immunity, How to Keep A Well-balanced Immune System, Methods of Preventing Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia and Other Infectious Disease, Psychological Adjustments During an Epidemic, Diagnosis and Treatment of the COVID-19, Rehabilitation of Discharged Patients, etc. From the perspective of health management, the Book strives to help the readers fight through darkness of the epidemic by equipping them with a correct understanding of the situation, basic knowledge in dealing with the spread, skills of self-adjustment and tips of reducing psychological stress.

      Contents

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      Chapter 9

      References

      Chapter 1

      Microorganisms Around Us

      I. Distribution of Microorganisms in Nature

      II. The Microorganisms Closely Associated with Human Health

      (i) Bacteria

      (ii) Virus

      (iii) Fungus

      (iv) Mycoplasma

      (v) Chlamydia

      (vi) Spirochete

      (vii) Rickettsia

      Questions

      There are some organisms in nature that have a very close relationship with us, but we can hardly trace them by our eyes. Although those unseen creatures live around us, they can only be seen with an optical microscope or electron microscope by zooming in hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of times. They are called microorganisms.

      I. Distribution of Microorganisms in Nature

      1. Microorganisms in Soil

      For microorganisms, the soil is their ural growth medium, and also their home for a happy life. The metabolism of the microorganisms in soil can alter the physicochemical properties of soil by promoting substance transformations. These microbes play a critical role in forming soil fertilizer. Meanwhile, as the most well-stocked library of microbial strains in nature, soil also cultivates the largest number of microorganisms in most species.

      2. Microorganisms in Waterbody

      Plentiful numbers of microorganisms can also be found in water. The organic and inorganic substances suspending in water are the natural nutrients for the growth of microbes. Most of the microorganisms in freshwater come from the soil. Some of them live in water, and some attach to the organic particles suspending in water. Some water microbes settle along with silt and organic detritus down to the bottom of the lake. These microbes become the inhabitants of the waterbody. The microorganisms living in the seawater include algae and bacteria. Typically marine bacteria are Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Vibrio, and some of the bioluminescent bacteria.

      Tips

      There are also good guys and bad guys in the family of microorganisms. Luckily, most of them are beneficial. They are part of the matter cycle of nature. In a manner of speaking, without microorganisms, plants cannot grow, animals and human beings cannot survive. They are our friends. Yet some harmful microorganisms are out there causing diseases in humans, animals, and plants. Due to their pathogenicity, they are called pathogenic microorganisms.

      The relationship between microorganisms and fertility of the soil

      The life activity of microorganisms is a crucial element for the decomposition of organic matters, as well as the forming of nutrients required by plants. Therefore, abundant microorganisms exist in the fertile soil, while few microorganisms can be found in the infertile soil. And the soil in the absence of microorganisms can be seen as dead soil. Soil microorganisms can also secrete a wide variety of enzymes and growth stimulants for plants rooting.

      3. Microorganisms in Air

      Although air is not an ideal environment for microorganisms to survive or reproduce, and even the ultraviolet light in the air can kill bacteria, there are still some microorganisms in the air. These microbes come from the soil, living things, waterbody, and so on. They are brought to the atmosphere by dust or microparticles in the airflow. The microorganisms distribute unevenly in the air. As getting closer to the ground, more dust in the air brings higher content of microorganisms. In this way, highly diverse and numerous pathogenic microorganisms float in the air of hospitals or the places crowded with people. In these places with high microbial densities, people with low immunity are easily infected.

      Tips

      In the prevention and control of COVID-19, the measure of avoiding gathering in groups aims to prevent the airborne transmission of the virus.

      Nosocomial infection

      Nosocomial infection is the infection that a hospitalized patient acquires in a hospital. It could be acquired and detected during hospitalization, or acquired in a hospital with symptoms presenting after hospital discharge.

      Hospital is crowded with a variety of infectious victims who can always bring pathogens to the hospital environment. With severely contaminated air, the hospital is home for a gathering of microorganisms. Microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and fungus, can be found everywhere in hospitals from the air, object surface, equipment to medical instruments. People with low immunity are always at high risk of infection when they are exposed to a high density of microorganisms in hospitals.

      4. Microorganisms in Agricultural Products

      Diverse microorganisms also exist in agricultural products. Types of notorious molds are responsible for the mildewed grain. Food can also be contaminated with bacteria, mould, and yeast when the workers fail to strictly operate the sterilization in the processing, packaging, transporting, storage, and other processes. Because of its high level of nutrients, food is a particularly optimal environment for a variety of microbes to live. Microbes will reproduce rapidly as long as the optimum temperature and humidity are available. Some of them are pathogenic microbes, while others can even produce toxins. If people take the contaminated food, they may get food poisoning or other severe consequences.

      5. Microorganisms on Industrial Products

      These industrial products can also suffer from getting moldy, decomposing, corrosion, aging, being out of shape, or destroyed after microorganisms have eroded them. Even the inorganic products, such as metal materials, optical lenses, steel wire rope, or underground pipes, could be the victims of microbial erosion.

      6. Microorganisms in Living Bodies

      A variety of microorganisms also thrive on and inside the bodies of human beings and animals. Fortunately, they are generally beneficial microbes, which are called normal flora. However, some species of normal flora can also cause diseases when the interactions among different microbial colonies are disrupted for some reason. For example, if a broad-spectrum antibiotic is applied for a long time, the intestinal bacteria which is sensitive to the drug can be contained, while C. albicans, which is insensitive to the drug, or Staphylococcus with drug resistance, can overgrow. This process will lead to a cluster of diseases, which is called dysbacteriosis.

      II. The Microorganisms Closely Associated with Human Health

      Since human beings cannot live apart from microorganisms, it is necessary to get insight into the microbial species, which closely link to our health. In this book, we mainly talk about bacteria, viruses, fungus, Mycoplasma, Chlamydiae, spirochete, and Rickettsia.

      Prevention

      The critical step to prevent the emergence of dysbacteriosis is

      to use antibiotics appropriately. It is suggested to avoid antibiotic misuse, including excessive use or long-term use. Antibiotics should only be applied when it is necessary. It is better to use narrow-spectrum antibiotics rather than broad-spectrum ones as long as the narrow-spectrum antibiotic works against the disease. The health care practitioner should strictly consider the indications to identify appropriate therapies with antibiotics or prescribed hormones for senior patients, weak patients, or patients with chronic diseases. The drug sensitivity test is suggested to be completed before antibiotic treatment. Therefore, the most sensitive antibiotic can be selected for use based on the test result.

      (i) Bacteria

      1. Morphology of Bacteria

      Bacteria are a type of microscopic organisms with a simple structure. They have cell walls and nucleoplasm but do not contain nucleolus and nuclear membrane. The ribosome is the only organelle found in the bacterial cell. Bacteria can be divided into coccus, bacillus, and spirillum, depending on their shapes. Most bacteria attach to the surface of living or non-living things and exist in the form of biofilm in nature or inside the body of human beings and animals.

      2. Growth and Reproduction

      Nutrients are vital to the growth and repro-duction of bacteria. The nutrients, including water, carbon source, nitrogen source, minerals, and growth factor, can provide important source and energy for the metabolism, growth, and reproduction of bacteria.

      Usually, bacteria reproduce asexually by binary fission. Under the appropriate conditions, bacteria typically have a fast reproduction. Yet handful types of bacteria, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis, reproduce slowly.

      3. Pathogenicity of Bacteria

      Pathogenicity of bacteria refers to the capability by which the bacteria can cause infection. The bacterial pathogenicity only acts on the specific host. In other words, some bacteria only cause diseases in human beings, while some only infect animals. Some pathogenic bacteria are responsible for infections both on human beings and animals. Each pathogenic bacteria can lead to different pathological processes and disease, such as typhoid fever caused by Salmonella typhi and tuberculosis caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It depends on the characteristics of the specific genus or species.

      Virulence is the degree of pathogenicity which a bacterium has. Whether the pathogenic bacteria can cause diseases after invading an organism is associated closely with various factors, such as virulence, the number of bacteria invading into the body, the portal of entry, immunity of the host, and environmental factors.

      4. The Invasion Route of Bacteria

      (a) Respiratory tract: The pathogenic bacteria exist in the respiratory tract of patients or bacteria carriers. When

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