No medication for Covid; beware of misleading social media posts: Medical expert

Claiming that no medication has yet been discovered against Covid-19, a medical expert today warned people not to be deceived by medications guided on social media claiming to cure Covid-19.

Prof. Priyadarshani Galappatthy of the Colombo University said there were certain medications prescribed by the doctors for complications in Covid patients and that such medications should not be taken by Covid patients who are serving home quarantine without the recommendations by doctors.

She told a press conference organised by the Health Promotion Bureau that there was no issue in taking vitamins such as vitamins C, D and Zinc on recommended doses, as taking such vitamins would not cause any side-effects.

“There is no medication discovered against Coronavirus as yet. Research is still in progress. The only treatment available right now is the vaccination against the virus. There is no issue in taking vitamins such as vitamin C,D and zinc under recommended doses. Various people are promoting various medications on social media. Don’t get deceived by such medication,” she said.

Prof. Galappatthy said Covid-19 patients who are home-quarantined can take paracetamol if they have fever. “Paracetamol should be taken on recommended doses. An adult should take two tablets at a time and only three times a day. A child should be given according to their weight,” she said.

She also said that Antihistamine medicines such as loratadine, fexofenadine and chlorpheniramine could be used by patients who have symptoms such as runny nose or sore throat as prescribed by the doctors.

“Home-quarantined patients should contact doctors and take advice to use such medication,” the doctor said.

She stressed that medications used by doctors for complications like covid pneumonia should be used only in hospitals and under medical supervision as they may cause side-effects.

Prof. Galappatthy said patients who were taking medications for chronic diseases should not discontinue their routine medication even after they contracted the virus. (Ajith Siriwardana)