Marshfield Medical Center-Neillsville Doctor Explains the Coronavirus
Thursday, July 23rd, 2020 -- 12:55 PM
-The coronavirus has thrown life for a loop, canceling events and making even simple shopping trips more complicated.I spoke with Dr. Amy Schneider of Marshfield Medical Center-Neillsville about the virus.
Riley: “Can you talk a little bit about the coronavirus?”
Dr. Schneider: “The virus that causes COVID-19 is a member of the coronavirus family of which there’s other strains of that as well. And the thing that’s particularly worrisome or harmful about this particular version of it is that it’s new. Which is why you may have heard it called, especially early on, the novel coronavirus because it’s so new. So, collectively, as people, we don’t have significant immunity or herd immunity to it yet. So, that’s why it’s particularly able to infect large numbers of people. Symptoms would include primarily respiratory symptoms, cough symptoms or flu like symptoms. Influenza like symptoms, so primarily cough, fever, difficulty breathing. But it can also include things like diarrhea or vomiting. Also, body aches would be another common symptom. So, symptoms that would be similar to flu like symptoms.
Riley: “So, you mentioned that respiratory is one of the main symptoms of coronavirus. Is that how this particular virus was spread so quickly?”
Dr. Schneider: “Yes, because it’s spread through coughing, and breathing, and sneezing, which, of course, everyone does. And, of course, you catch a viral illness like this and the first thing you start to do is start coughing. And so, it’s spread easily that way as opposed to illnesses that are spread through diarrhea.”
Riley: “What are some good ways that people can combat the virus?”
Dr. Schneider: “I think, primarily, things that people can do would be washing your hands. Washing your hands, particularly before you touch your face or before you eat anything. Avoiding touching your face, so if you have allergies or your sneezing or if you're even itching your nose, washing your hands before you touch your face, so you don’t ingest it that way. Mask wearing is also extremely helpful because that limits the people that are coughing and inadvertently spreading this. And also protecting the people that wouldn’t be able to breathe it in. So, mask wearing puts up that barrier against the droplets in the air to keep you from inhaling that infectious material.”
Riley: “We’ve read reports that even if someone has the virus, the symptoms don’t always occur right away. So, is wearing a mask a good way to help people, who may have contracted the virus, to keep them from spreading the virus to others?”
Dr. Schneider: “Yes, you’re exactly right. So, wearing a mask is not only helpful for you, but it’s protective for those around you, just in case you were to unknowingly have contracted the virus and be presymptomatic. Perhaps next week you’ll develop symptoms or maybe you have a mild case that you’re chalking up to allergies or a run of the mill cold. But unknowingly, and certainly unintentionally, one could be spreading around this virus. So, yes wearing a mask would protect the people around you or at least reduce risk. It’s hard to say that it would be 100% protective, but it would certainly reduce the risk for those around you.”
Riley: “If someone were to start experiencing symptoms of the virus or they find out they’ve come in contact with someone with the virus, what should they do in moving forward to confirm whether or not they have the virus?”
Dr. Schneider: “So, people who have been told they have been in contact with someone who has the virus, either by the health department or because they found that someone around them had the virus, as well as people who have symptoms that they think could be compatible with the virus, it’s a good idea to test them. It is helpful for us, certainly if you have emergency symptoms, if you cannot breathe, if you have chest pains, if you’re throwing up so much you can’t keep fluids down. If you have symptoms that require emergency treatment, please do present yourself to an emergency room. But people who have somewhat mild symptoms, the first thing to do is to try and avoid spreading it to other people, so that’s where it falls into the staying home and wearing a mask. And then calling to arrange for testing. Locally, you could call the nurse line at any of our health facilities to ask about testing. You can also call the health department to ask about testing for yourself. In the meantime, while you wait for a call back from those organizations or you wait for your scheduled testing appointment, you should stay home. You should wear a mask to protect others in your household and don’t go to work.”
Riley: “If people are interested in learning more about the virus, the symptoms or ways they combat the virus, do you know of some good places they can go to find that information?”
Dr. Schneider: “The Clark County Health Department webpage is a good source of information. Our Marshfield Clinic webpage has a section dedicated to the coronavirus. And the CDC website is also a good source of information. Those are all reputable sources that have reliable information and wouldn’t have untrue things. So, those would be good, reliable sources for people to check.”
As the doctor mentioned, there are several places you can go to find factual information about the coronavirus including Marshfield Medical Center, the Clark County Health Department and the CDC.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.