MINSK, 27 October (BelTA) - Experts of BelTA’s Nation Speaks project discussed the types of viruses circulating in Belarus and the methods for their treatment.
In total, over 200 different viruses are circulating in Belarus. Natalya Shmeleva, Head of the Laboratory of Influenza and Influenza-like Diseases at the Research Institute of Hygiene, Toxicology, Epidemiology, Virology, and Microbiology of the National Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Public Health, emphasized that these include four types of influenza - A, B, C, and D - as well as parainfluenza viruses, adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), rhinovirus, coronavirus, and others. “These have now been joined by the new SARS-CoV-2, which has also taken on a seasonal pattern and is circulating alongside other respiratory viruses,” she said.
Irina Bas, Deputy Chief Physician for Infectious Diseases at Mogilev Hospital No. 1 and Chief Freelance Infectious Disease Specialist of the Mogilev Oblast Executive Committee's Main Directorate for Healthcare, explained that Acute Respiratory Diseases is a general term that includes two groups of infections: acute respiratory viral infections and bacterial respiratory infections.
“As for antiviral drugs, we don't have many. There are medicines that target specific viruses: for instance, etiological drugs for influenza, and acyclovir and other antiviral agents for herpes. Other viral infections are treated symptomatically. This means the treatment is aimed at relieving the symptoms of the illness - cough, headache, fever,” she said.
Thus, for the respiratory infections that patients most frequently present with, the ones that are etiologically significant are influenza (for which there is specific treatment), coronavirus, and herpesvirus. All other infections are treated symptomatically.
Speaking about medications, Irina Bas stressed that antibiotics should only be prescribed by a doctor. “If a patient has had a fever for three days and it is not subsiding well, they should not stay at home and hope it will go away on its own, even if they are taking antiviral drugs. If the fever is difficult to reduce and the general condition is worsening, it is essential to seek medical help - call a doctor or call an ambulance,” the deputy chief physician added.
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