HomeNewsHealth & FitnessCovid-19 task force revises treatment protocol, use of drugs

Covid-19 task force revises treatment protocol, use of drugs

The revised guidelines, seen by Moneycontrol, stresses on avoiding the use of antibiotics.

March 20, 2023 / 06:08 IST
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The revision of clinical protocol has been done at a time when India is witnessing a slight increase in new COVID cases in the last few days.
The revision of clinical protocol has been done at a time when India is witnessing a slight increase in new COVID cases in the last few days.

The National Task Force (NTF) on Covid-19 has revised the clinical guidelines for the management of adults under treatment for the disease.

As per the NTF, the revised guidelines do not advise the use of drugs like Lopinavir-ritonavir, hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), Ivermectin, Molnupiravir, Favipiravir, Azithromycin and Doxycycline.

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The National Joint Monitoring Group on Covid-19 has also advised not to use convalescent plasma therapy for the treatment of adult Covid-19 patients in India.

The NTF, headed by Vinod Paul, Member Health, NITI Aayog, comprises officials from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Directorate General of Health Services and All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS).

COVID-19 Vaccine
Frequently Asked Questions

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How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.
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