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Especially the elderly, who are at the highest risk of infection and complications from COVID-19 disease, should protect themselves against the coronavirus. We talk to Dr. Jarosław Derejczyk from the Geriatric Hospital of Jana Pawła II in Katowice, a consultant for geriatrics in the Silesian Voivodeship.
Aleksandra Lipiec, MedTvoiLokony: Why are seniors suffering from viral infections the most?
Dr Jarosław Derejczyk, geriatrician: As the aging process begins, a natural weakening of the immune system appears. Although we forget about it, and sometimes we displace this thought, the period of the onset of the aging process, known as the pre-presentation period, is 55 years of age. The time when tissue changes are commonly found, absent in young ones, appears 10 years after this period. Then, a slow increase in susceptibility to infectious diseases and the changing response of the immune system to new infections is also observed. Older people often do not have as strong a fever as young people. Greater susceptibility results from a lower immune function, and a greater number of complications from a smaller reserve of the body associated with the presence of chronic diseases (diabetes, heart and lung diseases), which is needed to pass through the severe inflammatory reaction that accompanies the disease.
- Check the latest data on the range of the coronavirus in Poland and in the world
How can the elderly be protected against the coronavirus?
Vaccinations remain the most effective form of protection against the consequences of viral infections. The example of influenza shows that it is in the elderly that they are increasingly needed. We are waiting for the COVID-19 vaccine, which is not yet available. The main effort that should be made, and with varying results, is made at multi-country levels: travel restrictions, quarantine and isolation of patients, and for countries with a wildlife trafficking tradition, changes to legislation to continue this tradition. The role of the media is to show the importance of staying at home during the first symptoms of coughing, temperature, weakness and the advisability of talking to your GP or the person on the helpline. It is completely irresponsible to go to work with such symptoms.
What are the basic recommendations for seniors?
Seniors should not leave their homes now. No public space, especially in large cities, in areas with trams, buses, and large industrial stores, will give them full protection. It is very likely that this space will sooner or later be overcome by a coronavirus that will look for the lungs of seniors. The risk that it will lead to the death of an elderly person over the age of 75 is so high that it is worth staying at home.
All recommendations to limit gatherings and contacts in spaces with large numbers of people, or working remotely, are naturally justified due to the ease with which the virus spreads between people. Recommendations for not shaking hands, if it is not necessary, to stay close to a coughing person, frequent hand disinfection (carried in a pocket with a small dispenser with disinfectant liquid) after touching surfaces such as doors, handles are understandable.
In the case of older people, the younger one says not to shake hands, because the older person may have difficulty learning a new behavior. Wearing a protective mask in the open space is of little importance. In a space with a large number of people exchanging, it has a protective role if it protects the mouth and nose.
In long-term care facilities, where there are usually more elderly disabled people, move beyond isolation – in the case of suspected infections – from feeding in a large individual feeding room. Such a scenario requires more staff and it should be considered in advance to protect the residents from the risk of spreading potential infection. In most hospital and care facilities, visiting bans are in place and it is the role of the management of the facilities to sensitize employees not to come to work with symptoms of infection.
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