Pathophysiologic enigma of COVID-19 pandemic with clinical correlates

Abstract

Introduction: This review article examines the virology, modes of transmission, risk factors, clinical course, diagnosis and treatment of Coronavirus disease based on the various studies done in the past 8 months. Background: Covid-19(Coronavirus disease 2019) has been named as a novel virus as there has been no known cases of infection with this strain in human beings. Origin of this virus is alleged to be from a family of bats and pangolins, in Wuhan, China in Dec 2019 from a seafood market, and since then the spread of this virus has been unstoppable.After a single introduction into the human population, the Chinese authorities immediately notified the WHO about the increasing number of COVID-19 cases. An epidemic was caused due to the SARS virus in China in 2003, and hence this virus has been renamed as SARS-Cov-2 because of its close relation to it. The symptoms of this disease can vary from mild flu-like to severe respiratory distress requiring admission to ICU. Methods: The literature on COVID-19 was retrieved from PubMed, Google Scholar and Cochrane database. Keywords and phrases used during the search included “Covid-19,” “pandemic,” “Novel” and “Coronavirus”. Conclusion: At present, no definitive treatment is available for this virus; only symptomatic management is undertaken. Further research is being undertaken to develop the Coronavirus vaccine and the use of plasma of treated patients to manage active infected cases.