Novel coronavirus (COVID-19): Its implications for anesthesia

  • Muhammad Adeel Bashir Consultant Anesthesiologist, Kaul Associates (Pvt) Ltd. Lahore, Pakistan.
  • Romana Shaida Durrani Consultant Anesthesiologist, Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital & Research Centre, Lahore, Pakistan.
Keywords: Novel coronavirus, COVID-19, Coronavirus, Implications

Abstract

Once again in the same decade, global health delivery systems are facing with the daunting challenge of another variant of Coronavirus (COVID-19). Over the last 20 years at least six different variants of coronavirus have emerged. Infections caused by these viruses mainly cause life threatening respiratory implications. The recent outbreak of a novel Coronavirus in Wuhan, China has been labelled as public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). Previous experiences of Coronavirus outbreaks have shown that health care workers are at a high risk of acquiring this infection. Anesthesiologists, are particularly vulnerable due to their frequent exposure to infected respiratory secretions. Therefore, to minimize the transmission of nCoV-2019 infection, proper infection control measures like correct workplace practices, appropriate usage of personal protective equipment, airborne and droplet precautions are mandatory while managing a suspected case of infected patient.

Citation: Bashir MA, Durrani RS. Novel coronavirus (COVID-19): Its implications for anesthesia. Anaesth pain intensive care 2020;24(1):

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35975/apic.v24i1.

Published
05-07-2020
How to Cite
Bashir, M. A., & Durrani, R. (2020). Novel coronavirus (COVID-19): Its implications for anesthesia. Anaesthesia, Pain & Intensive Care, 24(1), 1-3. https://doi.org/10.35975/apic.v24i1.1214
Section
Editorial Views