New Coronavirus Crisis in severely ill patient surge Treated doctor talks March 4:04:05
A doctor who is infected with the new coronavirus and treats patients whose symptoms have worsened enough to temporarily require a heart-lung machine was interviewed by NHK. Although the patient has recovered, doctors warn that a surge in the number of severely ill patients could disrupt medical practice.
Interviewed with Dr. Yoshikazu Muto of Public Tou Hospital in Seto City, Aichi Prefecture.
Dr. Mutoh, in treating patients infected with the new coronavirus and consulting with doctors at other medical institutions, said about patients who became more severe. Suddenly, about a week after onset, some people have worsened respiratory conditions and become more severe. "
Among them, one woman in her 70s began to develop symptoms such as coughs, and one week later, her symptoms worsened until she could not breathe on her own.
For this reason, treatment was performed by administering an unapproved drug while temporarily oxygenating oxygen by sending oxygen directly into the blood using an artificial heart-lung machine called "ECMO".
After that, the patient recovered, and Dr. Muto said, "The drug is not effective, but treatment is gradually being found and he is encouraged."
On the other hand, treatment using ECMO requires 24-hour support by doctors and nurses, and the burden is extremely large. May not be able to help. "