Treatment

Currently there is no treatment specifically approved for COVID-19, and no cure for an infection, although treatments and vaccines are currently under study.

Instead, treatment focuses on managing symptoms because the virus runs its course.

Seek medical help if you think that you've got COVID-19. Your doctor will recommend treatment for any symptoms or complications that develop and allow you to know if you would like to hunt emergency treatment.

Other coronaviruses like SARS and MERS also are treated by managing symptoms. In some cases, experimental treatments are tested to ascertain how effective they’re.

Examples of therapies used for these illnesses include:

  • antiviral or retroviral medications
  • breathing support, like mechanical ventilation
  • steroids to scale back lung swelling
  • blood plasma transfusions