Is a lockdown to control covid-19 necessary?

Is a lockdown to control covid-19 necessary?

Can Lockdown control Covid-19?

@healthbiztips by Arlene Gentallan - Healthbiztips - health blog

On January 23, 2020, China gripped the world in shock and horror as it announced that Wuhan, a city of about 11 million people had to be placed on lockdown as it became the epicenter of the newly discovered coronavirus, now named SARS-CoV-2.

A lockdown seems too drastic and harsh back then. But now, amidst the mounting death toll and ever rising confirmed cases brought about by covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2), it's as if lockdown is the new norm and countries that denounce it like Japan are held in skepticism.

Lockdown's purpose is to flatten the curve of soaring infections and deaths brought about by covid-19. By doing so, this will halt the progression of the disease, drop the mortality rate, and ultimately eradicate the disease from the populace. Of utmost importance is that this slowing down will prevent health care system from collapsing and instead give them ample time to prepare.

Fast forward to March 2020 and we see developed countries in multiple parts of the globe underestimate the severity of impact of covid-19, some even believing that a herd immunity is possible, but only to fall back when all other options are exhausted and when thousands of lives had already been claimed, leaving their health care system overwhelmed and badly cripled. Thus, ensuing lockdown as a last resort.

Lockdown seems to be the most rational solution when people ignore pleads of social distancing and quarantine. As the disease wreck havoc among nations, there are just those who wouldn't listen. Sure, this all looks surreal but it's crucial to come to terms with this reality. As people engage in their own battle of survival as they venture to workplaces and errands despite the warnings, the government has to step in to enact what is best for all. Thus, even with the debilitating economic impact and turmoil lockdown brings, it inevitably is the last solution for this global crisis.

Sure, South Korea was able to manage the spread of covid-19 even without lockdown through mass testing and contact tracing, but these are complex capabilities most other nations just can't seem to put up.

It is known that the novel coronavirus can be transmitted from human to human through respiratory droplets expelled when an infected person breathes, sneezes, or coughs. Further aggravating the circumalstances is the case of asymptomatic carriers who can pass on the virus even before they show up sign and symptom, others may not show any sign at all. This allows covid-19 to infect a great number of people at such a short span of time.

Covid-19 puts at risk the elderly, those with pre-existing medical conditions such as asthma, heart disease, and cancer, but it too has claimed individuals on the prime years of their life. As it was said, covid-19 is a traitor disease, symptoms can worsen  in a matter or hours to days.

However, covid-19 has a certain vulnerability we can tap to humanity's advantage. Without a host, it will die, but it takes time. Meanwhile, recovery of infected individuals takes approximately 14 days. If the chain of infection is broken by isolating infected patients and preventing further transmission, then it can be eradicated. Yet, this is a near impossibly given mankind's mobility, unless the authority enforces policies like a nationwide lockdown to limit their movement, thus preventing the further spread of the virus.

Another challenge to a successful quarantine is the false belief that covid-19 is just another mild flue or a disease that's only fatal among old people and those with comorbidity, however this is not the case. Imaging shows that the lung tissue damage caused by covid-19 is far more extensive than that of a typical pneumonia.

In Italy, Spain, and New York City, health care workers reveal the dire condition of the battle against this invisible enemy as medicine gets out of stock, masks and personal protective equipments as well as life-saving ventilators are running low. Healthcare workers contracting the deadly disease is on the rise, leaving a vulnerable healthcare system and mourning families behind. A lockdown of the city was declared but at a time when the situation has already made a sharp turn for the worse.

So, if any citizen questions the lockdown enforced by the sovereignty on their jurisdiction, then, they don't really understand the full gravity of this pandemic. It is sacrificing for the sake of all. As of April 4, 2020, the World Health Organization has recorded over a million people infected, of which more than 50 thousand died in over 200 countries.