Dear Editor,
Due to the pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), thousands of scientific studies,(11. Holanda MA, Pinheiro BV. COVID-19 pandemic and mechanical ventilation: facing the present, designing the future. J Bras Pneumol. 2020;46(4):e20200282.,22. Tovani-Palone MR, Storari L, Barbari V. Could preventing thromboembolism be a new hope for COVID-19 patients?. Electron J Gen Med. 2020;17(6):em250.) as well as diverse treatment protocols,(33. Corrêa TD, Matos GF, Bravim BA, Cordioli RL, Garrido AD, Assuncao MS, et al. Intensive support recommendations for critically-ill patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection. einstein (São Paulo). 2020;18:eAE5793. doi: 10.31744/einstein_journal/2020AE5793.
https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journa...
,44. Oba J, Carvalho WB, Silva CA, Delgado AF. Gastrointestinal manifestations and nutritional therapy during COVID-19 pandemic: a practical guide for pediatricians. einstein (São Paulo). 2020;18:eRW5774. https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journal/2020RW5774. [Epub 2020 Jul 10] Review.
https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journa...
) have been reported in the literature. So far, in the absence of vaccines against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), it has been a routine to care for severe COVID-19 patients at intensive care units, who are on invasive mechanical ventilation for several days; on average, during three weeks.(11. Holanda MA, Pinheiro BV. COVID-19 pandemic and mechanical ventilation: facing the present, designing the future. J Bras Pneumol. 2020;46(4):e20200282.) This phase of the treatment will certainly imply on important psychologic impacts involving the relatives of these patients, since visits are not allowed, and there is no specific medication against SARS-CoV-2. Furthermore, inappropriate media coverage regarding the pandemic may exacerbate such impacts.(55. Mejia CR, Ticona D, Rodriguez-Alarcon JF, Campos-Urbina AM, Catay-Medina JB, Porta-Quinto T, et al. The media and their informative role in the face of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): validation of fear perception and magnitude of the issue (MED-COVID-19). Electron J Gen Med. 2020;17(6):em239.) Hence, although not very often addressed in the literature, it is worthy stressing the importance and need to provide psychological support to relatives of severe patients during hospitalization.
REFERENCES
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1Holanda MA, Pinheiro BV. COVID-19 pandemic and mechanical ventilation: facing the present, designing the future. J Bras Pneumol. 2020;46(4):e20200282.
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2Tovani-Palone MR, Storari L, Barbari V. Could preventing thromboembolism be a new hope for COVID-19 patients?. Electron J Gen Med. 2020;17(6):em250.
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3Corrêa TD, Matos GF, Bravim BA, Cordioli RL, Garrido AD, Assuncao MS, et al. Intensive support recommendations for critically-ill patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection. einstein (São Paulo). 2020;18:eAE5793. doi: 10.31744/einstein_journal/2020AE5793.
» https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journal/2020AE5793 -
4Oba J, Carvalho WB, Silva CA, Delgado AF. Gastrointestinal manifestations and nutritional therapy during COVID-19 pandemic: a practical guide for pediatricians. einstein (São Paulo). 2020;18:eRW5774. https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journal/2020RW5774 [Epub 2020 Jul 10] Review.
» https://doi.org/10.31744/einstein_journal/2020RW5774 -
5Mejia CR, Ticona D, Rodriguez-Alarcon JF, Campos-Urbina AM, Catay-Medina JB, Porta-Quinto T, et al. The media and their informative role in the face of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): validation of fear perception and magnitude of the issue (MED-COVID-19). Electron J Gen Med. 2020;17(6):em239.
Publication Dates
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Publication in this collection
31 Aug 2020 -
Date of issue
2020
History
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Received
21 July 2020 -
Accepted
28 July 2020
