About Disease

Symptoms of COVID-19?
Typical symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath, and sometimes a runny nose or a sore throat. In some cases, this can progress to serious illness, including pneumonia and severe breathing problems.

How does it spread?
The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales.

These droplets land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose, or mouth. 

People can also catch COVID-19 if they breathe in droplets from a person with COVID-19 who coughs out or exhales droplets. This is why it is important to stay more than 1 meter (3 feet) away from a person who is sick.

Any Other Information

Who all can get tested for COVID -19?
1. Symptomatic 
a) patients having Fever, Cough, Difficulty in breathing
b) Hospitalized patients with severe acute respiratory illness
c) Patients identified in fever clinic or OPDs in registered private or government hospitals
d) ILI within Hotspots /containment zones
e) ILI among refugees and migrants in within 7days if illness

2. Asymptomatic 
a) High-Risk Individuals in close contact with the laboratory-confirmed COVID positive cases.
b) Senior Citizens over the age of 70 at any medical laboratory
c) Care Takers of such senior citizens will also be able to take the test if needed.
d) Pregnant women are likely to deliver in 5 days

Who all can get tested for COVID -19 at home?
a) Home Testing for COVID is allowed for Senior Citizens over the age of 70 at any medical laboratory without a doctor’s prescription.
b) Care Takers of such senior citizens will also be able to take the test if needed.
c) Home testing for COVID is allowed even if they are able to acquire an e-prescription from their doctor instead of a physical copy of the same.  
d) All high-risk contacts isolated at home are now allowed to get themselves tested at any medical laboratory other than those affiliated to the ward offices.
e) All Direct and high-risk contacts of confirmed positive patients quarantined at home are to be tested once between day 5 and day 10 of coming in to contact with the positive patients. 
f) All such persons can directly approach the labs for home collection of swabs for which no prescription is required. 
g) Self-attestation letter shall be submitted by such persons to the laboratories certifying that they are high-risk contacts of the COVID positive patient, stating the name of COVID positive patient.
h) If any of the direct and high-risk contacts of confirmed positive cases, develop symptoms before day 5 of coming in the contact with the confirmed positive patient. He/she can be home tested immediately on the basis of self-attestation submitted by the person to the lab along with the swabs