Potential for Further Mismanagement of Fever During COVID-19 Pandemic: Possible Causes and Impacts

Frontiers in Medicine

article

Samer Singh¹  Dhiraj Kishore²  Rakesh K. Singh³ 

[1] Centre of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University;Department of General Medicine, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University;Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University

关键词: benefits of fever during infection;    fever management guidelines;    mortality;    heat shock;    inflammation;    antipyresis;    COVID-19;    respiratory diseases;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fmed.2022.751929

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Fever remains an integral part of acute infectious diseases management, especially for those without effective therapeutics, but the widespread myths about “fevers” and the presence of confusing guidelines from different agencies, which have heightened during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and are open to alternate interpretation, could deny whole populations the benefits of fever. Guidelines suggesting antipyresis for 37.8–39°C fever are concerning as 39°C boosts the protective heat-shock and immune response (humoral, cell-mediated, and nutritional) whereas ≥40°C initiates/enhances the antiviral responses and restricts high-temperature adapted pathogens, e.g., severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), strains of influenza, and measles. Urgent attention is accordingly needed to address the situation because of the potential public health consequences of the existence of conflicting guidelines in the public domain. We have in this article attempted to restate the benefits of fever in disease resolution, dispel myths, and underline the need for alignment of national treatment guidelines with that of the WHO, to promote appropriate practices and reduce the morbidity and mortality from infectious diseases, such as COVID-19.

【 授权许可】

CC BY