The next two weeks are predicted to be the crucial time during this COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Dr. Cliff Martin, Chief Medical Operator at OSF HealthCare in the Western Region, offers more insight into the peak that is being referenced:
“Most of the time when they are referencing the peak, they are looking at any one given day the number of human beings that will have severe ailments or illness that could be needing a hospitalization or critical care services. It would be the height of where people are ill and somewhat unusual about this COVID-19 virus, is that there seems to be an initial illness with the fever and malaise, cough and scratchy throat, then kind of a dry cough. Then it may be as much as five, six, seven, eight days into that before the real severe respiratory symptoms start to kick in. So that peak also references that point, maybe not as many new cases, but when those folks who already were ill or really hitting the point of needing the most intense care,” Dr. Martin states.
Dr. Martin goes on to say that if someone fundamentally develops a true healing from contracting COVID-19 and develops natural antibodies, they have a lesser chance of contracting the virus again, but the concern is that since the virus is so widespread, it could mutate slightly, creating a different version of the virus.
