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We can put a patient on oxygen without intubating them. High flow oxygen can provide up to 60 liters per minute. We can prone patients, and provide them with nu

We can put a patient on oxygen without intubating them. High flow oxygen can provide up to 60 liters per minute. We can prone patients, and provide them with nutrition to help support their immune system. We save many patients with supportive care. We can’t however cure the virus. And if it progresses far enough then no amount of oxygen will save a patient. These cases are hard because we have to watch someone die without any means to save them. Doing cpr on a patient with covid can feel pointless. If the lungs do work then no amount of chest compressions, oxygen, and cardiac drugs will save that person.

klmadfejno 6y ago
I'm hoping this doesn't come off as snarky but, why can't / don't we tell people to prone at home? As I understand, it's literally just lying down on your stomach. I first encountered the concept in a new york times article where the interviewed nurse was saying the problem was people got bored and stopped doing it. That sounded... dumb. And as though being prone should be plastered all over the public health recommendations.
- davycro 6y ago
  Good question. Proned patients are too sick to survive at home. As soon as the roll onto their back or sit upright they start suffocating and must work for their breath. Because of this they need help caring for themselves. They also are at risk of becoming much worse and needing more oxygen.
  - klmadfejno 6y ago
    > Proned patients are too sick to survive at home. Proned patients are just people lying on their stomachs, are they not? I get that its something you would recommend to someone who is really low on oxygen, but why aren't people who aren't too sick to survive at home being told to do this also? Is there a downside? Like if your pulse oximeter starts readying 88 and slowly dropping, its probably a good idea to start proning, in the very least at night while sleeping?

klmadfejno 6y ago

I'm hoping this doesn't come off as snarky but, why can't / don't we tell people to prone at home? As I understand, it's literally just lying down on your stomach. I first encountered the concept in a new york times article where the interviewed nurse was saying the problem was people got bored and stopped doing it. That sounded... dumb. And as though being prone should be plastered all over the public health recommendations.

davycro 6y ago
Good question. Proned patients are too sick to survive at home. As soon as the roll onto their back or sit upright they start suffocating and must work for their breath. Because of this they need help caring for themselves. They also are at risk of becoming much worse and needing more oxygen.
- klmadfejno 6y ago
  > Proned patients are too sick to survive at home. Proned patients are just people lying on their stomachs, are they not? I get that its something you would recommend to someone who is really low on oxygen, but why aren't people who aren't too sick to survive at home being told to do this also? Is there a downside? Like if your pulse oximeter starts readying 88 and slowly dropping, its probably a good idea to start proning, in the very least at night while sleeping?