"It seemed to me that this only happened in the Third World, not in the West."
24 April 2020
Badiola will be on the committee of experts that will prepare Madrid "for the next day"
24 April 2020
Dr. José Ramón Paño, principal investigator of the Clinical Research Group on Infectious Diseases at the Zaragoza Clinical Hospital, explains three months after the coronavirus arrived in Spain, how things have changed and points out solutions for the future.
Just two months ago, the situation regarding the coronavirus in Aragon was very different from what is experienced today in hospitals. The virus arrived in the Community a week after the first infection was confirmed in Madrid, although at that time it was not feared to be a "real threat" to Spain. Currently, with more than 22.000 deaths throughout the territory - 681 in Aragon -, hospitals are already preparing to face a second wave of Covid-19 infections.
How have you experienced the rise in coronavirus cases in Aragon in your unit?
The first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has meant a great overload for the hospital in general and for some services and units in particular, mainly Emergencies, Infectious Diseases, Internal Medicine, Pulmonology, Intensive Care Medicine and Anesthesia. Also for central services, such as Occupational Risk Prevention, Preventive Medicine, Microbiology, Immunology, Biochemistry and Pharmacy. All of these services and the professionals that make them up have had to adapt their way of working to a situation as exceptional as the one experienced.
Do you think there could be a reactivation of the epidemic after the summer and cause a second wave of infections?
Yes. It is a possibility that, without a doubt, must be contemplated and for which we must prepare.
"Now it is very important that the health system consolidates everything we have learned"
If so, are hospitals more prepared than before?
The truth is that we have learned a lot during this first wave. Now it is very important that the health system consolidates everything we have learned.
Which country do you think will lead the development of the Covid-19 vaccine?
Don't know. There are several countries that have already found some vaccine candidates and have already begun to go down the road of trials. The important thing is not to know which country is going to develop a safe and effective vaccine, but rather that the one that succeeds, the sooner the better.
What research projects related to the coronavirus is the Zaragoza Clinical Hospital immersed in?
Our hospital participates in the WHO 'Solidarity' trial, in which various antiviral medications are studied in hospitalized patients. We also participate in the ConPlas study, which evaluates the efficacy and safety of administering immune plasma from people who have already recovered from the infection, that is, who have developed antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. In addition, we participate in the EPICOS study of pharmacological prophylaxis (prevention) in healthcare workers and work together with immunologists Julián Pardo and Luis Martínez, in the biological characterization of this infection. To carry out this latest project we need financing that can be provided through the 'crowdfunding' initiative of the Aragón Health Research Institute.
How will the development of new antivirals influence a second wave?
We believe that early control of viral replication can help minimize complications derived from infection and, therefore, it is interesting to find active drugs against this virus.
