Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): The Role of Pharmacists in the Fight against COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral infection that affects the respiratory system. The history of human coronaviruses can be dated to as early as 1965 when scientists were able to isolate the virus from the human respiratory tract who had suffered from colds. COVID-19 is caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that targets the respiratory system. Clinical manifestations of COVID-19 include fever, dry cough, shortness of breath, sputum production, headache, persistent chest pain or pressure in the chest, sore throat, diarrhoea, vomiting, respiratory failure, septic shock, confusion, and organ failure, but these manifestations may not appear until 2 to 14 days after exposure to SARS-CoV-2.