Turkish doctors true heroes of pandemic

By Burak Milli

HATAY, Turkey (AA) - Doctors in Turkey have been working against the clock to save the lives of patients suffering from the coronavirus.

Dr. Akin Cam, an internal medicine specialist who works at a private hospital in the southeastern Hatay province, warned patients against believing everything circulating on social media.

"People should not believe everything they hear, the most powerful medicine is isolation," he added.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, neurologist Dr. Attila Kara said most patients come with complaints of muscle pain and high fever.

"Headache is one of the most frequent complaints and it is generally unbearable. Painkillers don't help. Loss of taste and smell are also among the common symptoms," he said.

He added that the COVID-19 infection could lead to coagulation in various organs such as the brain.

Kara urged people to wear masks and stressed the importance of social distancing.

Turkey recently announced new coronavirus restrictions, including a curfew on weeknights and full weekend curfews.

The announcement came after a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey.

The curfews will continue until a new decision is taken.

On Sunday, Turkey reported 26,919 more COVID-19 infections, including 5,103 symptomatic patients, and saw 218 more deaths over the past 24 hours.

Since first emerging in Wuhan, China last December, COVID-19 has claimed over 1.61 million lives in 191 countries and regions.

More than 72.30 million cases have been reported worldwide, with over 47.30 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by US-based Johns Hopkins University.

While the US, India and Brazil remain the worst-hit countries in terms of the number of cases, Europe is in the grip of a devastating second wave of infections.

*Writing by Burak Dag