Renowned doctors who are part of the Gujarat government's COVID-19 task force on Monday said 80 per cent of coronavirus patients recover through proper medication and rest and called for careful use of Remdesivir which has seen a scramble during the second wave.

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They said people should not panic thinking they would need an ICU bed once they contract COVID-19 as only 20 per cent of patients need supportive care. The doctors suggested a judicious use of Remdesivir, claiming it is not a life-saving drug. Remdesivir is an anti-viral drug widely used in the treatment of COVID-19 and its demand has shot up dramatically during the second wave of the pandemic. "People with mild symptoms must not panic. It is a false notion that every patient needs an ICU. 80 per cent of patients recover only through proper medication and rest. Only 20 per cent are hospitalised for symptomatic supportive care", said Dr Atul Patel, an expert in infectious diseases.

Dr Patel along with other medical experts who are part of the government's task force on COVID-19 addressed the media in Gandhinagar after attending a meeting with Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. "There is no evidence which proves that Remdesivir is a life-saving drug. It does not even reduce the mortality rate. It only reduces hospital stay and should be given to those having low oxygen saturation and admitted to the ICU. It is also useless to give this drug as soon as someone is found positive", Dr Patel was quoted as saying in an official release issued after the press meet.

Expressing concern over the new threat posed by Mucormycosis, a serious fungal infection found in some COVID- 19 patients, Dr Patel said coronavirus along with high diabetes and use of steroids provide a conducive environment for the fungus to grow in the body. While the mortality rate due to the fungal infection before the pandemic was 52 per cent in the state and used to infect people with high diabetes, it has come down to 38 to 45 per cent after the emergence of coronavirus, he said. Dr Dileep Mavlankar, Director of the Indian Institute of Public Health at Gandhinagar, said people need to be extra careful and be prepared for a possible third wave of coronavirus.