Recently, authorities identified a new coronavirus outbreak in China that has now reached other countries. It is named Coronavirus Disease 2019, or COVID-19. These viruses are usually responsible for serious diseases starting with a common cold. However, corona viruses are also behind some of the more severe outbreaks.
What is Coronavirus?
Symptoms
Cold- or flu-like symptoms usually occur 2–4 days after the coronavirus infection and are usually mild. However, the symptoms vary from person to person, and some forms of the virus can be fatal. Some of the persistent and visible symptoms are:
- Sneezing
- Running nose
- Fatigue
- Cough
- Fever in rare cases
- Sore throat
- Severe asthma
Scientists cannot easily cultivate human coronavirus in the laboratory unlike rhinoviruses, which is another cause of the common cold. This makes it difficult to understand the impact of coronavirus on national economies and public health. There is no cure, so treatment includes self-care and over-the-counter (OTC) medication. There are several steps people can take, including:
- Relax and avoid redundancy
- Hydrate
- Avoid smoking
- Taking acetaminophen, ibuprofen or naproxen for pain and fever
- Using a clean humidifier or cool mist vaporizer
A doctor can diagnose the responsible virus by taking respiratory fluid, such as mucus from the nose, or a sample of blood.
Types
Rare strains that cause more serious complications include MERS-CoV, which causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and SARS-CoV, the virus responsible for the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). In 2019, a dangerous new strain called SARS-CoV-2 began to spread, causing the disease COVID-19.
The Transfer
Limited research is available on how HCoV is transmitted from one person to another. However, researchers believe that viruses are transmitted through fluids in the respiratory system, such as mucus.
Coronavirus can be spread in the following ways:
- Coughing and sneezing without covering the mouth can spread droplets into the air.
- Shaking hands with a person who has the virus
- Making contact with a surface or object that contains the virus and thereafter touching one’s nose, eye, or mouth.
- Some animal coronaviruses, such as Feline Corona Virus (FCoV), can spread through contact with faeces. However, it is not clear whether this also applies to human coronaviruses.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggests that COVID-19 has the highest risk of developing complications in many groups of people. These groups include:
- Young children
- 65 years of age or older
- Pregnant women
Coronaviruses will infect most people at some time during their lifetime. They can mutate effectively, which is what makes them so contagious. To prevent transmission, people should stay at home and rest when symptoms are active. They should also avoid close contact with other people. Covering the mouth and nose with a tissue or handkerchief while coughing or sneezing can also help prevent transmission. Disposal of any tissue after use and maintenance of hygiene around the house is important.
COVID-19
In 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) began monitoring outbreaks of a new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, causing respiratory disease now known as COVID-19. Authorities first identified the virus in Wuhan, China. More than 74,000 people have contracted the virus in China. Health officials worldwide have identified several others with COVID-19, many from the United States. On 31st January 2020, viruses spread from person to person in the U.S. The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a public health emergency related to COVID-19.
Since then, this strain has been diagnosed in many US residents. The CDC has advised that it is likely to spread to more people. COVID-19 has started causing disruption in at least 25 other countries. The first people with COVID-19 had an animal and seafood market. This fact suggested that animals initially transmitted the virus to humans. However, people with more recent diagnoses had no connection with or in contact with the market, confirming that humans could pass the virus to each other.
Virus information is currently scarce. In the past, respiratory conditions that develop from coronaviruses, such as SARS and MERS, have spread through close contact. On 17th February 2020, the Director-General of WHO presented to media how often the symptoms of COVID-19 are severe or fatal, using data from 44,000 people with confirmed diagnoses:
- Mild disease, from which a person can recover more than 80%
- Serious illness, which causes breathlessness and pneumonia around 14%
- Serious illness including septic shock, respiratory failure and multiple organ failure
- Fatal disease 2%
The Director-General also stated that the risk of serious complications increases with age. According to the WHO, some children receive COVID-19, although they are still investigating their causes. However, while some viruses are highly contagious, it is less clear how fast the coronavirus will spread. It may take 2–14 days for a person to notice symptoms after infection.
There is currently no vaccine available for COVID-19. However, scientists have now replicated the virus. This may allow early detection and treatment in those who have the virus but are yet to show symptoms.
SARS
SARS was an infectious disease that developed after infection by SARS-Cove Coronavirus. Usually, this poses a life-threatening form of pneumonia. During November 2002, the virus began in southern China’s Guangdong province, eventually reaching Hong Kong. From there, it quickly spread worldwide, causing infections in more than 24 countries. SARS-CoV can infect both the upper and lower respiratory tract.
SARS symptoms develop over the course of a week and begin with fever. At the onset of the condition, people develop flu-like symptoms, such as:
- Dry cough
- Chills
- Diarrhoea
- Breathlessness
- Pain
- Pneumonia
- In its most advanced stage, SARS causes lung, heart, or liver failure.
According to the CDC, officials marked 8,098 people contracted SARS. 774 of these infections were fatal. This is equivalent to a mortality rate of 9.6%. Older adults were more likely to have complications, and half of all people over the age of 65 who became ill were not alive. The authorities eventually controlled the SARS in July 2003.
MERS
MERS spread due to a coronavirus known as MERS-CoV. Scientists first identified this serious respiratory disease in 2012 after surfacing in Saudi Arabia. Since then, it has spread to other countries. While the largest outbreak outside the Arabian Peninsula occurred in South Korea in 2015.
Symptoms of MERS include fever, shortness of breath, and cough. The disease is spread by close contact with people who already have an infection. However, all cases of MERS have links to individuals returning from a recent trip to the Arabian Peninsula.
Originally published here.