As the deadly coronavirus is quickly spreading across the globe, Chinese authorities have increased the preventive measures considering the season of the country’s biggest festival — Lunar New year.
In an attempt to restrict sizeable public gathering, Beijing and Hong Kong had cancelled some significant festivals.
The death toll due to the viral outbreak has risen to 41 and the number of confirmed cases also leaping to 1,400, Chinese authorities said, pushing the total in mainland China to 1,362. More than 1,000 people are suspected of having been infected as per the early reports on January 25, 2020.
The National Health Commission said out of those confirmed cases, more than 177 were in serious state and 34 have been “cured and discharged”. Around 1,072 people are suspected to be infected by the virus, the commission added.
Most of the deaths were recorded in the Hubei province of China and Wuhan — which is at the centre of this epidemic — is its capital.
Despite rising toll, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday refused to designate the virus an “international emergency”, citing a low number of confirmed cases — currently 13.
The virus that was previously unknown to science is rapidly spreading, not only to several Chinese provinces but also to the US, Thailand, South Korea and other Asian countries. As per the latest report, French officials confirmed Wuhan coronavirus, the first in Europe.
Given the new coronavirus outbreak, China placed ten cities and at least 33 million people, have been put on lockdown.
What all we know so far:
- It is suspected that the virus originated from a food market “conducted illegal transactions of wild animals”.
- Countries, across the globe, has increased the efforts to prevent the spread of the pathogen — known by its scientific name 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) — with the thermal screening of passengers arriving from China.
- The name coronavirus is derived from the Latin word corona, meaning crown or halo. When seen under an electron microscope, the virus looks like a solar corona.
Symptoms:
- Fever and signs of lower respiratory illness – such as coughing or difficulty in breathing.
- Also, a person can be at risk if they have pneumonia-like symptoms like a runny nose, sore throat and headache
China’s top medical authority has also confirmed that China’s deadly coronavirus can also be transmitted from human to human.
Prevention:
- Avoid contact from a person who displays above mentioned symptoms
- Without washing hands, avoid touching your nose, eyes, or mouth
- Wash your hands frequently and scrub them at least for 20 seconds
- Try using an alcohol-based sensitizer
- Avoid animals and visiting animal markets
