Coronavirus Continued

In my last blog post about the Coronavirus, we discussed the current outbreak of the disease, the signs and symptoms, and what to do if you think you are infected or know of somebody who may be infected. Since that last discussion, the numbers of both infections and deaths have dramatically increased. According to an article by Bloomberg, the global death toll is well over 700 and almost 35,000 people have been infected. The death toll number has officially surpassed the numbers caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that occurred from 2002-2003 and also started in China. Why is the coronavirus being spread so rapidly? And what is being done to prevent further damage and a potential pandemic?

One of the reasons as to why Coronavirus is so dangerous is because it takes a long time for the symptoms to appear, so people may be spreading the disease without even knowing it. The incubation period for this disease is estimated to be anywhere from two days to two weeks. For those who are not familiar with these terms, the incubation period is the period from which the microbe/infectious agent is introduced to the host and the onset of signs and symptoms. This means that someone could be walking around for almost two weeks spreading the virus to multiple people they come into contact with without even knowing it. This is why limitations have been placed on travel and health officials have been urging anyone who has been in the China region-specifically Wuhan to go see a health care provider.

There have been drastic efforts made in order to get a control on the spread of coronavirus. Throughout Wuhan, there have been makeshift hospitals/treatment centers set up all across the city to treat people. Updates from CNN, note that hundreds of citizens have been transported via plan to military bases across the United States in order to begin a two week quarantine. However, the U.S. plans to soon halt flights coming out of Wuhan to the United States. Another worrisome development of this virus is that it is not just affecting those on land. Two cruise ships that docked in Hong Kong and Japan have had all of it’s passengers quarantined. Over 60 people from one of the cruise ships have tested positive for the virus since then.

Although many measures have been taken, it seems that the virus just keeps on growing. Let’s hope that health officials can soon find a feasible solution to this outbreak.