What is coronavirus?
According to the WHO, coronaviruses are a family of viruses
that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such
as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory
syndrome (MERS).
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These viruses were originally transmitted from animals to
people. SARS, for instance, was transmitted from civet cats to humans while
MERS moved to humans from a type of camel.
Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that
have not yet infected humans.
The name coronavirus comes from the Latin word corona,
meaning crown or halo. Under an electron microscope, the looks like it is
surrounded by a solar corona.
The novel coronavirus, identified by Chinese authorities on
January 7 and since named SARS-CoV-2, is a new strain that had not been
previously identified in humans. Little is known about it, although
human-to-human transmission has been confirmed.
What are the symptoms?
According to the WHO, signs of infection include fever,
cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, it can lead to
pneumonia, multiple organ failure and even death.
Current estimates of the incubation period – the time
between infection and the onset of symptoms – range from one to 14 days. Most
infected people show symptoms within five to six days.
However, infected patients can also be asymptomatic, meaning
they do not display any symptoms despite having the virus in their systems.
How deadly is it?
With more than 8,000 recorded deaths, the number of
fatalities from this new coronavirus has surpassed the toll of the 2002-2003
SARS outbreak, which also originated in China.
SARS killed about 9 percent of those it infected – nearly
800 people worldwide and more than 300 in China alone. MERS, which did not
spread as widely, was more deadly, killing one-third of those infected.
While the new coronavirus is more widespread than SARS in
terms of case numbers, the mortality rate remains considerably lower at
approximately 3.4 percent, according to the WHO.
What is being done to stop it from spreading?
Scientists around the globe are racing to develop a vaccine
but have warned it is not likely one will be available for mass distribution
before 2021.
Meanwhile, Chinese authorities have effectively sealed off
Wuhan and placed restrictions on travel to and from several other cities,
affecting some 60 million people. Other countries have since followed suit with
total lockdowns, closing schools, restaurants, bars, and sports clubs, and also
issuing mandatory work-from-home decrees.
International airlines have cancelled flights the world
over. Some countries have banned non-citizens from entering their territories,
and several more have evacuated their citizens from abroad.
Where did the virus originate?
Chinese health authorities are still trying to determine the
origin of the virus, which they say likely came from a seafood market in Wuhan,
China where wildlife was also traded illegally.
On February 7, Chinese researchers said the virus could have
spread from an infected animal species to humans through illegally-trafficked
pangolins, which are prized in Asia for food and medicine.
Scientists have pointed to either bats or snakes as possible
sources of the virus.
Is this a global emergency?
Yes, this outbreak is a global health emergency, the WHO
said on January 30, raising the alarm further on March 11 when it declared the
crisis a pandemic.
The international health alert is a call to countries around
the world to coordinate their response under the guidance of the WHO.
There have been five global health emergencies since 2005
when the declaration was formalised: swine flu in 2009, polio in 2014, Ebola in
2014, Zika in 2016 and Ebola again in 2019.
Source: Aljazeera