What Is the Coronavirus? 10 Things to Know
The spread of a new strain of coronavirus is a major issue across the world. You’ve probably heard it discussed on the news as well as on all your social media platforms, but you may find that facts about the virus are brushed over.
Knowing more about what coronavirus is and how it is being handled by health officials around the world can give you context to help you better understand current developments. Here are 10 things to know about coronavirus as well as how to keep yourself and your family safe.
1. What Is Coronavirus?
A coronavirus is any member of a large number of diseases that fit into a category or family by that same name. Coronaviruses are named for their microscopic structure. Under a microscope, the virus appears to have a bursting corona of spike-like structures protruding from it.
The coronavirus you are hearing about in the news is a new disease fitting this criterion that hasn’t ever appeared before. It is technically referred to by the World Health Organization as 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). While being a member of the same family and exhibiting similar symptoms to other coronaviruses, this new strain originally showed up in December 2019.
2. Where Did Coronavirus Originate?
The coronavirus originally began as an outbreak in Wuhan, China, and cases in other areas can be traced back to Wuhan as a place of origin. Wuhan is a city located in central China. Its population numbers over 11 million, making the city one of the largest in the country, and it is the capital of the province of Hubei.
The disease has quickly spread to other areas, infecting thousands of people, most of whom reside in central China. Many people in other parts of Asia have also been infected and the disease has further spread through travel to and from Wuhan and surrounding areas where the outbreak is most prevalent. According to the New York Times, the virus may have begun in Wuhan markets specializing in seafood and poultry and soon reached other parts of the world from there.
3. Where Has Coronavirus Been Identified?
Unfortunately, as one of the largest cities in China, Wuhan experiences heavy amounts of travel every day. Though measures have been put into place to quarantine the area, enough time passed before preventative measures became effective for travelers to carry the virus to other parts of the world.
While this can be cause for concern, it is important to remember that the scale of the disease in other areas has remained relatively small. The New York Times recently reported less than 20 cases in the United States. There have also been reported cases in Australia and parts of Europe as well as throughout Asia. Governments of many countries, including China, have put travel bans into place, and hopefully these measures will help to contain the virus.
4. How Is Coronavirus Spread?
One of the things that can make coronaviruses especially dangerous is the fact that they can be spread between animals as well as humans. Referred to as a zoonotic disease, coronavirus may be passed to humans from a number of domestic as well as wild animals, in addition to being passed from human to human.
Interestingly, coronaviruses in general are far more common in animals, and many strains never pass to humans at all. Some strains of coronavirus may even have originally been carried by such exotic animals as camels and civets, a native mammal to tropical areas of both Africa and Asia. Like many of its predecessors, 2019 novel coronavirus is likely to have been originally carried by animals and passed to humans later, but this requires more research to prove.
Many experts believe that the virus passes relatively easily from person to person, which means it may spread quickly and potentially be difficult to contain. However, since it is such a new disease, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the exact nature of how it works.
5. How Long Is the Incubation Period of Coronavirus?
An important consideration with any disease is the incubation period. This is the amount of time it takes for symptoms to start showing up in a person who is infected with an illness. This amount of time matters because if an illness has a long incubation period, people may travel and interact with many other people and potentially infect them before ever realizing that they are sick.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dangerous infections for this coronavirus may have an incubation period anywhere between three and 14 days. While an exact length of time hasn’t been pinned down, this estimate helps doctors and health workers determine how long someone should be quarantined after coming into contact with the virus before they are in the clear.
6. What Are the Symptoms of Coronavirus?
The symptoms of 2019 novel coronavirus can vary, but they are often akin to a severe flu or cold. People infected with the virus may experience a fever as well as feelings of weakness and discomfort. The virus often presents itself as a serious respiratory illness that can cause excessive coughing. There may also be shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. In cases where the infection becomes increasingly severe, the sick individual may experience pneumonia or even kidney problems.
Unfortunately, one of the most frightening aspects of the virus is that it may ultimately lead to death in severe cases. While anyone can be infected, the most susceptible people are generally very young children and older individuals. People who have weakened immune systems may also be more at risk.
7. What Is Being Done to Treat Coronavirus?
As you have probably gathered from the lack of specific details about the disease currently available, researchers are still trying to gain a real understanding of the novel coronavirus. Since the virus is so new, there simply hasn’t been enough time to gather a lot of data on it.
However, a lot of efforts are currently being made to figure out the best strategies for treating infected people. The lack of a specific vaccine or medication to fight coronavirus means that infected individuals are given a lot of supportive measures to try to help their bodies fight off the infection rather than being administered an antivirus or similar medication. Treatment is mostly concerned with relieving pain as well as keeping organs functioning in more serious cases. Infections of coronavirus are not usually fatal and hopefully a more effective cure will be developed in the near future. Until then, the best way to stay healthy can be through preventative measures.
8. How Is the Spread of Coronavirus Prevented?
Preventing the spread of coronavirus is one of the most important tasks for healthcare workers and governments both within and without infected areas. The travel bans put into place by China may be effective in keeping the current outbreak contained.
Preventative measures by health care workers, such as wearing facemasks, may also help keep the virus contained. People who are suspected of being infected are being quarantined to further prevent the spread.
9. Why Is Coronavirus in International News?
Coronavirus is a huge deal in the news today. As an onlooker, you may be curious about the full scope of the issue and why it’s such a big deal in the current international news. The main concern for world governments is the rapid rate at which the disease is spreading and the risk of it becoming a global epidemic.
Depending on where you are presently living, the presence of the virus in international news can be distressing at best and incredibly frightening at worst. One of the biggest concerns you probably have for yourself and your family is how to stay safe and healthy. First and foremost, you should strive to stay calm and remember that, though there have been reported cases outside of China, the CDC as well as many other experts believe that the virus is not a serious threat to the public in the United States, and the majority of other countries remain safe as well.
10. How Can You Keep Yourself Safe from Coronavirus?
Whether there have been reported cases of coronavirus in your area or not, reasonable safety precautions are never a bad idea, especially since regular colds and the flu can still be prevalent during the winter and early spring. You should wash your hands regularly, especially before eating. Avoid sharing food and drinks as well as any personal hygiene items. If you start feeling sick, stay home and schedule an appointment with your doctor if the symptoms persist.
Most importantly, you should avoid travel to infected areas. You should also encourage such mindful measures among friends, family and co-workers so you can all stay as safe and healthy as possible. While the idea of a new disease such as 2019 novel coronavirus can be frightening, keeping yourself safe shouldn’t prevent you from going about your regular routine for the most part. Hopefully with more research better treatment methods or even a cure will be developed.
