Here are the 10 things you didn’t know about Corona Virus:
1. There are currently over 100,000 people infected with the coronavirus. Coronavirus has been seen in more than 30 countries. Altogether, China has 78,824 confirmed cases and the death toll was at 2,788.
2. The first case of a human being diagnosed was in Wuhan, China- Wuhan, the sprawling capital of Central China’s Hubei province, is a commercial centre divided by the Yangtze and Han rivers. It has a high population density, as the estimated populace surpasses 11 million people. That’s nearly a third of Canada in one city in China.
3. Most cases and deaths have been reported in China – the vast majority in Hubei province. Deaths have also been confirmed in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, France, Taiwan, South Korea, Italy and Iran. A Coronavirus is similar to both SARS and MERS. China, Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and South Korea all have patients with coronavirus
4. It can be transmitted from person to person by touching or coughing- In some densely populated Asian countries, it’s not uncommon to see citizens wearing white medical masks on their face. According to QZ, “The custom of facemask-wearing began in Japan during the early years of the 20th century when a massive pandemic of influenza killed between 20 and 40 million people around the world—more than died in World War I.
5. The most common symptoms are coughing, sore throat, fever, runny nose and in some cases pneumonia- Which makes the deadly disease difficult to initially identify, as these symptoms can be found in everything starting at the common cold.
6. Children are the most easily infected and it is believed that everyone will be infected by a coronavirus at some point their lifetime.
7. You can’t catch the virus from animals – There is no evidence that your pet dog or cat can be infected with the new coronavirus, according to the WHO.
8. There are no specific medicines or vaccines for the new virus, and antibiotics don’t work either (they fight off bacteria). Treatment options do exist but most people get better on their own.
9. People receiving packages from China are not at risk of contracting the new coronavirus. The virus is unlikely to survive for long on these kinds of surfaces, and that includes objects like cups and door handles. You have to be in close contact with an infected person – within two metres for 15 minutes or more – to be at risk, according to advice from Public Health England.