Covid-19 is the biggest concern for authorities and health specialists all over the world. Either the virus passed the borders and already contaminated citizens, or it is still just a menace to do so, authorities worldwide can’t ignore it. The new coronavirus is not just a health threat but an economical one, also. And specialists are working studies to try and assess those threats.
New studies on Covid-19 surfaced
Two new studies have been released, each of them with a different approach. The first one, “Novel Coronavirus 2019: Emergence and Implications for Emergency Care,” analyzes the risk factor for transmission. The second one, “Coronavirus Disease 2019: International Public Health Considerations”, does the same but in concern with the amplification of broad public health during this kind of outbreak.
Compared with the former two killing viruses and influenza, the new Coronavirus doesn’t look so much as the worst. But only if you talk percent. The mortality of Covid-19 is minor when compared with Sudden Acute respiratory Syndrome or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. Especially if compared with influenza.
The new coronavirus is more virulent than MERS and SARS, but less lethal than influenza
Covid-19 has a mortality rate of just 3%, while MERS had a 35% one, SARS a 15% one. Flu already killed 16,000 to 41,000 from October 1, 2019, through February 15, 2020. Still, the coronavirus has infected over 80.000 people and died nearly 3000.
The most common symptoms for infected patients, but none mandatory, were: fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Citizens all over are recommended to stay away from people with these symptoms. Cough and sneeze are the most contagious manifestations of a sick individual. Through those actions, the virus travels fast and far from the infected patient to the next one.
There are still debates about whether the virus can pass to a new human victim when it is still incubating. Nor if the human host is an asymptomatic case of coronavirus, and there are plenty of them too.
Scientists warn about the risk of coronavirus Covid-19
The specialists advise the public to avoid contact with metallic surfaces, the virus can survive there up to 12 hours. Drinking hot water helps, as the virus can’t resist at a temperature higher than 27 degrees Celsius. Washing hands for at least 20 seconds as often as possible, maintaining an average distance from the other people of at least one meter.
There are also other risks. Economic and social ones. And the second study is investigating them. The study worries about the possibility of general anxiety that could generate unwanted social manifestations. So, misinformation needs to be kept in control. Not just warning is essential, but encouragement also. It is a thin line between being worried and being scared, or from staying alert to becoming aggressive
“Effective public communication helps ensure compliance with quarantine directives or other instructions. It’s important for health professionals to break through the noise to encourage people, especially those potentially at risk, to take appropriate precautionary measures and heed the recommendations of health professionals,” said Christopher J. Greene, the lead author for the second study.
