Corona virus disease (COVID-19) in December 2019 there was a cluster of pneumonia cases in the city of Wuhan in China. some of the early cases had reported visiting or working in a seafood and live animal market in
Wuhan investigations found that the
disease was caused by a newly
discovered corona virus the disease was subsequently named Covid 19.Covid19 spread within China and
to the rest of the world on 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a public health emergency of
international concern in this video
we'll take a quick look at what is
currently known about Covid 19 keep in mind that this is a new disease and
what's known is rapidly evolving and might change in the future so what is a corona virus
is a large group of viruses they consist of a core of genetic material
surrounded by a lipid envelope with protein spikes this gives it the appearance
of a crown. crown in Latin is called
Corona and that's how these viruses
get their name there are different
types of corona viruses that cause
illness in animals and humans in
humans corona viruses can cause
respiratory infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases these include the severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus first identified in china in 2003 the Middle East respiratory syndrome corona virus that was first identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012 and Tsarskoe v2 the
name of the virus that causes Covid 19
that was first reported in December
2019 so where did this new virus come
from it's known that corona viruses
circulate in a range of animals
sometimes these viruses can make the
jump from animals to humans this is
called a spillover and could be due to
a range of factors such as mutations
in the virus or increased contact
between humans and animals for example
mers-cov is known to be transmitted
from camels and Tsarskoe V from civet
cats the animal reservoir of the new
corona virus is not known yet how does
the disease spread the disease can
spread from person to person through
droplets when an infected person
releases those droplets through
coughing talking or sneezing for
example when close to another person
it can also spread when infected
droplets land on objects and when another
person touches them and then touches
their eyes nose or mouth what are the
symptoms the incubation period which
is the time taken from exposure to the
virus and development of symptoms is
on average five to six days but can
range from 1 to 14 days there can be a
range of symptoms from very mild to
severe some people may not develop
symptoms common symptoms include fever
fatigue and respiratory symptoms such
as cough sore throat and shortness of
breath some people reported loss of
their sense of taste or smell and some
may develop a skin rash in more severe
cases there could be pneumonia organ
failure and sometimes death about 80% of cases recover from the disease without needing special treatment but there
are some people who are at risk of
serious illness they include older
people or people with underlying
medical problems such as chronic
respiratory disease obesity diabetes
high blood pressure heart disease or
cancer how can we tell whether someone
is infected the infection is commonly
diagnosed by a test called reverse
transcriptase polymerase chain
reaction generally known as PCR this
test identifies the virus based on its
genetic fingerprint there is also a
blood test that can check for
antibodies against the virus which may
show that someone was infected in the
past how is it treated the treatment
for Covid 19 is mainly supportive care
medicines against the virus are
currently under investigation how do
we prevent transmission of the virus
there are a number of effective ways
to prevent the spread of the disease these include covering
your mouth and nose when coughing or
sneezing with a flexed elbow or tissue
and throwing the tissue in a closed
bin immediately after use wash hands
regularly with soap and water or an
alcohol-based hand rub maintaining at
least one meter distance from people
and the appropriate use of masks and personal protective equipment especially in health settings it's important to stay home if you're
feeling unwell and to call a hotline
or your medical professional but if
you have a fever cough or difficulty
breathing seek medical care early and
share your travel history or contact
with someone unwell with your
healthcare provider in some areas
governments have implemented specific
physical and social distancing measures to prevent the spread of the
outbreak it's important to follow their advice vaccines to prevent Covid 19 are currently under development and scientists around the world are
working hard to make this happen
that's a quick look at this emerging
infectious disease we're still
learning about this virus every day
and what's known may change so.
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