Corona Virus Epidemic: Symptoms, Preventions, and Saftey Precautions
About Corona viruses (COVID-19)
COVID-19 commonly known as Corona virus are a large family of viruses that can cause diseases ranging from the common cold to more severe respiratory diseases such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV). Some of the diseases transmit easily from direct contact of person to person. COVID-19 is a new virus and an epidemic disease that has not been previously identified in humans and it has no proper vaccine scientifically.
This virus was initially detected in China, that it is a novel coronavirus (referred as a scientific term COVID-19) that is responsible for the outbreak of human pneumonia in Wuhan city in China. The Authorities in China and worldwide WHO team is conducting further investigations to get a better understand of where this disease came from, how it is spread and what are the clinical severity of illness in humans by this disease.
What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
People who are targeted by this corona virus COVID-19 may have little to no symptoms about this. People usually do not aware of the exact symptoms of this Virus because they may not know if they have those symptoms of COVID-19 as they are quite similar to a cold or flu.
These symptoms may take up to 14 days to appear after the exposure to COVID-19 and they are spread via coughing and sneezing on direct contact.
Some of the common symptoms included:
- Common Fever
- Chest Pain
- Chills
- Rapid Heartbeat
- Headache
- Sore Throat
- Kidney Failure
- Cough and Cold
- Difficulty in breathing
- Pneumonia in both of the lungs
In severe cases of coronavirus, the infection to a person can lead to death because it is incurable but can be vaccinated to lower the cause.
What are the risks of getting corona COVID-19?
The public health risk associated with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, is nither low or high for India and for Indians as they are the neighboring country. The estimated cases in India till date are three conformed cases and they are estimated to be lower.
India has not many direct flights from Wuhan city of China (which is the major city of virus) and the volume of travelers arriving indirectly from China is low in India. However, at this time, the Government of India and the Ministry of Health recommends that Indians avoid non-essential travel to China due to an outbreak of COVID-19.
It is also recommended that people avoid traveling to the province of China, including the major cities of:
- Ezhou
- Wuhan
- Huanggang
- Beijing
- Shanghai
- Hubei
- Zhejiang
- Guangdong
This recommendation to avoid these cities’ travel is because they have heavy travel restrictions by Chinese authorities to prevent the spread of Coronavirus COVID-19.
Prevention and Safty tips for Coronavirus Epidemic
Current evidence suggests person-to-person spread is efficient when there is close contact and it is most commonly spread through coughing and sneezing by an infected person. The WHO and other agencies of the world for health are continually reassessed as new information becomes available for the virus.
Right now, there is currently no vaccine available to prevent corona virus disease (COVID-19). The best way to get prevented by this disease is to avoid being exposed to this virus. However, as a reminder, it is always recommended that everyday preventive actions such as simple tips can help to prevent the spread of respiratory diseases and virus, including:
- Always avoid close contact with people who are sick and part of this disease.
- Simply avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth during the day.
- Try to stay at home when you feel you are sick.
- Do cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue paper and then throw the tissue away in the trash.
- Make yourself clean and disinfected if you frequently touch some objects and use a regular household cleaning spray or wipe to get clean.
- Do follow the recommendations of how to use a facemask for getting safe.
Facemasks for prevention should be used by people who show some symptoms of COVID-19 to help prevent the spread of the disease to others. The use of facemasks is also advisable for people of the city where the cases are crucial. It is also very important for health workers and people who are taking care of someone infected in close settings (at home or in a health care facility at the hospital).
Some precautions
Some most basic precautions are to wash your hands often with soap and water for at least more than 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom and before eating. Keep yourself clear after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. If soap and water condition is not readily available in some places, use a high alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% of alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty or you coughed or sneezed.
