Wuhan Coronavirus Outbreak Continues: How Worried Should We Be?

The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak is one of the largest epidemics the world has seen since the SARS epidemic in 2002. Affecting 29 countries and territories, how deadly is the new coronavirus?

 

Named after where the novel coronavirus was first identified in late December 2019, this Wuhan coronavirus, also known as 2019-nCoV, can result in life-threatening pneumonia and symptoms such as fever, cough and breathing difficulties. Some may also experience vomiting and diarrhoea aside from organ failure. 

But, before we get all anxious and tensed up, let’s delve into the background of this infectious outbreak as what the infectious disease specialist Anita Sircar, MD, Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center in California advised. 

“It’s too easy to believe everything that’s posted on Facebook or Twitter and get swayed into hysteria. Educating yourself on what’s happening is the strongest weapon against panic,” she said.

Coronavirus, Novel Coronavirus And SARS Virus

Coronavirus is a large family of pathogens which impacts range from a mild illness like cold to fatal infections such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and now with the 2019-nCoV infection (officially known as COVID-2019). 

More commonly encountered in animals, coronaviruses are rare among humans. Not until the emergence of the first coronavirus case in the 1960s did the researchers identify the possibility of animals to humans transmission.

Sharing 80% of their genetic codes, many parallels can be drawn between the Wuhan virus and the SARS virus. Both are coronaviruses which are highly contagious and potentially fatal. In countering such viruses, we humans lack the pre-existing immunity towards these zoonotic diseases. 

As both pandemic respiratory illnesses can be traced to bats, the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is suspected to have infected humans via the human consumption of or the close contact with wild animals in the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in the centre of Hubei province, China.  

How Bad Is This Novel Coronavirus?

With the SARS coronavirus causing the deaths of nearly 800 people, the world is now watching with bated breath as the situation continues to unfold. Spreading at a faster rate than that of SARS, the Wuhan Virus has already claimed 2,010 lives in less than two month time with more than 75,000 confirmed cases worldwide. 

While the chances for people of all ages to be infected are equal, immunocompromised individuals, including the elderly and people with pre-existing medical conditions, are more likely to be severely ill if infected. 

In Malaysia alone, we have 22 confirmed cases, comprising 15 Chinese nationals, one American and six Malaysians as of Wednesday (February 19). Human to human transmission has also been detected within Malaysia. Those infected are now quarantined and are under observation at various hospitals, namely the Sungai Buloh Hospital, Hospital Sultanah Maliha Langkawi and Hospital Permai Johor Bahru. 

The government and health ministry have assured Malaysians that the situation is under control and that swift, stringent procedures have been taken to ensure our safety. 

“Compared to SARS in 2002, when we took weeks to trace the infections, now we have managed to do so much earlier due to our experience, expertise and the technology employed.” said the Malaysia infectious disease specialist, Datuk Dr Christopher K.C. Lee on January 29.

On top of that, our Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad highlighted, on February 12, that the recovery rate for this novel coronavirus infection is high. With the mortality rate standing at a relatively low rate of 2.2 per cent, the recovery rate is four times higher. 

Out of the 14,623 recovery cases as of February 19, the bulk was in China, numbering 14,442 cases, 29 in Singapore, 17 in Thailand, 11 in Malaysia and the rest in other countries.

“This should be seen as a positive development not only for Malaysia but for the whole world. It’s good news that the coronavirus is not a death-sentence virus,” Dzulkefly added. 

Stay Calm And Take Preventive Measures

Wuhan pneumonia is raging and everyone is at risk. Having the virus in our shores is a worrying issue and everyone must do their part in ensuring the risk of local transmission of the virus is minimised. 

Ms Brenda Yap Kar Yan, a flight attendant with more than two years of working experience, mentioned that this outbreak has led her lifestyle to be slightly constrained.

“There are events which would need us to declare if we had ever visited China for the past 10 days. If we did, we will be dismissed or denied entry to such events or even places. This extends to not only us; but our family members or people who we share the same roof with as well.”

It was also observed in Singapore and Australia that people living in urban areas tend to be more anxious. “Supermarket shelves are almost always empty because people who start stocking up household items and groceries. Furthermore, due to the recent ban of Chinese tourists to other countries, they would buy the items by bulk and bring them back to their home country.”

While the Malaysian government encourages us to stay within the country, for the time being, there are times whereby flying is unavoidable for business purposes. As concern mounts about the risk of being infected on flights, Brenda assured that “the air (in the plane) is actually clean” Everyone onboarding the flight, both passengers and flight crews, must have their body temperature scanned before the flight.

Brenda added, “Our company has been providing us with 2 pieces of surgical masks every single time before we head for our duties. More masks, surgical gloves and sanitiser are provided at our workplace as well.”

Quoting from Dr David Powell, a physician and medical adviser to the International Air Transport Association (Iata), Brenda said that frequent hand washing or hand sanitising is the best way to avoid coronavirus on the flight. 

To further guard ourselves against the novel coronavirus, Ms Khoo Jia Wei, a pharmacist in-training, advised us to adhere to the infographic pertaining to the basic protective measures against the new coronavirus, which is released by the World Health Organization (WHO) in early February. 

Khoo described that her workload had significantly increased. People visited the pharmacy frequently to check on the restocking of face masks, hand sanitiser and antibacterial wipes. 

“Once we restock them, they are sold out very quickly,” Khoo added.

“In fact, Malaysia has yet to reach a grim state. They (The general public especially the elderly) are somewhat overreacting towards the current situation. On the bright side, they became more conscious of being hygienic at all times.”

With regards to our deputy health minister, Dr Lee Boon Chye’s statement on 2 February, that people with no symptoms of coronavirus do not have to wear the masks for protection as it is not necessarily effective against infection, Khoo insisted that mask is necessary for crowded areas, regardless if one is infected or not because COVID-2019 is contagious. The virus transmission might occur during the incubation period of 2019-nCoV infection which ranges from two to 14 days. 

In choosing the right mask, Khoo suggested that “any 3-ply surgical mask with filter is good and effective” since this novel coronavirus is spread through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person speaks, coughs or sneezes. 

At the same time, products with antioxidants such as Vitamin C were selling fast as they remove toxins in our body effectively. This helps to build a strong immune system against coronavirus infection.

Not to mention, regular exercise and good housekeeping should be practised at all times according to Brenda. She also reminds everyone to stay hydrated always as it helps in strengthening the body’s immune response system. 

Novel coronavirus precaution guideline. Credit: Freepik.