A lot has been discussed about the recent outbreak of Coronavirus. Since there is a lot of misinformation and rumours doing the rounds, it’s easy to get confused. In this blog, we aim to clear all the myths and present you with accurate information.
So let’s start by knowing more about the virus first.
What is Coronavirus?
Coronavirus is a larger family of viruses that cause illnesses such as the common cold, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). A new outbreak of the coronavirus erupted in 2019 in China.
Some other names attributed to the coronavirus are severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Coronavirus affects both animals and humans. There can be cases where the virus affects animals and turns into a new virus that affects humans. These are more lethal forms of coronavirus since they can lead to pneumonia, which can be life-threatening.
The three most common illnesses by the virus recorded are:
SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) – It’s a fatal respiratory illness discovered in China in 2002. There haven’t been any new cases reported under this virus since 2002.
MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) – This severe respiratory illness was first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012. From there, it spread to 27 countries including the USA, where two cases were reported. All cases were discovered to have their source in the Arabian Peninsula.
COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) – Erupting in Wuhan city in 2019, the source is travel from the Hubei Province. Since then, the disease has spread to several countries around the world, with some cases reported in the USA. All updates with regards to the disease are being monitored by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).