Coronavirus, or medically known as Covid-19 or novel coronavirus, is spreading across the globe and people have their own ideas about its development, causes, safety, and care.
Before we start this exploration, let’s see what are the highlights that you will be discovering here today.
Rumours About Origin
What Is Coronavirus?
Origin Of Covid-19
How Does It Work?
Incubation Period And Symptoms
Recovery Rate Of COVID-19
Why Coronavirus Is On SOS Alert?
Treatment Options Available For COVID-19?
Safety And Prevention Advice
Helpful Resources
Now that we have discovered the highlights, let’s start the reading.
There have been many theories across the globe about the development and spread of this virus but these theories mostly led to the terror of virus spread between the mass.
People are afraid of the coronavirus outbreak but they don’t have accurate information that can help them understand the factual factors of the matter.
Rumours About Origin Of Coronavirus
We are hearing many theories about Coronavirus. Some people say it is political, and some people claim it to be due to carelessness.
And all of these theories came into the market after scientists revealed that novel coronavirus is similar to SARS or some other viruses in structure or nature.
These viruses originate from bats?
The Coronavirus outbreak conspiracy theory is also popular in the market.
But, which one is true? Let’s find out.
1. Wuhan Food Market Covid-19 Spread Theory
This is one of the most widely known theories about Covid-19. Chinese authorities believe that the outbreak started in the Wuhan animal market where wild animals, including bats, were purchased and sold.
2. Whistleblower In 2019–20 Coronavirus Outbreak Theory
On 30 December 2019, A Wuhan doctor, Dr. Li Wenliang, reported on WeChat group that there were approximately 7 cases of SARS that were connected with Huanan Seafood Market.
He notified that Houhu Hospital District’s hospitals were isolating such patients in the emergency department.
Chinese Typed Web Version | English Translated Web Version
Later, he was blamed for leaking the information.
On 3 January 2020, Wuhan Public Security Bureau interrogated Li and warned him to avoid making false rumors in public regarding this matter. He was made to sign the letter that he will not do it again.
On 7 January, he contracted the virus.
On 31 January, he published this experience on social media with a letter of admonition as proof. As a reaction to his post, Wuhan police gave him the title of one of the eight “rumormongers”.
On 4 February, the Chinese Supreme People’s Court said that it was not right to punish him when he was not entirely wrong. Also, it would have been a great thing if his words were not considered just rumors. If people would have followed his advice, there would have been much fewer victims of this virus.
On 12 January, he was hospitalized in Houhu Hospital District, Wuhan Central Hospital.
After several tests, on 30 January, he was found positive for infection.
And the infection was confirmed to be Covid-19 on 1 February.
He was announced dead on 7 February 2020.
3. High-Security Biochemical Lab Conspiracy Covid-19 Spread Theory
Covid-19 was also considered to be a bioweapon that was deliberately developed in High-Security Biochemical Lab.
Wuhan is also a home of the biochemical laboratory. This lab has some military connections which also adds fuel to the fire in this regard.
United States Senator, Tom Cotton, who is also American attorney, politician, and military veteran, said that adding words like, “engineered bioweapon” or “deliberate release” in the news of the Covid-19 outbreak was one of the many hypotheses that are not based on fact.
He also added that the cause of virus spread is mostly natural but even if it is not natural, it certainly is not connected to the Wuhan food market.
Also, coronavirus is contagious and mostly ill or old people are more vulnerable to Covid-19. So clearly, it will not be an effective bioweapon.
4. Wuhan Center of Disease Control and Prevention leakage Covid-19 Spread Theory
A group of 27 public health scientists, that were not from China, published several stories related to the matter.
They also published a scientific paper that was making a suggestion that the laboratory in Wuhan, China might have been the cause of the virus outbreak.
Many posts later point towards Wuhan Institute of Virology because of its intense scrutiny (highest security level—biosafety level 4) lab.
Additionally, researchers of this lab study coronaviruses outbreak from bats.
It is also speculated that Covid-19 was bioengineered in this lab.
Due to careless handling, a worker got infected and thus it was able to transmit to the other people.
However, the researchers of the Wuhan Institute of Virology have insisted that there is no possible connection between their research and the Covid-19 outbreak.
What Is Coronavirus?
Covid-19 or Coronavirus is not very different from other viruses that we already have on our list.
Let’s make this simple so that we can understand it better:
By nature, Coronavirus is transmitted by an animal to a human.
For example:
The Example of the Animal to Human Covid-19 transmission process:
There are many more types of Coronavirus found in animals that are not found in humans yet.
And it is not circulated in all animals. After the studies, it was discovered that this virus infects rats, mice, cats, dogs, turkeys, pigs, horses, and cattle. Camels[1] to human spread was also on the list.
Another notable thing about Coronavirus is that personal pets will not give you this disease.
There is no evidence of pets giving the disease to their owners. According to the stats, there has been no case where new coronavirus infects pets. However, washing your hands after touching your pets is strongly advised.
Origin Of Covid-19 Or Novel Coronavirus
Coronavirus was first discovered in the 1960s.
It was an infectious bronchitis virus in chickens. Since this is not a new virus, medical organizations have done several pieces of research on coronavirus over the past years.
Coronavirus disease or COVID-19 was first reported in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, on 31 December 2019. They have been publishing live reports on WHO Page to keep masses updated about its spread and coverage areas.
The name of this disease has basic information about its origin and nature.
It is also known as 2019-nCoV which stands for 2019 novel coronavirus.
How Does It Work?
Coronavirus is contagious. It has the nature of spreading from person to person.
If anyone is infected with the virus, his/her cough or sneeze, saliva can release the respiratory droplets that contain the virus.
So, if a healthy person will breathe in the same air, it can infect them with Coronavirus.
But, if it is so contagious, how can a healthy person do the safety and prevention from it?
Well, there is a specific way of how these viruses work. The infected respiratory droplets will come in contact with you only if you are within 3-6 feet. However, in some cases, it can travel up to 20 feet distance as well.
When the droplets travel through the air and land on the ground, they don’t die immediately.
It is the reason why they remain a risk. When someone touches the ground or infected area where droplets are landed then it can become the reason for getting COVID-19.
There is no confirmation about the survival duration of infected respiratory droplets yet. According to recent studies, the COVID-19 virus survival rate on the surfaces have been recorded from a few hours to several days. (2 hours – 9 days)
Therefore, it is advised to maintain hygiene and follow the necessary protection measures as much as you can.
WHO (World Health Organization) Advisory For Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): Q&A
Incubation Period And Symptoms Of Coronavirus
When the infected droplets enter in your system and you catch the disease, it takes a certain time for them to work into your system.
This period is called “the incubation period” when a person does not feel anything different. Or in most cases, no major symptoms appear because this is the stage when the virus develops through the body.
In the case of Coronavirus, it’s incubation period does not have a common pattern. This period can vary from 1 day to 14 days.
This mostly depends on the health of a person who catches this virus. Commonly, the coronavirus incubation period is around 5 days.
When a person passes the incubation period, symptoms start to appear. These symptoms may vary in two categories: mild and severe.
Mild Symptoms:
- Fever
- Tiredness
- Dry Cough
- Pains
- Nasal Congestion
- Runny Nose
- Sore Throat
- Diarrhea
Severe Symptoms:
The symptoms of Coronavirus appear in a mild form. In some cases, they take a severe turn and can be lethal.
What Is Recovery Rate Of COVID-19?
People are living in fear of this virus.
But this is not a 100% lethal virus. It doesn’t come with death assurance.
In some cases, droplets enter the system but they don’t show any symptoms at all. Stats of the worldwide COVID-19 infected people shows that 80% of the people recover from COVID-19 without any special treatment while 1 out of every 6 infected people face the severe stage of this disease.
Poor health is a big similarity in people who develop severe COVID-19.
Most of the people who did catch the Coronavirus disease and became severely ill or faced difficulty in breathing were older people and those who were facing health challenges already.
Problems like heart problems, diabetes or high blood pressure are the major problems that may cause a person to become vulnerable to this disease.
Why Coronavirus Is On SOS Alert?
SOS is an international code signal that signifies extreme distress and emergency.
In the 20th century, when Morse code was used for international information transmission, SOS was the letters that were chosen because they were easy to transmit and recognize in Morse code messages.
Later, SOS got its backronyms “save our souls” and “save our ship”.
The spread of Coronavirus has been extremely quick due to its contagious nature.
There is an increasing list of patients with viral pneumonia caused by an infection that contains coronavirus. WHO is reporting an extremely high number of new patients which made the matter even more severe.
Due to its rapid progress, the SOS International alarm center has marked it as an international emergency.
To increase the awareness, Google’s SOS alerts were activated in search results that relate coronavirus outbreak.
This action was taken in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) so that people can find the right resources in the case of an emergency or when they get infected with the virus.
With the help of SOS, Help, and information related to Coronavirus appear first, and then the search results are presented.
What Treatment Options Are Available For COVID-19 Or Novel Coronavirus
A CDC-developed diagnostic test is used to test the presence of the virus in the human body.
If the result is negative then it means the test sample was not infected. Or in some cases, it could also mean that the virus was in the incubation stage where it cannot be detected.
Thanks to the urgent efforts of doctors, scientists and many vaccine development organisations, there is a glimpse of hope for Covid-19.
At present, there are many vaccine options available for patients who catch novel coronavirus. Also, there are care options that can help the patient to relieve their symptoms.
When people get hospitalized for novel coronavirus, they receive medical care and most of the patient recovers with the medical support.
COVID-19 Medical Support
- Over-The-Counter Medicines To Relieve Symptoms
- Room Humidifier For Relief In Sore Throat And Cough
- Hot Shower For Relief In Sore Throat And Cough
- Plenty Of Rest For Coronavirus Patient
- Drinking Fluids And Avoiding Overexertion
- Avoiding Smoking
- Stay Away From Smoky Areas
WHO and many other organizations are doing their research and investigation to develop the drug or treatment options for novel coronavirus.
For now, it is advised to stay clean and careful to avoid catching this virus.
Safety And Prevention Advice
Since there is no official treatment available for novel coronavirus, prevention is the best action you can take to keep yourself safe from this disease.
And, if you want to prevent COVID-19, you need to gain factual information that can reduce the risk of virus spread. Let’s see some major highlights of the WHO (World Health Organization) and CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) protective measures against the new coronavirus:
Wash your hands frequently with alcohol-based hand rub (at least 60% alcohol) and water. You can also use wash them with soap and water.
Maintain social distancing of at least 1 meter (3 feet). It is mandatory when someone is coughing or sneezing.
Avoid touching nose, eyes, and mouth because your hand can pick-up virus-infected droplets and it can enter your healthy system.
When you cough or sneeze, dispose of the tissue immediately. Keep your surfaces and objects clean. Disinfect them frequently.
In case of any medical problem like cough, fever, and difficulty breathing, go to the doctor and if advised by the doctor or if needed, get yourself tested for COVID-19.
According to the CDC’s recommendations, only infected people should wear the facemask. It is also recommended for people who are taking care of the infected person and for health workers.
Stay away from people who have COVID-19 infected or spread areas within 14 days. If 14 days have passed then the risk of COVID-19 will no longer be a threat to the surrounding.
Conclusion:
The Coronavirus outbreak is a healthcare tragedy happening all around the globe.
But, it can be managed and prevented with the right guidance and preventive care.
If you follow WHO’s guidance on COVID-19 prevention then you can keep yourself and your family safe from this virus. This is the time when general training, telemedicine, and learning resources can make a big difference in your life.
Helpful Resources:
Coronavirus disease Situation reports
Myths about coronavirus and their facts
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): Online training
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MiniWrites 
In talking to a group of friends about the disease, I found them quoting a wide range of estimates for its lethality–all given with absolute certainty. It surprised me how many of them consider the precautions hysteria.
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In a lack of awareness and knowledge, imagination and ideas can lead us in the completely wrong direction. And that is how people are reacting in coronavirus situation where they have just heard the news of it.
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