Coronavirus-What’s the Deal?

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a family of viruses causing a range of illnesses from the common cold to serious conditions like severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). In December 2019 however, there was a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) identified in Wuhan City, Hubei Province of China. Due to this virus being detected recently, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) is unsure of how transmission occurs. It was first believed to be spread from human contact with animals, however more recently person to person transmission has been identified. The CDC is considering that the virus is being spread via respiratory droplets, but the virulence of the disease is not well known yet. However, the likelihood of 2019-nCoV being an American health threat is low. It is recommended that preventing the spread of the virus is best achieved by proper hand washing, avoiding touching the face, and covering one’s mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. There is currently no vaccine for the virus and supportive care is the only available treatment. The common signs and symptoms of the virus have been identified as fever, cough, and shortness of breath. A speculative incubation period of two to fourteen days after exposure has been identified based on previous incubation time of MERS viruses.

While this is a fast-developing outbreak, the death toll in China as of 10:30 pm on January 29^th was 170 with a total number of 7,700 confirmed cases in China. While the virus has spread to other countries in Asia, the US, and Canada, the disease has relatively been contained to China with both the US and Canada only having five confirmed cases in total with no record of deaths outside of China. I applaud the Chinese government for their successful relative containment of the disease thus far. If the government had not taken the precautions it has, many more deaths across the globe could have already occurred. Thus far, 195 Americans have also been evacuated out of Wuhan and are currently being monitored for three days at the Air Force base in Southern California to ensure that they are not infected. Once cleared, the evacuees will continue to be monitored for fourteen days. Based on this news, I am happy that the US chose to evacuate these Americans to unite them with their friends and families instead of leaving them overseas. I also appreciate the acts of the scientific and disease control community in both China and the US for being transparent about the conditions of this outbreak. Currently government scientists from China, the US, and Australia are working to develop a vaccine for the virus which is typically a long process that takes months to years.

However, as of January 28^th a potential vaccine is waiting for approval to be tested to combat the disease. While a similar outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong and Canada may have been contained by public health measures, this newly developed mRNA vaccine may be necessary for the containment of this rapidly spreading virus. 1,000 subjects have already been tested using this vaccine with no side effects other than mild symptoms which commonly occur after a vaccination such as a sore arm or malaise. It has also been determined within these subjects that the vaccine works just as well on older patients as younger patients with the virus which could be helpful in controlling the outbreak. Tracking the progression of this virus will be interesting and the potential promise of a vaccine for this virus may bring relief to thousands across the globe.