The new coronavirus has infected nearly 600 people in China and claimed 17 lives. It is in the same family as the viruses that cause SARS and MERS. The symptoms are similar to influenza, in that there is cough and fever, but there is pneumonia in people infected with the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
Considering the measures currently taken by authorities, as well as lessons from the SARS epidemic, Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, Programme Leader (Infectious Diseases), says that the 2019-nCoV is unlikely to become a global pandemic.
“This is a coronavirus; it doesn’t spread as effectively as influenza. Even during SARS, when we didn’t have the technology and capabilities that we have today, there was no global pandemic. There are lots of cases now—there are more than 500 cases—but nonetheless, it doesn’t seem to have the same type of risk or uncertainty that we faced during SARS,” said A/Prof Hsu.
When asked why there was no vaccine available, he explained that because it is a new virus, it will take time for a vaccine to be developed through the proper process, which includes clinical trials. He added that it took several years for an Ebola vaccine to be developed.
“As for antivirals, we do not have something that targets coronaviruses well, so we don’t have anything at present to effectively treat people with this infection,” said A/Prof Hsu, adding that most people recover on their own, and that the reported deaths have been in elderly and those with compromised immune systems.
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