10 reasons not to panic because of Covid-19

Global scientists are taking action, the disease is under control in China, 8 vaccine production projects are underway .

Microbiologist Ignacio López-Goñi (Navarra University, Spain) said: "Whether or not Covid-19 is considered a pandemic or not, it is still a serious global problem. In less than two months, Covid -19 has spread to many countries, so it is definitely a pandemic of fear. "

However, this expert said that there are 10 reasons we should not be too panicked before Covid-19.

1. Knowing the cause

The first cases of AIDS were reported in June 1981 and it took more than two years for experts to identify the virus causing the disease as HIV. However, with Covid-19, the first cases of severe pneumonia in China were reported on December 31, 2019, the cause was identified only seven days later. The virus genome was announced on January 10.

As we all know, Covid-19 is a new strain of corona virus from group 2B, same family with SARS, called SARS-CoV-2. The virus is thought to be related to the corona virus in bats. The results of genetic analysis confirm that SARS-CoV-2 is of natural origin, though it exists by mutation, its mutation rate is not too high.

The corona virus spreads globally.(Image: REUTERS / Manuel Silvestri).

2. Can detect viruses

Since 13/1, there has been a test to determine whether a patient has Covid-19. The rapid and early identification of suspected cases creates great conditions for isolation, treatment and control of the spread of epidemics.

3. The situation of epidemic control is improving in China

At the world's largest outbreak, strong control and isolation measures are working well. For the past few weeks, every day, the number of Covid-19 cases in China has decreased. In other countries, detailed epidemiological monitoring is carried out thoroughly. Epidemic outbreaks are region-specific, allowing for easier control of outbreaks.

4. More than 80% of cases are mild

81% of patients have no symptoms or only mild symptoms. Only 14% can have severe pneumonia and 5% can be fatal or die. The death rate is unknown, but the actual number may be lower than some estimates.

5. The patient is cured

Most of the published data are new cases and deaths, while practically most infected people are cured. The number of people cured is 13 times more than deaths and this rate is increasing.

6. Children are mild

Only 3% of people under 20 years old were infected and the death rate in patients under 40 years old was 0.2%. Children have symptoms that are so mild that they cannot detect them.

The green line indicates increased recovery patients.(Photo: Johns Hopkins University).

7. Viruses can be destroyed

The virus causing Covid-19 can be killed or cleaned from surfaces with a solution of ethanol (62-71% alcohol), hydrogen peroxide (0.5% hydrogen peroxide) or sodium hypochlorite (0.1% detergent). ) in just a minute. Therefore, washing your hands often with soap and water is the most effective way to avoid infection.

8. Global scientists are taking action

This is the era of international scientific cooperation. After just over a month, 164 articles on Covid-19 appeared on PubMed (National Library of Medicine in the US) and many other uncensored articles. These are preliminary works on vaccines, treatments, epidemiology, genetics and biology, diagnosis, clinical aspects, . There are about 700 authors around the world participating in writing articles. . In addition, most scientific journals have left their publications in the form of open access to Covid-19.

In 2003, when the SARS outbreak broke out, it took more than a year for half of the articles to be published.

9. Vaccine sample available

There are currently more than 8 vaccine research projects underway to deal with Covid-19.

A team from the University of Queensland, Australia, said it was working on the first vaccine model to use "molecular clamping" technology , a new technology that could soon be tested on humans.

This is an example of a mass production of vaccines.

10. Testing for virus resistance

The vaccine is only preventive, and it is now important to treat people who are already infected. There have been more than 80 clinical trials analyzing Covid-19 treatments. These are antiviral drugs used for other infections, that have been censored and proven safe.

One of the types that has been tested in humans is remdesivir , a broad-spectrum antiviral drug that is still under study, tested against Ebola and SARS / MERS.

Another "candidate" is choloroquine , an antimalarial drug that has also been shown to have strong antiviral activity.

Other proposed trials use oseltamivir (anti-influenza virus), interferon-1b ​​(anti-viral protein) , antisera from people who have recovered or monoclonal antibodies to neutralize the virus.

"The 1918 influenza pandemic caused more than 25 million deaths in less than 25 weeks. Will the same scenario now occur? Probably not because we have conditions we have never seen before to respond to a pandemic." " , microbiologist Ignacio López-Goñi said.

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