Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), declared pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), is an infectious disease that can cause a respiratory tract infection affecting upper as well as lower respiratory tract. It is caused by a newly discovered coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2 that emerged in China in December 2019. The COVID-19 consists of two strains named L and S, as it is normal for the viruses to mutate themselves. The SARS-CoV-2 is called corona because of its crown-like spikes protein that are used to cause infection.
SARS-CoV-2 is one of the seven known types of coronaviruses that are known to affect people. Four common human coronaviruses are 229E, NL63, OC43 and HKU1. They only cause mild-cold or flu-like symptoms, while the remaining three poses more serious threat. Apart from SARS-CoV-2, the remaining two that causes severe diseases are Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) transmitted to humans from dromedary camels and sudden acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) from civet cats. Although, both the viruses are believed to be originated from bats and passed on to other animals. All the diseases caused by coronaviruses are zoonotic in nature.
The coronavirus spreads through person-to-person contact. They spread through droplets of saliva or discharge from nose when an infected person sneezes or coughs. So, it’s recommendable to practice respiratory etiquette like coughing in the flexed elbow.
According to the recent reports, this virus also spreads via silent spreaders. Silent spreaders are nothing but the people who are infected with coronavirus but show little to no symptoms at all. And as a result, they are spreading the virus unwittingly by meeting their friends, family members and in a bustle to meet their essential chores.
These silent spreaders are of three types as suggested by the medical experts: mildly symptomatic, presymptomatic and asymptomatic. Mildly symptomatic are those people who have mild symptoms like mild fever, cough, muscle aches etc. Presymptomatic spreaders are those who do not develop any symptoms until a week and asymptomatic spreaders do not show any symptoms at all but incubate the virus regularly.
The symptoms of the COVID-19 include: cough, fever, muscle aches, headache, diarrhea, sore throat, breath shortening, fatigue and nausea. Aged people and those with medical problems such as cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, and cancer are more prone to this. While most people infected with COVID-19 will suffer from mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without any special treatment.
According to a recent study published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, men are more likely to die from COVID-19 than women. This is because of the higher levels of the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in men. The ACE2 is a protein in the blood that is used by the Sars-CoV2 to enter human cells, according to the European Heart Journal.
At present there are no vaccines or specific treatment for COVID-19. So in order to prevent yourself from COVID-19 stay at home, avoid touching your face, wash your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds, use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer, cover your face with mask while going outside, practice social distancing and stay tuned to the updates provided by the government. While several trials are under consideration that might prove panacea in this havoc situation.
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