What is the Wuhan Coronavirus?
A member of the coronavirus family that has never been encountered before and like other coronaviruses, it has come from animals. Many of those infected either worked or frequently shopped in the Huanan seafood wholesale market in the centre of the Chinese city, which also sold newly slaughtered and live animals.
As China’s Corononavirus epidemic continues to spread on a global scale, the situation may seem scary – but with simple precautions that can protect you from contracting the coronavirus.
There are four confirmed cases in Malaysia with other countries with reported cases – Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, the United States, Australia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, France, Taiwan, Vietnam and Nepal.
What are the symptoms caused by the virus?
Those who have fallen ill are reported to suffer from;
- severe coughs
- fever
- difficult breathing
- impaired liver and kidney function
- kidney failure
In severe cases, the infected will suffer from pneumonia and organ failure.
Please be aware, as this is viral pneumonia, antibiotics are of no use. The antiviral drugs against flu will not work. If you are admitted to the hospital, you may get support for their lungs and other organs as well as fluids. Recovery will depend on the strength of their immune system as many of those who have died are known to have been already in poor health.
The 10 simple precautions that can protect you.
1. When you leave your home, wear gloves and keep them on in public transportation and spaces.
2. If you are in a social situation where you should remove your gloves, perhaps to shake hands or dine, do not touch your face or eyes. Keep your hands away from contact with your face. And before you put your gloves back on, wash your hands thoroughly with soap and warm water, scrubbing the fingers.
3. Change gloves daily, washing them thoroughly, and avoid wearing damp gloves.
4. Ensure the elderly young children are steered away from public spaces as generally the coronavirus appears to be hitting older people hardest, with few cases in children.
4. Stay away from crowds and keep a distance from individual people—a half meter, about 1.5 feet, is a good standard. Don’t shake hands or hug people—politely decline by saying it’s better for both of you not to come in close contact during an epidemic.
5. Inside your household, instruct everybody in your home to only uses their own towels. Wash all towels twice a week. Damp towels provide terrific homes for viruses, like common colds, flus, and, yes, coronaviruses.
6. Be careful with doorknobs. If it’s possible to open and close doors using your elbows or shoulders, do so. Wash your hands after touching it. Similarly, be cautious with stairway bannisters, desktops, cell phones, toys, laptops—any objects that are hand-held. As long as you handle only your own personal objects, you will be ok.
7. If you share meals, do not use your personal chopsticks and utensils to remove food from a serving bowl or plate and, of course, tell your children to never drink out of anybody else’s cups or from a container of shared fluid. Wash all food and kitchenware thoroughly between meals and avoid restaurants that have poor hygiene practices.
8. Absolutely do not buy, slaughter, or consume any live animal or fish until it is known what species was the source of the virus.
9. When the weather allows, open your windows at home or work, letting your space air out. The virus cannot linger in a well-ventilated space. But of course, if it is cold or the weather is inclement, keep warm and close those windows.
And lastly, please do not panic.
The spread of the virus outside China is worrying but not an unexpected development. It increases the likelihood that the World Health Organization will declare the outbreak to be a public health emergency of international concern. The key issues are how transmissible this new coronavirus is between people and what proportion become severely ill and end up in the hospital.
The Malaysian government has halted all immigration facilities including issuing visas for Chinese citizens from Wuhan and the areas around Hubei province with immediate effect.
The Prime Minister’s Office said the decision to suspend the issuance of visas to China nationals was made to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus 2019 (2019-nCoV).
If you wish to know more about the situation and updates, please do visit the following links.