Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that can cause illnesses such as the common cold, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). In 2019, a new virus called the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused a disease outbreak in China. The disease is called coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
There isn't much known about this new virus yet. Public health groups, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), are monitoring the situation and posting updates on their websites. These groups have also issued recommendations for preventing and treating the illness.
Signs and symptoms of infection with the new coronavirus may appear two to 14 days after exposure and can include:
Fever
Cough
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
The severity of the new coronavirus symptoms can range from very mild to severe, even death. Although understanding of this disease continues to grow, most people with severe illness have been of an older age or had other significant existing medical conditions. This is similar to what is seen in people who have severe infections with other respiratory illnesses, such as influenza.
Contact your doctor right away if you have symptoms of infection with the new coronavirus and you've possibly been exposed to the virus. Tell your doctor if you've recently traveled internationally. Call your doctor ahead to tell him or her about your symptoms and recent travels and possible exposure before you go to your appointment.
It's unclear exactly how contagious the new coronavirus is or how it spreads. It appears to be spreading from person to person among those in close contact. It may be spread by respiratory droplets released when someone with the virus coughs or sneezes.
It's not known if a person can catch the virus by touching a surface that an infected person has touched, and then putting his or her hand to the mouth.
Risk factors for infection with the new coronavirus appear to include:
Recent travel from or residence in China
Close contact with someone who has the new coronavirus — such as when a family member or health care worker takes care of an infected person
People who are older or who have other existing medical conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease, may be at higher risk of becoming seriously ill with the new coronavirus. But there is still much unknown about the virus, and the CDC and WHO continue to investigate.
Although there is no vaccine available to prevent infection with the new coronavirus, you can take steps to reduce your risk of infection. WHO and CDC recommend following the standard precautions for avoiding respiratory viruses:
Wash your hands often with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
Cover your mouth and nose with your elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth if your hands aren't clean.
Avoid close contact with anyone who is sick.
Avoid sharing dishes, glasses, bedding and other household items if you're sick.
Clean and disinfect surfaces you often touch.
Stay home from work, school and public areas if you're sick.
WHO also recommends that you:
Contact your doctor if you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, and tell him or her about any recent travels.
Avoid eating raw or undercooked meat or animal organs.
Avoid contact with live animals and surfaces they may have touched if you're visiting live markets in areas that have recently had new coronavirus cases.
If you're planning to travel internationally, first check travel advisories. You may also want to talk with your doctor if you have health conditions that make you more susceptible to respiratory infections and complications.
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What is swine flu?
What is swine flu?
Like
people, pigs can get influenza (flu), but swine flu viruses aren't the same as
human flu viruses. Swine flu doesn't often infect people, and the rare human
cases that have occurred in the past have mainly affected people who had direct
contact with pigs. But the current swine flu outbreak is different. It's caused
by a new swine flu virus that has spread from person to person -- and it's
happening among people who haven't had any contact with pigs.
What are swine flu symptoms?
Symptoms of
swine flu are like regular flu symptoms and include fever, cough, sore throat,
body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea
and vomiting associated with swine flu. Those symptoms can also be caused by
many other conditions, and that means that you and your doctor can't know, just
based on your symptoms, if you've got swine flu. It takes a lab test to tell
whether it's swine flu or some other condition.
If I think I have swine flu, what should I do? When should I see my
doctor?
If you have
flu symptoms, stay home, and when you cough or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose
with a tissue. Afterward, throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands.
That will help prevent your flu from spreading.
If you've got flu symptoms, and you've recently been to a high-risk area like
Mexico, CDC officials recommend that you see your doctor. If you have flu
symptoms but you haven't been in a high-risk area, you can still see a doctor --
that's your call.
Keep in mind that your doctor will not be able to determine whether you have
swine flu, but he or she would take a sample from you and send it to a state
health department lab for testing to see if it's swine flu. If your doctor
suspects swine flu, he or she would be able to write you a prescription for
Tamiflu or Relenza. Those drugs may not be required; U.S. swine flu patients
have made a full recovery without it.
How does swine flu spread? Is it airborne?
The new
swine flu virus apparently spreads just like regular flu. You could pick up
germs directly from an infected person, or by touching an object they recently
touched, and then touching your eyes, mouth, or nose, delivering their germs for
your own infection. That's why you should make washing your hands a habit, even
when you're not ill. Infected people can start spreading flu germs up to a day
before symptoms start, and for up to seven days after getting sick, according to
the CDC.
The swine flu virus can become airborne if you cough or sneeze without covering
your nose and mouth, sending germs into the air.
The U.S. residents infected with swine flu virus had no direct contact with
pigs. The CDC says it's likely that the infections represent widely separated
cycles of human-to-human infections.
How is swine flu treated?
The new
swine flu virus is sensitive to the antiviral drugs Tamiflu and Relenza. The CDC
recommends those drugs to prevent or treat swine flu; the drugs are most
effective when taken within 48 hours of the start of flu symptoms. But not
everyone needs those drugs; many of the first people in the U.S. with
lab-confirmed swine flu recovered without treatment. The Department of Homeland
Security has released 25% of its stockpile of Tamiflu and Relenza to states.
Health officials have asked people not to hoard Tamiflu or Relenza.
Is there a vaccine against the new swine flu virus?
No. But the
CDC and the World Health Organization are already taking the first steps toward
making such a vaccine. That's a lengthy process -- it takes months.
I had a flu vaccine this season. Am I protected against swine flu?
No. This
season's flu vaccine wasn't made with the new swine flu virus in mind; no one
saw this virus coming ahead of time.
If you were vaccinated against flu last fall or winter, that vaccination will go
a long way toward protecting you against certain human flu virus strains. But
the new swine flu virus is a whole other problem.
How can I prevent swine flu infection?
The CDC
recommends taking these steps:
Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, especially after coughing or
sneezing. Or use an alcohol-based hand cleaner.
Avoid close contact with sick people.
Avoid touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
Can I still eat pork?
Yes. You
can't get swine flu by eating pork, bacon, or other foods that come from pigs.
What else should I be doing?
Keep informed of what's going on in your community. Your state and local health
departments may have important information if swine flu develops in your area.
For instance, parents might want to consider what they would do if their child's
school temporarily closed because of flu. That happened in New York City, where
St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens closed for a couple of days after eight
students were found to have swine flu. Don't panic, but a little planning
wouldn't hurt.
How severe is swine flu?
The
severity of cases in the current swine flu outbreak has varied widely. In
Mexico, there have been deaths and other severe cases. Early cases in the U.S.
have been mild. But that could change. The virus itself could change, either
becoming more or less dangerous. Scientists are watching closely to see which
way the new swine flu virus is heading -- but health experts warn that flu
viruses are notoriously hard to predict, as far as how and when they'll change.
Why has the swine flu infection been deadlier in Mexico than in the U.S.?
It is
unclear why U.S. cases have been milder compared to those in Mexico. Among the
first 20 reported cases in the U.S., only one patient required hospitalization
and that person has fully recovered. CDC researchers are actively investigating
to learn more about the differences between the cases in Mexico and those in the
U.S.
Have there been previous swine flu oubtreaks?
Yes. There
was a swine flu outbreak at Fort Dix, N.J., in 1976 among military recruits. It
lasted about a month and then went away as mysteriously as it appeared. As many
as 240 people were infected; one died.
The swine flu that spread at Fort Dix was the H1N1 strain. That's the same flu
strain that caused the disastrous flu pandemic of 1918-1919, resulting in tens
of millions of deaths.
Concern that a new H1N1 pandemic might return in winter 1976 led to a crash
program to create a vaccine and vaccinate all Americans against swine flu. That
vaccine program ran into all kinds of problems -- not the least of which was
public perception that the vaccine caused excessive rates of dangerous
reactions. After more than 40 million people were vaccinated, the effort was
abandoned.
As it turned out, there was no swine flu epidemic.
I was vaccinated against the 1976 swine flu virus. Am I still protected?
Probably
not. The new swine flu virus is different from the 1976 virus. And it's not
clear whether a vaccine given more than 30 years ago would still be effective.
How many people have swine flu?
That's a
hard question to answer, because the figure is changing so quickly. If you want
to keep track of U.S. cases that have been confirmed by lab tests and reported
to the CDC, check the CDC's web site. If you're looking for cases in other
countries, visit the World Health Organization's web site. And when you hear
about large numbers of people who are ill, remember that lab tests may not yet
have been done to confirm that they have swine flu. And there may be a little
lag time before confirmed cases make it into the official tally.
How serious is the public health threat of a swine flu epidemic?
The U.S.
government has declared swine flu to be a public health emergency.
It remains to be seen how severe swine flu will be in the U.S. and elsewhere,
but countries worldwide are monitoring the situation closely and preparing for
the possibility of a pandemic.
The World Health Organization has not declared swine flu to be a pandemic. The
WHO wants to learn more about the virus first and see how severe it is and how
deeply it takes root.
But it takes more than a new virus spreading among humans to make a pandemic.
The virus has to be able to spread efficiently from one person to another, and
transmission has to be sustained over time. In addition, the virus has to spread
geographically.
More at - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swine_flu