Be on alert; China confirms human to human transmission of deadly, cororna virus; WHO to discuss tomorrow

New Delhi, January 21: Have you heard of the Corona virus? This new Chinese virus, a cousin of the SARS virus, has infected more than 200 people since the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, in December. Following the said episode, a high-level expert team of China's National Health Commission has on Tuesday confirmed people to people transmission of coronavirus and infection of medical staff at a press conference in Beijing.

 

While the neighbouring nation has affirmed that Corona virus is infectious one, it also noted that scientists have completed the whole genome sequencing of the novel corona virus. This is probably after fifteen medical workers in central China's Wuhan City have been diagnosed with pneumonia caused by the novel corona virus, plus one suspected case, noted the municipal health commission on Tuesday morning.

 

 

One of the 16 patients is in critical condition while the rest are in stable condition. Further to this the World Health Organisation panel is slated to meet in Geneva on Wenesday determine whether to declare the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, a rare designation only used for the gravest epidemics.

 

The new corona virus strain, first discovered in the central city of Wuhan, has caused alarm because of its connection to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which killed nearly 650 people across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003. The total number of people diagnosed with the new virus has risen to 218.

 

Meanwhile, President Xi Jinping has said that safeguarding people's lives should be given top priority and that the spread of the epidemic should be resolutely contained. While, some scientists believe that a seafood market in Wuhan is the centre of the outbreak, some other say patients could contract the new virus without having visited the city.

 

Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses that are common among animals. In rare cases, they are what scientists call zoonotic, meaning they can be transmitted from animals to humans, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The viruses can make people sick, usually with a mild to moderate upper respiratory tract illness, similar to a common cold.