As of 10:30 a.m., Feb. 18, the coronavirus has sickened 73,337 and has resulted in 1,875 deaths. Globally, 13,130 people have recovered from the illness.
'Danger of getting coronavirus now is just minisculely low,' Dr. Fauci says
To prevent the spread of the coronavirus, implement measures used in any flu season, such as practicing good hand hygiene and staying away from infected people, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told USA Today. He said risk in the U.S. is still low, but noted that the outbreak could still evolve into a global pandemic.
Chinese hospital director dies from COVID-19
Liu Zhiming, president of Wuhan Wuchang Hospital in the Hubei province, died Feb. 18 despite "all-out" efforts to save his life, USA Today reports. The 51-year-old led the hospital designated for the coronavirus epidemic, accepting thousands of patients every day.
How helpful are quarantines, isolation?
The U.S. government's efforts to isolate and quarantine Americans could temporarily prevent the spread of the disease, but "are not guaranteed to stop further transmissions," Ogbonnaya Omenka, PhD, an assistant professor and public health specialist at Indianapolis-based Butler University, told USA Today.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, has praised the Chinese government's containment efforts, which leave 60 million people under lockdown as of Feb. 17. However, Lawrence Gostin, director of the WHO Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights, warned that lockdowns can incite fear and panic.
In regard to the Diamond Princess cruise ship, Dr. Fauci said the quarantine process failed. The ship was quarantined in Japan after 10 cases of coronavirus were reported Feb. 4.
Apple says it won't meet quarterly revenue goal due to outbreak
Apple said Feb. 17 that it does not expect to meet its quarterly revenue forecast of $63 billion to $67 billion because of a lower global iPhone supply and lower Chinese demand tied to the outbreak, CNBC reports.
China destroys potentially infected cash
In an attempt to contain the virus, the People's Bank of China Feb. 15 said all banks must disinfect cash and then store it for seven to 14 days before dispensing it, CNN reports. Cash from high-risk infection areas may be destroyed entirely.
Lab confirmation vs. clinical confirmation: What's the difference?
Originally only reporting lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases, China recently began including clinically confirmed cases in its total case count, CBS News reports. A lab-confirmed case means samples from a patient's upper respiratory tract held the genetic makeup of the virus. A clinical confirmation depends on an assessment of symptoms and lung imaging, making it less precise but still useful. No diagnostic test is foolproof, Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of WHO Health Emergencies Programme, said at a press conference Feb.17.
Egypt is the 1st African country to report a COVID-19 case
The patient had traveled to China, is asymptomatic and is currently in isolation, WHO confirmed Feb. 16. Individuals who had been in contact with the patient are being traced and have all tested negative for the virus so far.
Sen. Tom Cotton's 'engineered bioweapon' hypothesis
The Republican senator from Arkansas has suggested that the virus originated in an infectious diseases research lab and that China's government has been lying about the origin, among other theories, according to CNN. He said his theory is based on a study published in The Lancet, though most experts have disregarded the claim, citing a lack of evidence.
As of 9 a.m., Feb. 18, the coronavirus has sickened 73,337 and has resulted in 1,875 deaths. Globally, 13,124 people have recovered from the illness.
'Danger of getting coronavirus now is just minisculely low,' Dr. Fauci saysTo prevent the spread of the coronavirus, implement measures used in any flu season, such as practicing good hand hygiene and staying away from infected people, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told USA Today. He said risk in the U.S. is still low, but noted that the outbreak could still evolve into a global pandemic.
How helpful are quarantines, isolation? The U.S. government's efforts to isolate and quarantine Americans could temporarily prevent the spread of the disease, but "are not guaranteed to stop further transmissions," Ogbonnaya Omenka, PhD, an assistant professor and public health specialist at Indianapolis-based Butler University, told USA Today.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, PhD, has praised the Chinese government's containment efforts, which leave 60 million people under lockdown as of Feb. 17. However, Lawrence Gostin, director of the WHO Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights, warned that lockdowns can incite fear and panic.
In regard to the Diamond Princess cruise ship, Dr. Fauci said the quarantine process failed. The ship was quarantined in Japan after 10 cases of coronavirus were reported Feb. 4.
Apple says it won't meet quarterly revenue goal due to outbreak Apple said Feb. 17 that it does not expect to meet its quarterly revenue forecast of $63 billion to $67 billion because of a lower global iPhone supply and lower Chinese demand tied to the outbreak, CNBC reports.
China destroys potentially infected cash In an attempt to contain the virus, the People's Bank of China Feb. 15 said all banks must disinfect cash and then store it for seven to 14 days before dispensing it, CNN reports. Cash from high-risk infection areas may be destroyed entirely.
Lab confirmation vs. clinical confirmation: What's the difference? Originally only reporting lab-confirmed COVID-19 cases, China recently began including clinically confirmed cases in its total case count, CBS News reports. A lab-confirmed case means samples from a patient's upper respiratory tract held the genetic makeup of the virus. A clinical confirmation depends on an assessment of symptoms and lung imaging, making it less precise but still useful. No diagnostic test is foolproof, Dr. Ryan said at a press conference Feb.17.
Egypt is the 1st African country to report a COVID-19 caseThe patient had traveled to China, is asymptomatic and is currently in isolation, WHO confirmed Feb. 16. Individuals who had been in contact with the patient are being traced and have all tested negative for the virus so far.
Sen. Tom Cotton's 'engineered bioweapon' hypothesis The Republican senator from Arkansas has suggested that the virus originated in an infectious diseases research lab and that China's government has been lying about the origin, among other theories, according to CNN. He said his theory is based on a study published in The Lancet, though most experts have disregarded the claim, citing a lack of evidence.