Hello everyone! My name is COVID-19, a new member of the coronavirus family. I heard that I became very famous at the beginning of this year! Thanks to some humans, I am travelling around the world now and meets more and more people!
After meeting me, some humans have mild cold symptoms. They think they can persist. They continue to work and meet until I want to invade in their bodies and make their lungs overload.
Some humans are sensitive, they fell in love with me at first sight. They accepted me quickly and died for me.
Of course, human wisdom cannot be underestimated. All of the paramedics and scientists want to kill me. My life is getting worse and worse...
Who am I?
I am an infectious disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, a virus closely related to the SARS virus. My family is a large group of viruses with 6 elder brothers. We may cause a variety of human diseases, from the common cold to severe pneumonia, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), etc. Globally, about 10% to 30% of upper respiratory tract infections are caused by members of my family, and they are the second leading cause of common colds, second only to rhinoviruses.
Members of my family (human coronavirus) are more sensitive to heat and stable in a suitable maintenance solution at 4 ° C. They can survive for several years at -60 ° C. As the temperature increases, my resistance decreases. For example, HCoV-229E loses its ability to infect at 56 ° C for 10 minutes or 37 ° C for several hours. I am not heat-resistant, alkali-resistant, and most dislike organic solvents and disinfectants. 75% ethanol, ether, chloroform, formaldehyde, chlorine-containing disinfectants, peracetic acid, and ultraviolet light can endanger my life. I survived in a dry environment for only 48 hours, and after 2 hours in the air, the activity was significantly reduced.
Some data show that I can survive for several hours on the smooth surface of door handles and elevator buttons. If the temperature is appropriate, I can survive for several days, such as in an environment with a temperature of 20 ° C and a humidity of 40% to 50%, I may survive up to 5 days. Therefore, washing your hands frequently is very important!
How do I spread?
I am primarily spread between people by small droplets from infected individuals when they breathe or cough. I can also spread by contact or aerosol, and there may even be the possibility of faecal-oral transmission, or digestive tract transmission because people have detected my nucleic acid in the patient's stool. However, no live virus has been detected till now.
Time from exposure to onset of symptoms is generally between 2 and 14 days.
People are trying to find ways to stop my spread. For example, stay at home and try not to go out, you must wear a mask when going out, wash your hands frequently, cover your nose and nose with sneezing, open windows, and maintain indoor ventilation.
What are the symptoms?
People may have few symptoms or develop fever, cough, and shortness of breath.
At the beginning (2 to 3 days), people may have a fever, dry cough, and fatigue, and mistakenly think that it is just a common cold and fever. About 1 week after I entered the body, the patient gradually developed symptoms such as dyspnea, chest tightness, asthma, etc. Some patients had mild initial symptoms and no obvious fever. Severe patients may present with acute respiratory distress syndrome, septic shock, refractory metabolic acidosis, and coagulopathy.
There is no vaccine or specific antiviral treatment, with management involving treatment of symptoms, supportive care, and experimental measures. The case fatality rate is estimated at between 1% and 3%.
Now you know how powerful I am! So are you ready for me? If you are not ready, I have some tips to avoid my approaching:
- Wash your hands frequently.
- Always wear a mask when going out.
- Avoid crowded places.
- Keep warm and keep the room ventilated.
- Pay attention to personal hygiene.
- Disinfect your house.
- Meat and eggs should be cooked.
- Keep your diet light.
- Do more exercise.
- Get enough sleep.
Spring is coming, the weather is getting warmer and warmer, this weather is even more detrimental to my survival. So you might be able to beat me soon!