Five people in Scotland are being tested for suspected coronavirus after travelling to the country from Wuhan, China, according to the head of infection medicine at the University of Edinburgh. A woman, who returned from Wuhan was also being screened for the disease in Bari, Italy.
The Guardian reports that “Prof Jurgen Haas said he believes there will be many more cases from other cities in the UK. He said three cases are in Edinburgh and the other is believed to be in Glasgow.”
Syptoms
Symptoms of coronavirus infections can begin with simple cold and cough and mild fever, but aggravate if left untreated, leading to more severe respiratory illnesses such as the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). MERS-CoV transmission happens both through humans and animals such as dogs and cats.
Global Reach
The virus has killed 18 people and infected more than 630. Of the known cases worldwide, Thailand has confirmed four, while Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States have reported one each.
A Saudi health ministry affiliate said on Thursday there were no cases of coronavirus in the kingdom, denying earlier reports of an expatriate resident being infected.
Earlier, India’s minister of state for external affairs said an Indian nurse working at a hospital in southwestern Saudi Arabia has been infected by the coronavirus and was being treated, amid an outbreak that has killed 17 people in China.
But the Saudi Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a tweet that there were no cases of the novel coronavirus so far.
The kingdom said on Wednesday it would start screening passengers arriving from China and take other preventive measures following the outbreak in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
Not a public health emergency – WHO
The Geneva-based World Health Organization decided against declaring the outbreak a public health emergency.
“Make no mistake, this is an emergency in China,” said the WHO in a statement. “But it has not yet become a global health emergency.”
Bejing cancels Lunar New Year Celebrations
Beijing has canceled mass Lunar New Year celebrations and put four cities on lockdown in an effort to control the spread of the deadly coronavirus virus, state media reported Thursday.
The “large-scale events” to mark the new year include traditional temple fairs that have attracted mass crowds of tourists in recent years.
Fatalties
The first fatality of China’s new virus would come to represent a common set of traits for those who died to the disease: he was over the age of 60 and in poor health.
So far, the majority of the victims were elderly individuals with pre-existing health conditions, such as diabetes and liver cirrhosis.All hailed from central Hubei province, where a local seafood market in the capital city of Wuhan is believed to be the epicentre of the epidemic.
But while older individuals have died from the Wuhan virus, some younger patients — including a 10-year-old boy — have since been released from the hospital.
Here’s what we know so far about the deaths: Most victims were over 60. According to details released by China’s National Health Commission (NHC) on Thursday, the 17 victims of the virus were between 48 and 89 years old. Only two were under the age of 60, while the average age of the victims was 73. Most of them died this week, according to the NHC.
Lock Down
China on Thursday decided to lock down three cities that are home to more than 18 million people in an unprecedented effort to try to contain a deadly new viral illness that has sickened hundreds and spread to other cities and countries in the Lunar New Year travel rush.
Airports
Meanwhile some of the major and busiest international airports in the world have started announcing preventive safety measures against the spread of coronavirus after its outbreak in China and reported spread to other countries.
Three European airports have direct flights to Wuhan, from major cities such as London, Rome, and Paris. Airlines such as China Southern and Air France offer non-stop flights to Europe throughout the year.
A flight from Wuhan, the epicentre of the new SARS-like coronavirus in China, landed at Rome’s Fiumicino airport early on Thursday. The 202 passengers on board the flight went through a special ‘health channel’ at the airport, where procedures to prevent contagion was applied.
London Heathrow airport has designated a separate area in Terminal 4 to screen the passengers arriving from Wuhan and check for as well as inform the passengers about the symptoms.
John F. Kennedy, Los Angeles and San Francisco international airports were the first to start screening for the coronavirus, followed by O’Hare and Hartsfield-Jackson International airports.
Canadian airports including Toronto international airport, Montreal international airport, and Vancouver international airport have announced that international passengers will have to undergo additional screening such as temperature and other symptomatic checks and inquiring about their visits to Wuhan to check for the possibility of having contracted the infection.
Based on reports from Airport Technology / The Guardian / France 24 / ANSA / DW
