There's info out there, just not much. It's an airborne virus. Not sure how long the virus can live on a surface. The reproductive value (R0)of a virus is how many people a given infected person can in turn infect. Spanish flu was estimated at an R0 of about 1.4. This virus was given a 2.6--quite high. Now I'm reading that new estimates for the coronavirus are 3.3-5.4. Symptoms are typically like the flu--coughing, sneezing, head cold, fever, muscle aches. The big issue is a secondary pneumonia--that's what seems to be killing people, of all ages, not just elderly. But some people are asymptomatic and are still carriers and spreading it around. Mortality seems to be fairly low at this point, but estimates are up to 10%. Morbidity (how many people get sick) is very high (given the R0 number) and it spreads easily. Since it's a virus, there is really little treatment beyond supportive care--antibiotics only work against a bacteria, not against a virus. I saw a comment on Twitter that HIV drugs were being used--makes sense, as these are powerful anti-virals. I don't know how effective they are. Prevention--go out NOW and buy N-95 masks, disposable gloves, antibacterial wipes to have on hand. The masks are in short supply on Amazon, and those that are there are way over prices (ie hundreds of dollars for a box of 80). So don't bother w/ Amazon. Go to Home Depot, Lowes, Tractor Supply and look for them. Do it before CDC/WHO declares a global crisis and everyone panicks. Wash hands, use your own pen for signing credit card receipts, wipe down surfaces, wash hands, wash hands-can't say that one enough.
I've read nothing about prevention, how it is spread, the symptoms once contracted, treatment, nor survival expectations. Why is this?
There's info out there, just not much. It's an airborne virus. Not sure how long the virus can live on a surface. The reproductive value (R0)of a virus is how many people a given infected person can in turn infect. Spanish flu was estimated at an R0 of about 1.4. This virus was given a 2.6--quite high. Now I'm reading that new estimates for the coronavirus are 3.3-5.4. Symptoms are typically like the flu--coughing, sneezing, head cold, fever, muscle aches. The big issue is a secondary pneumonia--that's what seems to be killing people, of all ages, not just elderly. But some people are asymptomatic and are still carriers and spreading it around. Mortality seems to be fairly low at this point, but estimates are up to 10%. Morbidity (how many people get sick) is very high (given the R0 number) and it spreads easily. Since it's a virus, there is really little treatment beyond supportive care--antibiotics only work against a bacteria, not against a virus. I saw a comment on Twitter that HIV drugs were being used--makes sense, as these are powerful anti-virals. I don't know how effective they are. Prevention--go out NOW and buy N-95 masks, disposable gloves, antibacterial wipes to have on hand. The masks are in short supply on Amazon, and those that are there are way over prices (ie hundreds of dollars for a box of 80). So don't bother w/ Amazon. Go to Home Depot, Lowes, Tractor Supply and look for them. Do it before CDC/WHO declares a global crisis and everyone panicks. Wash hands, use your own pen for signing credit card receipts, wipe down surfaces, wash hands, wash hands-can't say that one enough.