International travel to China and Coronavirus

Declared a global emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO), the coronavirus outbreak has been traced to Wuhan in China. Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province.

On January 30, 2020, WHO’s International Health Regulations Emergency Committee declared the outbreak as a “public health emergency of international concern” [PHEIC].

The US has declared a public health emergency due to the new virus that has hit China, steadily spreading to other countries as well.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 3 warning for China. The CDC is advising against all non-essential travel to China.

Named 2019 Novel Coronavirus [2019-nCoV], the recent outbreak is of a respiratory illness caused by a new coronavirus. Belonging to a large family of viruses, coronaviruses are common in different species of animals, such as bats, cattle, camel, cats etc. Rarely, animal coronavirus can infect people and be transmitted from person to person.

According to the WHO, travelers travelling to or from an affected area should take certain precautions.

Symptoms –

• Fever
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Difficulty in breathing properly
• Shortness of breath
• Fluid build-up in lungs, as in case of pneumonia

Precautions –

• Avoid contact with people that are sick
• Frequently wash hands
• Wash hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds
• Use alcohol-based hand sanitizer [containing at least 60% alcohol], if soap and water are not available
• Avoid close contact with dead or live farm or wild animals
• Use medical masks

Do keep in mind that while a medical mask might help, it is not foolproof.

As per the CDC, for confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV infections, illnesses reported have ranged from either little or no symptoms on one hand to severe illness and fatality on the other.

As on date, CDC believes that the symptoms of 2019-nCoV might appear in as few as 2 days or even as long as 14 days after the exposure to the virus.

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