10 Things to Know About COVID-19

The world is currently ravaged by what the World Health Organization called a pandemic , which is the COVID-19. Within a little time, COVID-19 has become popular in all nations of the world. COVID-19 is a disease from the Coronavirus family that is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 . The disease was discovered in December 2019 in the city of Wuhan in China. COVID-19 is a disease that attacks the immune system of its host and causes them to show pneumonia-like symptoms like fever, cough, sneezing, and difficulty in breathing. There are more than 2.2 million index cases recorded since the outbreak of the disease worldwide, with over 1 7 0,000 deaths . Most of the death recorded on this disease arises from older persons and those with underlying health conditions like cancer, chronic respiratory disease, hypertension, diabetes, and other cardiovascular diseases.

10 Things to Know About COVID-19

The disease formally declared an epidemic by the World Health Organization was later declared a pandemic in March 2023. Today, I will be telling you the vital things you need to know about the deadly COVID-19.

1. How COVID-19 Spreads

Coronavirus is a disease that may be termed communicable . This is because it spread through communicable ways. A person who is exposed to the droplets released from a cough or sneeze of a suspected patient can become positive to the virus. The virus can also be transmitted by touching an infected person. Also, you can become a victim of the virus if you touch your mouth, eyes, or other facial parts of your body after contact an infected person. Furthermore, exposure to the droplets from the mouth of an infected person when you exchange words with him or her can result in you testing positive to the virus.

Learn more in the video below

2. The Symptoms of COVID-19

The Coronavirus is a deadly disease presented with different symptoms that most likely will signal that you have contacted the virus. Most of the symptoms are not that serious since they are also common symptoms when you have flu . These symptoms include fever, dry cough, headache, catarrh, and respiratory diseases.

Learn more about the symptoms in the link below

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html

3. Categories of People with Higher Risk

As deadly as the COVID-19 is, it affects mostly older people. This is because their immune system may not be strong enough to fight the virus as it enters into the body system. Also, people living with underlying health issues like diabetes, cancer, hypertension, respiratory and cardiovascular disease , and other deadly disease are at high risk of contracting the disease. However, people of all age categories are not exempted from contacting the new disease. The only exception is that older people and those with various terminal and deadly diseases tend to be at higher risk of dying as a result of the complications from the disease.

4 . The Fatality Rate

Apart from the pandemic that struck the world in 1918 in which about 25 million people died, COVID-19 is another deadly disease that is currently towing that path. Presently, over 150,000 people have died of the disease, with over 2.2 million reported cases worldwide. The United States of America is leading with over 31,000 deaths, and over 700,000 confirmed cases , out of which about 70,000 people have recovered. Italy is also leading in Europe with speculations that the United Kingdom may overtake Italy and Spain in the coming day on the total number of deaths recorded. In Africa ,over 19,827 cases have been reported withover 1020 deaths. Egypt has the highest number of confirmed cases, followed by South Africa . In the Asia continent , China has the highest index case recorded, followed closely by Iran . Despite these figures, demographers and social statistics experts believe that death caused by COVID-19 is about 1% with other deaths arising from complications of the underlying health issues of the patients.

Learn more in the link below

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/coronavirus-death-rate/

5. How to Protect Yourself

The fear of Coronavirus is fast killing people today before contracting the disease. One of the best ways to protect yourself from contacting Coronavirus is by practicing good hygiene . No matter where you go and who you meet, you must learn to always wash your hand with soap and water . In case you are not closer to where you can wash your hand consistently, you can use the alcohol-based hand sanitizers . The sanitizer helps to disinfect the hand. Also, you must refrain from the habit of touching your eyes, mouth, nose, and other facial parts of your body. You should also stop exchanging pleasantries by a handshake as the disease could be transmitted through that means. Also, you must practice the social distancing principle, whereby you avoid social gathering as much as possible. When you develop any symptoms of Coronavirus disease, you must isolate yourself to prevent the spread of the disease. Furthermore, it is necessary to stockpile medications and consumables that can be used to protect your mouth like the nose mask and glove used to protect the hand. This may be for 30-60 days.

6. Test and Vaccine for COVID-19

Since the Coronavirus is a new disease, testing kits are being manufactured in various health institutions in the countries of the world. Currently, no private laboratory has been given license to test people for the COVID-19 disease. Also, being a new disease, the search for a vaccine to combat the Coronavirus disease is ongoing. The treatment given to patients with the deadly disease is aimed at treating symptoms associated with the disease and also building the immune system of the body of the patient. With some antiviral vaccine that is set for clinical trials to ascertain their potency against COVID-19, there is hope that a cure for the disease will be discovered soon.

7. Steps to Take Against an Outbreak of COVID-19 in Your Area

Responsible individuals in an environment should report any suspected case of Coronavirus virus in your locality to the health authority. Practicing self-medication to treat the disease will be of no benefit to you because you are most likely going to die of the virus. The index case must be taken to the appropriate healthcare facility for proper treatment. People who have come in contact with the index case must be is olated by the health officials and given all the needed medical treatments. Also, all schools, religious, and social gathering must be banned to curb the spread of the disease in the locality.

8. Impact of Change in Weather on COVID-19

Presently, no research has given information on the possibility of the virus not been able to withstand warm temperatures . However, studies conducted so far show that even if the virus disappears on exposure to heat from the sun, it may still return to its initial location at sunset .

9. Travel Restrictions

The current way through which the spread of the disease can be curbed is by the stay at home or complete lockdown order placed on citizens in different countries of the world. Most countries have short their land borders, airport, and seaport to control the spread of the COVID-19. The bans have resulted in the closure of services in the airports meaning that no movement of aircraft from one place to the other. This has made most travelers canceled their flight schedules, thereby bringing businesses in the transportation and other sectors of the economy to a standstill.

10. Up-to-date Information

You must learn how to read and extract factual information from the news. Get a good website and international agencies that give a detailed report on the number of people tested, the number of index cases, and the death recorded. Examples of the news website that has created a special interface for up-to-date reportage and analysis include the New York Times, BBC, Al Jazeera, CNN. Most of these sites pull the latest information together from different continents of the world.

You can also have access to up-to-date information from social media platforms. Since the world is now a global village, people share information even via social media platforms even before they are published in most news websites. From the social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook, you can have information and even data on the number of people tested in a specific location, the number of suspected cases, and the death recorded in such location in a state, or country. With these news platforms, you will know more about the happenings on Coronavirus in the country.

Conclusion

COVID-19 is real. Some prominent people in different countries of the world have succumbed to death through the deadly disease. The information above is detailed enough to inform you about all you need to know about the COVID-19 disease. Currently, no care has been found for the disease except boosting of the immune of infected persons with existing drugs. To stay alive and safe, you must cooperate and adhere to the laydown rules given by the health officials. You must keep yourself abreast of the latest information from the right authority so that you can stay safe.