Is coronavirus as deadly as it is made out to be? Get your facts right

If you test positive for coronavirus, there is a good chance that you will recover fully. But the constant deluge of news may have you thinking otherwise.

By: Jahnavi Sarma | | Updated: March 20, 2020 8:26 am

People have recovered after being tested positive and, till date, 85,769 people have been successfully cured. @Shutterstock

With the number of people with coronavirus rising to 166 in India, people are panicking. There is a general sense of foreboding and everyone seems to be on edge. The merest hint of a sniffle and a cough is enough to send people scurrying for cover. The question on everybody’s mind seems to be how fatal is the disease? Of course, the disease is highly contagious, and it has quickly spread across the globe at a very fast rate. But if we look at the death rates, it is 4 per cent. Also Read - Abnormally high blood sugar in non-diabetic COVID-19 patients may lead to fatal outcome

What the statistics say about the coronavirus

As of March 18, 2020, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide is 207,855 and 8,648 people have died from it so far taking the death toll to 4 per cent. This is across 166 countries, areas or territories according to the World Health Organisation. Now for the good news. People have recovered after being tested positive and, till date, 85,769 people have been successfully cured. The symptoms are also mild in most of the cases. So, there is no need to panic. But this does not mean that you don’t need to take precautions. You do. But there is a good chance that even if you get the disease, you will be able to have a full recovery with treatment. Also Read - Horseshoe crab blood may be crucial for development of an effective COVID-19 vaccine

An article published on February 24 in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) chronicles how researchers looked at the case records of 72,314 patients. Of them, 44,672 tested positive for COVID-19. Among these cases, 36,160 cases or 81 per cent exhibited mild symptoms, 14 per cent had severe symptoms and 5 per cent were in a critical condition. Researchers say that the overall case-fatality rate, or coronavirus cases that ended in death, was only 2.3 per cent, or 1,023 deaths, out of the total number of confirmed cases. Also Read - Interpersonal stressors related to self-isolation increase risk of COVID-19

But precautions are a must

The deadly coronavirus, which originated in a seafood market in Wuhan, China, has infected 81174 people in the country. Today, in a new development the country has reported that there are no fresh cases of infection in China. But then, Europe has emerged as the new epicenter of the disease with 35, 713 confirmed cases in Italy, the worst affected European country. One thing is clear from these figures. The speed at which COVID-19 is spreading is worrisome. However, the fatality rate of the disease is not something to panic about. The concern, nonetheless, is understandably reasonable and more so, because coronavirus can have serious health impacts on the elderly and people with underlying conditions. So, this is not something that you must take lightly. Hence, precautionary measures are a must. You need to isolate yourself for the safety of others as well as yourself. You don’t want to spread the virus to an elderly loved one. Moreover, you need to take all precautions like washing hands, maintaining social distance and avoiding large gatherings.

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Disclaimer

The information given above may change by the time you read this. The global coronavirus scenario is highly fluid, and it is constantly changing with new figures coming in almost every hour.

Published : March 19, 2020 2:04 pm | Updated:March 20, 2020 8:26 am

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