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New warning from China: Unknown pneumonia deadlier than COVID-19 sweeps across Kazakhstan

New warning from China: Unknown pneumonia deadlier than COVID-19 sweeps across Kazakhstan
Pneumonia can be viral or bacterial. Your treatment will depend on what kind of pneumonia you have. @Shutterstock

The Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan on Thursday warned that an "unknown pneumonia" deadlier than the coronavirus was sweeping through the country.

Written by Jahnavi Sarma |Published : July 10, 2020 1:21 PM IST

The world is still trying to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The current global health crisis has ravaged nations across the world and there seems to be no end in sight yet. Scientists are trying their best to find a vaccine for this new variant of coronavirus. They are even looking at existing drugs and vaccines that may help fight against the disease. But till now, there is no definite answer yet and we may not have any vaccine in the market till next year. This is a worrying scenario. Now, even as people try to adapt to the new normal of social distancing and isolation, there comes more bad news.

The Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan on Thursday warned that an "unknown pneumonia" deadlier than the coronavirus was sweeping through the country. In a statement issued by the Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan, the death rate of this disease is much higher than the novel coronavirus. Chinese officials have warned its citizens living in the country of this danger and asked them to be vigilant and safe. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan's health departments are conducting comparative research into the pneumonia virus but have not yet been able to identify it.

New pneumonia has claimed 1,772 victims till now

This unknown pneumonia has so far caused 1,772 deaths in just the first six months of the year. This includes 628 deaths in June alone. Health officials have also recorded more than 32,000 cases of pneumonia between June 29 and July 5 alone, along with 451 deaths in this period. One Chinese citizen also succumbed to this disease. According to the embassy, the fatality rate of this new disease is much higher than COVID-19. The embassy website, citing local reports, said Atyrau and Aktobe provinces and Shymkent city reported significant spikes in pneumonia cases since the middle of June.

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Deadly disease not identified yet

But so far Kazakhstani officials and media have only said it is pneumonia. Meanwhile, according to the Global Times, Kazakhstan's healthcare minister said on Wednesday that the number of patients who have taken ill with pneumonia is two to three times more than those who have been infected with COVID-19. The minister also apparently said that accurate tallies of confirmed cases are planned and may be published as early as next week and added that while it's not necessary to publish the number, the public needs to know the situation.

The COVID-19 scene

The current health crisis shows no signs of abating and the number of infected people across the world have risen to 11,874,226 including 545,481 deaths. This is what the World Health Organisation says. In India too cases are increasing steadily and alarmingly with many states voluntarily declaring further lockdowns. India now has 7,93,802 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and as many as 21,604 people have lost their lives to this condition, according to data on the Union Health Ministry website.

(With inputs from agencies)