Corona virus: How to protect yourself from corona virus

The Covid-19 corona virus outbreak is a new illness and scientists are still assessing how it spreads from person to person, but similar viruses tend to spread via cough and sneeze droplets.

When an infected person coughs or sneezes, they release droplets of saliva or mucus. These droplets can fall on people in the vicinity and can be either directly inhaled or picked up on the hands then transferred when someone touches their face, causing infection. For flu, some hospital guidelines define exposure as being within six feet of an infected person who sneezes or coughs for 10 minutes or longer.

Corona viruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and humans. Detailed investigations found that SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels to humans. Several known corona viruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected humans. 

Common signs of infection include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death. 

             How to protect yourself from corona virus
Wash your hands: wet your hands with clean, running water and apply soap. Lather your hands, including the backs, between your fingers, and under your nails and scrub for at least 20 seconds. Rinse.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, then throw the tissue in the bin and wash your hands. If you do not have a tissue to hand, cough or sneeze into your elbow rather than your hands.

Face masks offer some protection as they block liquid droplets. However, they do not block smaller aerosol particles that can pass through the material of the mask. The masks also leave the eyes exposed and there is evidence that some viruses can infect a person through the eyes.

Seek early medical help if you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, and share your travel history with healthcare providers.

If visiting live markets in affected areas avoid direct, unprotected contact with live animals and surfaces that have been in contact with animals.

If you are in an affected area avoid eating raw or under cooked animal products and exercise care when handling raw meat, milk or animal organs to avoid cross-contamination with uncooked foods.

If you have just returned from an affected area in China in the last two weeks, stay indoors and avoid contact with other people for 14 days. This means not going to work, school or public areas.

For live updates on the spread of the virus click the links below
https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/685d0ace521648f8a5beeeee1b9125cd

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

Credit: https://www.theguardian.com/  
Credit: https://www.who.int/

Photo credit:Photo Illustration by Max Posner/NPR and Tony Latham/Corbis/Getty Images