Osler, Sidney - Coronavirus Outbreak_ All the Secrets Revealed About the Covid-19 Pandemic. A Complete Rational Guide of its Evolution, Expansion, Symptoms and First Defense. (2020)

moving domestically and internationally— to Africa, other
parts of Asia and Latin America, where China’s Belt and Road
Initiative is making a huge infrastructure drive. This travel
poses a high risk of outbreaks in countries with health-care
systems not equipped to handle them, such as Zimbabwe,
which is facing a growing hunger and economic crisis.
Furthermore, China has about four times as many passengers
on the train and air as it did during the SARS outbreak. China
took the unprecedented step of enforcing travel restrictions on
tens of millions of people living in Wuhan and surrounding
towns. Experts, however, cautioned that the lockout might
have come too late, with restricted access to food and
medication. Wuhan’s mayor confirmed that five million people
had left the city in the run-up to the Lunar New Year, before
the restrictions began.
The Mode of Transmission
The Transmission Mode Much of how Covid-19, a new corona
virus, spreads is unclear. Current awareness is based in large
part on what is learned of related corona viruses. Corona
viruses are a large family of viruses commonly found in many
different animal species, including camels, goats, cats, and
bats. Rarely can animal corona viruses infect people, and then
spread among people including MERS, SARS, and now with
Covid-19. Most respiratory viruses are spread by sneezing and
coughing. Although the Chinese authorities initially played
down the possibility of human-to-human transmission,
substantial and sustained transmission among people has now
become apparent. Chinese scientists have cautioned that some
infected people may transmit the virus to others even before
they develop illness or experience any symptoms, though a
published study documenting asymptomatic transmission in
Germany has been criticized as inaccurate.
If the virus can be spread by individuals with no symptoms at
all or mild symptoms due to respiratory disease— including
headache or back ache— that is terrible. They’re up and about,
going to work or the gym or religious services, and breathing
on or touching other people when people don’t know they’re
sick. Most often, the spreading from person to person happens