World health officials have a name for the coronavirus illness – China

The World Health Organization (WHO) proposed an official name for the illness caused by the new coronavirus: COVID-19. The acronym stands for coronavirus disease 2019, as the illness was first detected toward the end of last year. The new name makes no reference to any of the people, places or animals associated with the coronavirus. The goal was to avoid stigma.

There are now more than 42,200 confirmed cases across China. The number of deaths has overtaken that of the Sars epidemic in 2002-2003. But the number of new infections nationally was down.

WHO had mentioned 2% as a mortality rate but specified that this is a very early and provisional estimate that may change. According to the NHC of China, the  mortality rate was 2.1% nationwide, 4.9% Wuhan, 3.1% Hubei and 0.16% other provinces.

"That varies with age," Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, technical lead for the WHO's Health Emergencies Programme, said. "The older you are, the higher the proportion of (severe) cases there are." Overall, the 2 per cent of patients infected with the virus had died, mostly due to multiple organ failures in elderly people and those with underlying health issues.

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. 

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

The COVID-19 began at an animal and seafood market in Wuhan and has spread to several other countries, including the United States. The illness is said to be transferable between 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.

Standard recommendations to prevent infection spread include regular hand washing, covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs. Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing.