Outbreaks of diseases

Footage purporting to show medics in hazmat suits scanning Chinese air passengers for symptoms of a mysterious ‘SARS-like’ virus has sparked fears that the deadly infection could spread globally.   Health officials in Macau told Beijing News that all air travellers from Wuhan would need to have their body temperatures taken on the plane to prevent the virus from spreading into the city.    The passenger who filmed the footage told Beijing News that the footage was taken on 12 January 2020 on Air China flight CA119.

 

What happened during the early days of SARS 10 years ago. Hospital spread of this new virus is a real concern; it was first identified, retrospectively, in an outbreak in a hospital in Jordan a year ago, and international concern really picked up after the acknowledgement of a current outbreak in the Al-Ahsa region of Saudi Arabia. Now it appears there is a third instance of hospital spread, in France. Several days ago the French Ministry of Health announced a single case, a Frenchman who had traveled to Dubai and may have been infected there.
Coronavirus – Coronavirus NL63 (2013)

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• CDC recommends that travelers avoid all nonessential travel to Hubei Province, China, including Wuhan. In response to an outbreak of respiratory illness, Chinese officials have closed transport within and out of Wuhan and other areas in Hubei Province, including buses, subways, trains, and the international airport.
  https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/warning/novel-coronavirus-wuhan-china

• There is an ongoing outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus that can be spread from person to person.
• Chinese officials have closed transport within and out of Wuhan and other areas in Hubei Province, including buses, subways, trains, and the international airport.
• Preliminary information suggests that older adults and people with underlying health conditions may be at increased risk for severe disease from this virus.
• The situation is evolving. This notice will be updated as more information becomes available.

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LIST of more information.

https://www.cdc.gov/outbreaks/index.html
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The unnamed coronavirus, which typically leads to a life-threatening form of pneumonia, has killed three people and infected at least 220 people since it was spotted in Wuhan city since December.     The trending clip, which has been widely shared on social media platforms, is said to be filmed on an Air China flight travelling from Wuhan to Macau, Asia’s gambling capital.

Dr Nick Phin, a deputy director at PHE, said: ‘We have issued advice to the NHS and are keeping the situation under constant review.  ‘People travelling to Wuhan should maintain good hand, respiratory and personal hygiene and should avoid visiting animal and bird markets or people who are ill with respiratory symptoms.   ‘Individuals should seek medical attention if they develop respiratory symptoms within 14 days of visiting Wuhan, either in China or on their return to the UK, informing their health service prior to their attendance about their recent travel to the city.’

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-7912949/Killer-Chinese-virus-comes-patient-reported-Washington-state-CDC-says.html?ito=facebook_share_article-top&fbclid=IwAR3Ca6mL4FcFltdHchR8WHB5aJh-TWDtIv1A-FE1745yScgLuqH9a-4WWbY

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WHAT ARE THE ONLY OUTBREAKS TO HAVE BEEN DEEMED AN EMERGENCY?

2009 Swine flu epidemic 

In 2009 ‘Swine flu’ was identified for the first time in Mexico and was named because it is a similar virus to one which affects pigs. The outbreak is believed to have killed as many as 575,400 people – the H1N1 strain is now just accepted as normal seasonal flu.

2014 Poliovirus resurgence

Poliovirus began to resurface in countries where it had once been eradicated, and the WHO called for a widespread vaccination programme to stop it spreading. Cameroon, Pakistan and Syria were most at risk of spreading the illness internationally. 

2014 Ebola outbreak

Ebola killed at least 11,000 people across the world after it spread like wildfire through Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in 2014, 2015 and 2016. More than 28,000 people were infected in what was the worst ever outbreak of the disease.

2016 Zika outbreak

Zika, a tropical disease which can cause serious birth defects if it infects pregnant women, was the subject of an outbreak in Brazil’s capital, Rio de Janeiro, in 2016. There were fears that year’s Olympic Games would have to be cancelled after more than 200 academics wrote to the World Health Organization warning about it.

2019 Ebola outbreak 

Almost 4,000 people were struck down with the killer virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo last year. More than 2,000 patients died. WHO officials refused to declare it an emergency three times before making a U-turn.

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It is reported on 22 January 2020 that the deadly Wuhan coronavirus, officially called 2019-nCoV, has killed 17 people and infected at least 554 others in China as of Wednesday. The US confirmed its first case, a man in his 30s in Washington state who had visited China.
Coronavirus – China (2019-nCoV)