Covid-19 Transmission: Stopping The Coronavirus Spread
Recently, the total number of Covid-19 cases has surpassed over 200 million worldwide. The coronavirus virus caused a global pandemic that changed life as we know it.
Read on to find out more about Covid-19 transmission and how you can stop it.
What is Covid-19?
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an ailment caused by a new virus known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
This airborne disease was formerly known as 2019-nCoV and was initially detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, during an outbreak of respiratory sickness cases.
The majority of persons infected with the COVID-19 virus will have mild to moderate respiratory symptoms and will recover without needing any particular therapy.
People over the age of 65, as well as those with underlying medical conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, are at a higher risk of developing a serious illness.
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Why is it called Covid-19?
The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses is in charge of formally naming viruses (ICTV). Every newly found virus is given a name based on a hierarchical taxonomy, which divides all creatures into species, genera, families, and other categories.
The coronavirus that caused COVID-19 was first unknown. The ICTV and World Health Organization (WHO), collaborated to give both the virus and the illness the names we know by today.
The new illness was given the name COVID-19 by the WHO, with “CO” standing for corona, “VI” for the virus, “D” for disease, and “-19” for 2019. The ICT gave it the designation SARS-CoV-2 since it is a severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus.
Symptoms of Covid-19
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Covid-19 symptoms are similar to that of the common flu and may include:
- Fever
- Chills
- Body aches
- Headache
- Sore throat
- Body aches
- Shortness of breath
- Runny nose
- Cough
- Stuffy nose
- Difficulty breathing
- Loss of smell or taste
- Vomiting
- Diarrhoea
- Nausea
- Fatigue
If exposed to coronavirus how long before symptoms show?
COVID-19 is thought to have an up to 14-days incubation period, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The number of days between becoming infected with something and seeing symptoms is known as the incubation period.
Symptoms appear 5 days following exposure in the newly infected person on average. According to one research, 97.5% of individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 will develop symptoms within 11.5 days of infection.
However, it might develop as quickly as two days following exposure in some cases and in rare situations, appear after 14 days.
Causes of Covid-19
Coronavirus illness is caused by infection with the novel coronavirus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2.
Coronaviruses are found in a variety of animals, including cattle and camels. Although human-to-human transmission of coronaviruses is uncommon, this new strain is thought to have originated in bats. However, it is still unknown how the virus initially infected people.
How is Covid-19 transmitted?
Covid-19 is said to be one type of airborne transmitted disease.
When patients with COVID-19 cough or exhale, small droplets containing the virus are expelled. These droplets can infect someone by entering their mouth or nose.
Close contact with someone who has the virus is the most likely route for this sickness to spread. When a person’s symptoms are at their worst, the illness is most contagious.
It is conceivable, however, for someone who is symptomless to transfer the virus. The virus can also be transmitted via secretions such as when an infected person shares food or drinks with another.
Additionally, virus-carrying droplets might potentially fall onto surrounding surfaces or objects. By contacting these surfaces or things, other people can become infected with the virus, though this is a much rarer occurrence.
This is especially so if the individual then touches their nose, eyes, or mouth after touching the surface or object. Because COVID-19 is a relatively novel virus, there may be more methods in which it propagates which are still unknown to us.
How long can covid-19 respiratory droplets possibly remain in the air?
The coronavirus is still considered to transmit largely by respiratory droplets shared from person to person. However, the CDC is now realising that airborne transmission is also a danger since tiny particles can stay in the air for minutes to hours before being breathed in and causing illness.
How long are you contagious with coronavirus?
As explained above, The incubation period for the coronavirus is estimated to be two to 14 days, however, symptoms usually emerge four or five days after exposure. A person with COVID-19 might be contagious for up to 48 hours before showing symptoms, and up to 5 days after the onset of symptoms.
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Covid-19 transmission indoors versus outdoors
SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory viruses can be transmitted both indoors and outdoors, although the chances for outdoor transmission are significantly lower than of indoor transmission.
This is mainly due to the fact that the wind outdoors aids in the dispersal of virus-carrying respiratory droplets. However, being outside does not render you immune to illness or prevent you from spreading it. You still need to wear a mask and practice social distancing when you’re outside.
Covid-19 transmission with vaccine
While the ability to transmit COVID-19 even with being vaccinated is conceivable, it will happen at a slower rate. The main reason to get vaccinated is to lessen the severity of the disease should you contract it.
Although no vaccination provides 100% protection against sickness, it reduces the risk of contracting the virus and improves your chances of surviving if you get sick from the SARS-CoV2 virus.
Moreover, recent research has found that secondary attack rates fell from 31% to 11% when the index patient was completely vaccinated, suggesting that COVID-19 vaccinations may help prevent transmission between household contacts.
How to control the transmission of Covid-19?
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Here are a few ways you can help stop the spread of the coronavirus:
- Practice good hygiene. The virus may be killed by washing your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds. If you don’t have access to a handwashing station, use a hand sanitiser until you can find one.
- Wear a face mask. One of the simplest and most efficient ways to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 is to wear a mask. ProXMask’s face masks are made with antiviral fabrics that work to kill germs, bacteria, and viruses the minute they come into contact with the mask. The breathable material also reduces your chances of developing maskne.
- Practice social distancing. Always maintain a distance of 6 feet whenever you’re in public spaces to limit your contact with others.
- Get vaccinated. Register for your local vaccination programme to achieve herd immunity in your community.
Do lockdowns help reduce coronavirus transmission?
As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads, nations throughout the world are progressively undertaking a wide range of steps aimed at stopping the disease’s spread.
One of those remedies includes nationwide lockdowns. Containment measures do indeed help to slow and decrease the number of new cases of Covid-19. This is because limited social contact decreases the risk of the disease being spread from one person to another
This will give the authorities enough time to conduct contact tracing in areas where there are a high number of cases as well as to find countermeasures that can help the country fight the virus better.
Conclusion
The word “coronavirus” is a blanket term that may apply to either the recently identified coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, or the disease it causes, COVID-19.
This disease has caused us to accept new norms such as working from home or wearing face masks outside. Nevertheless, if we all collectively play our parts, we can overcome this crisis soon.