Biodefense

We Should Panic about the Flu, Not the Coronavirus

Amid the growing concern surrounding the latest coronavirus, it’s important to put the newly recognized illness into perspective. Similar viruses affect millions of people – and kill tens of thousands – each and every year

Coronavirus Cases

The novel coronavirus – officially dubbed 2019-nCoV by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – presents with fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat, headache and shortness of breath. As of Jan. 29, there are 6,152 cases of 2019-nCoV in the world and 132 subsequent fatalities.

A majority of the cases (98.4 percent) – and all of the deaths – have occurred in China. Additionally, most of the patients who have died from the infection were older than 60 and had preexisting conditions.

As with most viruses that originate outside America, the public’s interest is only piqued when the virus spreads to America. That is what’s happening now.

Medical Face Masks Selling Out

Currently, there are only five confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States; all of these patients picked up the illness on recent trips to China. Additionally, the CDC reports, “no person-to-person spread has been detected” in the United States. That hasn’t stopped people from rushing to their nearest emergency room or clinic if they have any of the coronavirus’s symptoms.

In Virginia, where health officials are looking into possible cases of 2019-nCoV, drugstores are selling out of face masks.

‘Don’t Panic’

“Don’t panic unless you’re paid to panic,” Brandon Brown, an epidemiologist, told Kaiser Health News. “Public health workers should be on the lookout. The government should be ready to provide resources. … But for everyone else: Breathe.” That’s good advice to avoid a major overreaction.