Coronavirus: Athens Univ. Rector publishes mini analysis on the spread of the virus outside China

"The number of infection cases with the new coronavirus (2019-nCov), as recently identified as a virus in China causing pneumonia in humans, is of global concern. The vast majority of cases are reported in China, and all deaths reported to date have been reported in China. Individual outbreaks, however, have been reported in more than 20 countries, usually involving travelers from Hubei province, China, where the disease originated. The epidemiological record and the clinical description of these cases are of particular importance for understanding the infectiousness of the disease and its clinical manifestations.

More specifically, in recent days, outbreaks of the virus have been recorded in Germany and the United States, described in a recent publication in the New England Journal of Medicine. In the case recorded in Germany, the virus was transmitted by a Chinese national who visited Germany on business grounds and became ill on his return to his home country. With his diagnosis a search began for the contacts he had made in Europe and found a German national with mild symptoms of viral infection that was positive for the new coronavirus. The following days, three more German citizens were diagnosed with coronavirus. One had contacted the Chinese national while the other two had contacted the German. All are hospitalized in a Munich hospital without serious symptoms.

In the case of a person diagnosed in the United States, he had recently visited the city of Ohan, China, and was ill on his return home. This patient, after being diagnosed positive for the new coronavirus, was treated with symptoms of pneumonia that were successfully treated with supportive treatment.

The above incidents provide valuable information on the clinical course of the disease and the mode of transmission. It is now emerging that the virus can be transmitted by asymptomatic vectors, given the measures to be taken to limit the epidemic. Already people who have been repatriated to the United States from the city of Wuhan have been quarantined for 14 days, the maximum duration of virus incubation, regardless of their symptoms.

In addition, the clinical symptoms of the new coronavirus disease have been shown to vary. Severe respiratory and cardiovascular complications described in cases in China are not the rule and many patients may have milder symptoms. Finally, the patient in the United States was given the clinical trial of the remdesivir antiviral drug. The efficacy of the drug cannot be judged in this case, but clinical studies can certainly provide data on its use against coronaviruses.

These publications help a great deal in investigating the clinical spectrum of the disease and the way it is transmitted. This information is necessary for states and international organizations to design adequate measures to limit the epidemic.

Specific links have been set up to monitor the evolution of the coronavirus epidemic:

coronavirus.tghn.org/

coronavirus.tghn.org/resources-dashboard/case-location-map/

Thanos Dimopoulos"