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SARS-CoV-2 is a highly infectious and potentially deadly virus that causes a respiratory disease called COVID-19. You might know it under one of its many other names, including 2019-nCoV, novel coronavirus, Wuhan coronavirus, China or Wuhan flu, or just simply coronavirus. All of these refer to the same virus that this movement is trying to stop.
Over the past months and weeks, the virus and corresponding disease have been compared over and over to the influenza virus and the seasonal flu. Due to the overlap in symptoms and seemingly similar severity, this comparison comes naturally to a lot of people, however, looking at what we know so far about this new virus, the threat it poses to society is not easily brushed aside.
More Contagious Than the Flu
With an estimated R0 (the expected number of cases directly generated by one case in a population where all individuals are susceptible to infection) between 1.4 – 6.49 and a mean estimate of 3.28[1], SARS-CoV-2 is much more infectious and spreads much faster than the seasonal flu, which has a median R0 of 1.28[2].
More Deadly Than the Flu
The so-called case fatality rate (CFR) of SARS-CoV-2 is estimated to be at around 2%[3], meaning that an estimated 2% of people getting diagnosed with COVID-19 will succumb to it. In comparison, the CFR of seasonal influenza is estimated to be around 0.1%[4], which means SARS-CoV-2 is estimated to be about 20 times more deadly than the seasonal flu.
Possibility of Severe Symptoms
An estimated 15 – 20% of infected individuals suffer from severe symptoms that require medical attention[5], including pneumonia with shortness of breath and lowered blood oxygen saturation.
An estimated 15 – 20% of infected individuals suffer from severe symptoms that require medical attention[5], including pneumonia with shortness of breath and lowered blood oxygen saturation.
No Treatment, No Vaccine, No Immunity
As SARS-CoV-2 has only recently emerged, there is no well-studied treatment for COVID-19 and more research is needed in order to treat infected people efficiently. Likewise, there is no vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 yet[6] and the development of such a vaccine will take a significant amount of time. With no vaccines and no prior wide-spread immunity, everyone is a susceptible target for infection. While most infected people will only suffer from mild symptoms, this lack of herd-immunity can lead to severe illness in a significant number of at-risk individuals.
Exponential Growth
Due to the lack of immunity to this new virus, the entire human population is the upper limit of possible infections. And although exponential growth always seems slow at first, it can lead to unfathomably high numbers in a rather short time. With the number of infected people currently doubling in a matter of days[7], our medical systems will potentially be overloaded, which will lead to higher numbers of fatalities due to people not receiving the care they need.
By joining the movement and therefore limiting possibilities for new infections, you are not only protecting yourself, but you are also helping contain and limit the spread for everyone else, especially those who are at higher risk to suffer severe consequences from this virus.
If you care about this cause, please share it on social media, via email, or just tell your friends and family about it. But please, just #StayTheFuckHome.
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