Covid-19 Outbreak Statistics

Dealing with the unforeseen challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a significant toll on people all across the world. At present, there are over 7,273,958 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the globe. According to official reports, the largest numbers of confirmed cases are in the United States, Italy, Spain, and France. However, even the countries that the new coronavirus has hit less aggressively are still under considerable strain.

Nevertheless, our recent study assessing the likely number of COVID-19 deaths in the country suggests that the virus may have hit even harder than the authorities initially thought.

The outbreak of the new coronavirus infection, COVID-19 was initiated from the Hunan seafood market in Wuhan city of China in December 2019, and within a couple of months it has turned out to be a global health emergency. Live animals like bat, frog, snake, bird, marmot, and rabbit are frequently sold at the Hunan seafood market. Genomic analysis revealed that SARS-CoV-2 is phylogenetically related to severe acute respiratory syndrome-like (SARS-like) bat viruses, bats could, therefore, be the possible primary source. Although the intermediate source of origin and transfer to humans is not clearly known, the rapid human to the human spreading capability of this virus has been established. As per the latest update of WHO on 18 April 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19 had spread in more than 200 countries. Approximately 146,198 people had died after contracting the respiratory virus out of nearly 2,164,111 confirmed cases, whereas more than 402,989 people have recovered from the disease. These numbers are changing rapidly.

COVID-19 and global health 

The relationship between human health and disease is neither a new concept nor a new subject. The emergence of COVID-19 in China at the end of 2019 has caused a large global outbreak and is a major public health issue. This virus is highly infectious and can be transmitted through droplets and close contact. The human to the human spreading of the virus occurs due to close contact with an infected person exposed to coughing, sneezing, respiratory droplets, or aerosols. These aerosols can penetrate the human body (respiratory system) via inhalation through nose or mouth. The clinical spectrum for individuals with COVID-19 infection ranges from mild or non-specific signs and symptoms of acute respiratory illness such as fever, cough, fatigue, shortness of breath, to severe pneumonia with respiratory failure and septic shock, which are very similar to other coronavirus diseases  The presenting features of COVID-19 disease in adults are pronounced. It is a matter of great importance to clarify the correlation between COVID-19 and immune-rheumatologic patients. Taking into consideration the quick and frantic spread of the epidemic, the health of rheumatic patients is a matter of prime concern. COVID-19 being a respiratory disease, damage of the tissues of Lungs is quite obvious, but there is a report that other organs and tissues may also be affected. Since viral shedding in plasma or serum is common in respiratory tract infections, there is a possibility of transmission of coronaviruses through the transfusion of labile blood products. COVID-19 is a major public health concern for the world’s population and is a leading cause of hospitalization and death, particularly for middle and old age people in the affected countries.