The risk posed to Australians by a new strain of
coronavirus is low, but health authorities say there is a need to be vigilant.
CORONAVIRUS ORIGINS AND SPREAD:
Subscribe for FREE to the HealthTimes magazine
* The World Health Organisation began responding to cases of unexplained pneumonia in Wuhan, central China, on December 31, 2019.
* The virus is believed to be animal in origin having jumped from animals to humans, with Chinese authorities having linked initial cases to a fish market in Wuhan.
* Cases have been confirmed in other parts of China as well as Thailand, South Korea and Japan. The majority of people said they had travelled from Wuhan.
* There have now been 222 confirmed cases with four confirmed deaths, but mild cases could be going undetected.
* 'Novel coronavirus' is a term given to new strains of coronavirus, which is from the same family as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).
FEATURED JOBS
St Vincent's Private Hospital
* WHO says the virus is capable of limited human to human transfer, with Chinese health workers confirmed to have caught the bug.
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN AUSTRALIA?
* Queensland health authorities confirmed on January 21 one man was being isolated in his Brisbane home as they test him for the virus.
* The man had recently travelled to Wuhan to visit family and returned with a respiratory problem.
* Australian border authorities are screening passengers travelling into Sydney on direct flights from Wuhan.
* Health authorities say the risk to the Australian public is "relatively low" but caution is required.
HOW DOES IT SHOW UP?
* High fever is the most common symptom of the virus, but other symptoms include a cough, breathlessness and sore throat.
* In severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death, the WHO says.
* The virus has an incubation period of one week, meaning people with the bug might not show symptoms over that period.
* All the confirmed cases have been in adults and no children have been infected.
* In the severe or fatal cases, the people were already sick or had other medical conditions.
(Source: Federal Health Department; WHO website.)