Rebel EM COVID-19 Information

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The Novel Coronavirus 2019, was first reported on in Wuhan, China in late December 2019. The outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern in January 2020 and ...

The Novel Coronavirus 2019, was first reported on in Wuhan, China in late December 2019. The outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern in January 2020 and on March 11th, 2020, the outbreak was declared a global pandemic. The spread of this virus is now global with lots of media attention. The virus has been named SARS-CoV-2 and the disease it causes has become known as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This new outbreak has been producing lots of hysteria and false truths being spread, however, the data surrounding the biology, epidemiology, and clinical characteristics are growing daily, making this a moving target. This post will serve as a summary of what is currently known, how to screen, when to test, and how to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

COVID-19 Facts
Betacoronavirus
Currently there are 7 known coronaviruses known to infect humans
COVID-19 is in the same family as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV
Animal reservoir likely from bats
Evaluation of 103 SARS-CoV-2 genomes have shown there are two major types of the virus (i.e. COVID-19 is potentially mutating) [Link is HERE]:
L Type (70%): More prevalent; More aggressive & spreads more quickly; Often seen in patients in Wuhan China S Type (30%): Less aggressive; Strain spreading in countries outside of China.

Overall case fatality rate is estimated to be between 0.2% – 6.6%
Case fatality rate is estimated to be ≈8% in patients 70 – 79 years of age [11]
Case fatality rate is estimated to be ≈15% in patients ≥80 years of age [11]
80% of mortality cases in patients ≥60 years of age [13]
Binds with high affinity to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor in humans. The ACE2 enzyme is expressed in type II alveolar cells in the lungs
Severe disease and poor outcomes (i.e. ICU level of care and mortality) currently appear to occur in patients with chronic pulmonary disease, smoking, chronic medical conditions (i.e. hypertension, diabetes, or cardiovascular disease), or advanced age while kids and healthy younger adults seem to have milder courses

The reasons for children having milder forms of illness are not clear at this time
Preliminary evidence suggests children are just as likely as adults to become infected but are less likely to be symptomatic or develop severe symptoms
Our focus should be on patient populations at high risk (i.e. Nursing homes & hospitals)