A deadly new strain of Coronavirus, a SARS-like respiratory virus, has now spread to France, where it has infected at least two people. But it gets even more exciting. After the French health ministry's confirmation of the second infection, the World Health Organization announced that it's likely that the virus can be passed person-to-person.
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As of 8 May 2013, 30 laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with novel coronavirus (nCoV) have been reported to WHO: two from Jordan, two from Qatar, 23 cases from Saudi Arabia, two from the United Kingdom (UK), and one from the United Arab Emirates. Most patients are male (79.3%; 23 of 29 cases with sex reported) and range in age from 24 to 94 years (median 56 years). The first cases had onset of illness in late March or early April 2012; the most recent cases reported had onset on 1 May 2013 (13 cases with onset 14 April - 1 May 2013). Most patients presented with severe acute respiratory disease requiring hospitalization and eventually required mechanical ventilation or other advanced respiratory support. Eighteen patients have died.
http://www.who.int/...
Novel coronavirus is from the same family of viruses as the one that caused an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) that emerged in Asia in 2003.
However, NCoV and Sars are distinct from each other, the WHO said in its statement on Sunday.
Coronavirus is known to cause respiratory infections in both humans and animals.
But it is not yet clear whether it is a mutation of an existing virus or an infection in animals that has made the jump to humans.
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