I’ve lost count of the number of Wuhan virus-related articles I’ve written, which can only mean one thing.
The situation is getting worse. The Wuhan virus is now deemed to be at DORSCON level Yellow.
At the current time of writing, more than 2,300 have been infected with the virus, while around 80 people have been killed.
There are currently four confirmed cases in Singapore and another four cases in our neighbouring country Malaysia.
And the situation is only going to get worse because according to the authorities in China, the virus’ ability to spread seems to be getting stronger.
China Says Wuhan Virus’ Ability to Spread ‘Seems to be Getting Stronger’
The situation in China is so bad that they’ve had to build new hospitals to cater to the rising number of patients.
The scariest part of it all though is that the new coronavirus’ ability to spread seems to be strengthening, which means there could be an increase in the number of patients.
Much about the virus remains unknown, which includes how lethal it is and how easily it spreads between people.
China’s National Health Commissioner Minister Ma Xiaowei said that the incubation period for the virus can range from one to 14 days. During this period, an infection can occur.
Ma said, “According to recent clinical information, the virus’ ability to spread seems to be getting somewhat stronger.”
He also said that the authorities do not know much about the virus and if it mutates, they do not know how much more damage it could do.
In response to this, big events in China linked to the celebration of Chinese New Year have been cancelled and certain transportation has been temporarily halted.
There has also been a nationwide ban on the sale of wildlife in China, including markets, restaurants and on e-commerce platforms.
It is believed that these wild animals sold in Chinese markets were the cause of the spread of the virus from animals to humans.
To give you an idea, snakes, peacocks and crocodiles are just some of the wild animals that have been sold on websites like Taobao.
Oh, yes. Cue the WTF cat, please.
Singapore Has Developed A Test-Kit
With all that being said, it’s worthwhile to note that a Singapore firm has developed a Wuhan virus test kit which will be commercially ready by 1 February 2020.
Veredus Laboratories, a company owned by Temasek Holdings and is known as the VereCoV™ Detection Kit.
This kit can identify and differentiate MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV and 2019-nCoV (the Wuhan virus) with high specificity and sensitivity.
Well, at least that’s some good news. In the mean time, do remember to take precautions and to practice good personal hygiene.
Here’s MOH’s infographic for your reference again:
For the latest update, do bookmark MOH’s website.
