Some of the folks around the Granite City and on social media are asking the same questions, so The Mount Airy News will try to clear up some of the confusion here.
“What’s the big deal? This COVID-19 is just another virus like the cold or flu, right? Why is everyone blowing this out of proportion?”
Here some information released by the CDC that might explain why scientists are concerned.
Immune system
Viruses have been circulating around the globe since before recorded history.
Human bodies form antibodies to foreign invaders such as a bacteria or viruses; these are the immune system’s “weapons” that attack an invader’s weaknesses.
If folks have antibodies from a previous exposure then they can rapidly ramp up the production of those antibodies if they are infected by that same virus at a later date.
This is why almost everyone only gets chicken pox and the measles once. Except for rare instances, the body recognizes the intruder and can fight it off.
Cold viruses can mutate slightly and be different just enough to make someone sick.
Even in those cases, that previous episode allows the body to adapt quicker than if one had never been exposed at all, making subsequent exposures milder.
In fact, with a virus well known by the body, the symptoms may be so mild the victims may not even realize their bodies are fighting off a cold.
The difference
If that’s what is normal, what is different now?
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in people and many different species of animals, including camels, cattle, cats and bats.
It is rare to have an animal coronavirus that is able to cross over and infect people and then be spread between people.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a betacoronavirus, like MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome) and SARS-CoV (severe acute respiratory syndrome).
All three of these viruses have their origins in bats.
Many of the first patients in Wuhan had some link to a large seafood/live animal market.
COVID-19 is the name given to the severe respiratory illness caused by the virus SARS-CoV2. It is a new virus, which means that no one in the world has antibodies to it, because no one has ever been infected by it before.
As such, when exposed to COVID-19, victims do not have a game plan to utilize from a previous exposure to rapidly create a defense against the virus.
Because no one has antibodies, everyone is at risk for catching the virus, becoming ill, and spreading the virus so that it can infect those around them.
In many cases, yes, the virus has appeared to be no worse than a cold.
However, it is close to SARS. Autopsies of those who died from that illness saw the respiratory syndrome caused damage to lung tissue not seen with a cold.
A 2005 report in the Journal of Experimental Medicine said that an autopsy of eight SARS victims showed the impact was not just on the lungs. It said there was evidence of damage to the liver, spleen and lymph nodes as well as gastrointestinal symptoms.
So, because the body doesn’t have a natural defense against COVID-19, and because there could be internal damage the public doesn’t see, the CDC is recommending strong precautions to keep people safe from the virus.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com