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The official number of deaths from COVID-19 in the world has already exceeded one million. To date, almost 2 million people have been infected with the SARS-CoV-35 coronavirus. Compared to other viruses, SARS-CoV-2 is one of the deadliest in the XNUMXst century.
- Compared to previous 2st century epidemics, the SARS-CoV-XNUMX coronavirus is one of the deadliest viruses we face today
- More people have died from COVID-19 than die every year from influenza, haemorrhagic fever caused by Ebola virus and dengue fever
- For more up-to-date information on the coronavirus, please visit the TvoiLokony home page
XNUMXst century epidemics
Over a million people worldwide died from COVID-19 from the beginning of the year to the end of September. And although we are not even close to the statistics of the Spanish flu, when, according to various estimates, between 50 and 100 million people died during the epidemic, it SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus more and more clearly deserves to be called the most deadly virus in the XNUMXst century.
In 2002, the first cases of infection with a new virus – SARS, appeared in China. Chinese authorities concealed the disease, and WHO was not informed of the case until February 2003. In total, in 2002 and 2003, more than 8096 people fell ill with SARS, and 774 died.
In 2009, 1 people died during the swine flu pandemic caused by the H1N18,5 virus. This number was later revised by The Lancet magazine. It has been estimated that between 1 and 1 people died from the H151N700 flu.
See: Coronavirus is not the first. The biggest epidemics in recent years
COVID-19 is also often compared to the seasonal flu, which we struggle with almost every year in the fall and winter season. It is often forgotten that the seasonal flu virus is well known to scientists, there are vaccines against specific strains every year, and we also have antiviral drugs used to treat flu. In the case of COVID-19, we have neither a vaccine nor an effective and research-proven treatment. When it comes to mortality, according to WHO estimates, up to 650 die worldwide from seasonal flu. people.
Tropical virus epidemics
The number of deaths caused by the new SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus also significantly exceeds the number of deaths due to tropical diseases, such as Ebola hemorrhagic fever. The Ebola virus was first identified in 1976. During the last epidemic in 2018-2020, almost 2300 people died. Over the course of forty years, periodic Ebola outbreaks have killed around 15 people in Africa.
The Ebola virus has a much higher death rate than COVID-19, about 50 percent. the infected dies due to virus infection. In some waves of the Ebola epidemic, this rate was as high as 90%.
Dengue fever, which can also be fatal, takes less toll than COVID-19. This mosquito-borne virus causes several thousand deaths each year.
The greatest and deadliest epidemic of today is the AIDS epidemic. Almost 33 million people have died worldwide from this disease that attacks the immune system. There is still no effective vaccine available, but disease progression can be inhibited by retroviral drugs, which also greatly reduce the risk of transmission of the infection. According to UNAIDS, successful treatment helped cut the death toll from 1,7 million (a peak in 2004) to 690 in 000.
See: The hysteria surrounding AIDS awakens the demons of intolerance
The last two deadly viruses are hepatitis B and C viruses, which cause about 1,3 million deaths annually, most often in poor countries of the world.
There is no doubt that the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is one of the deadliest viruses of the XNUMXst century. It is not certain whether the epidemic will be dying out, as it was in the SARS epidemic, or whether the coronavirus will stay with us for a longer time, just like the flu. One thing is for sure – you can limit the transmission of this virus in a very easy and effective way. Keep your distance, wear masks when necessary, and wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water. As long as there is no vaccine and / or effective treatment, that’s all we can do.
The editorial board recommends:
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