The World Health Organization will hold a meeting of an emergency panel due to a new coronavirus in China. RIA Novosti reports.
The meeting will be held on January 22 in Geneva. Its task is to determine whether to declare the outbreak «a public health emergency of international concern.»
In late December, Chinese authorities reported an outbreak of pneumonia of unknown origin in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Experts preliminary found out that the causative agent of the disease was a new type of coronavirus.
As of January 20, a total of 218 cases of the infection have been registered, 198 of which — in Wuhan, 5 — in Beijing, 1 — in Shanghai, 14 — in Guangdong province.
The virus has already spread outside the PRC; infection cases have been reported in South Korea, Japan and Thailand.
Experts have found out that the coronavirus is transmitted from person to person — cases of infecting people from their relatives have already been detected. 14 physicians, who were in contact with the patients, also got infected.
Four people have already died from the new type of coronavirus, RIA Novosti reports.
- Coronaviruses are a family of more than 30 viruses, divided into two subfamilies. They infect the people, pets, birds, cattle. Coronavirus is able to provoke damage to the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, and the nervous system.
