How do I protect myself?
The best thing is regular and thorough hand washing, preferably with soap and water.
Coronavirus spreads when an infected person coughs small droplets – packed with the virus – into the air. These can be breathed in, or cause an infection, if you touch a surface they have landed on, then your eyes, nose or mouth.
So, coughing and sneezing into tissues, not touching your face with unwashed hands, and avoiding close contact with infected people are important for limiting the spread.
Face masks do not provide effective protection, according to medical experts.
What are the coronavirus symptoms?
Coronavirus infects the lungs. The symptoms start with a fever followed by a dry cough, which can lead to breathing problems.
This cough is a new continuous cough, and means coughing a lot for more than an hour or having three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual).
It takes five days on average to start showing the symptoms, scientists have said, but some people will get symptoms much later than this. In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) says the incubation period lasts up to 14 days.
People will be most infectious when they have symptoms, but there have been suggestions some can spread the virus even before they are sick.
The early symptoms can easily be confused with other winter bugs including colds and flu.
How deadly is coronavirus?
The proportion dying from the disease appears low (between 1% and 2%) – but the figures are unreliable.
Thousands are being treated but may go on to die – so the death rate could be higher. But it may also be lower if lots of mild cases are unreported.
A World Health Organization examination of data from 56,000 patients suggests:
6% become critically ill – lung failure, septic shock, organ failure and risk of death
14% develop severe symptoms – difficulty breathing and shortness of breath
80% develop mild symptoms – fever and cough and some may have pneumonia
Older people, and those with pre-existing medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure), are more likely to become severely ill. The data from China also suggests that men are at slightly higher risk of dying from the virus than women.
Treatment relies on keeping the patient’s body going, including breathing support, until their immune system can fight off the virus. Work to develop a vaccine is under way.
People are being advised not to ring NHS 111 to report their symptoms, unless they are worried. They should also not go to their GP, or A&E.
If you have come into contact with somebody who may be infected, you may be told to self-isolate. Advice for people who have traveled back to the UK from affected areas and who may need to self-isolate, has been issued.
Who gets tested and how does it work?
In its latest advice, Public Health England (PHE) has said those who are self-isolating with mild symptoms will not be tested.
However, all hospital patients with flu-like symptoms will be tested.
If you need testing in the UK results may be available on the same day, but you may be asked to stay at home and self-isolate, while you wait.
Government information on diagnosis
How fast is it spreading?
Tens of thousands of new cases are being reported worldwide each day. However, it is thought health agencies may be unaware of many cases.
After starting in Wuhan, China, coronavirus is now spreading fast in many other countries.
It took 67 days from the first reported case to reach the first 100,000 cases, 11 days for the second 100,000 cases and just four days for the third 100,000 cases.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has used a national TV address to set out strict new measures aimed at protecting people from the coronavirus outbreak.
This is his statement in full:
“Good evening,
The coronavirus is the biggest threat this country has faced for decades – and this country is not alone.
All over the world we are seeing the devastating impact of this invisible killer
And so tonight I want to update you on the latest steps we are taking to fight the disease and what you can do to help.
And I want to begin by reminding you why the UK has been taking the approach that we have.
Without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope; because there won’t be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses.
More than 6,000 people have been infected with the coronavirus in the UK
And as we have seen elsewhere, in other countries that also have fantastic health care systems, that is the moment of real danger.
To put it simply, if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the NHS will be unable to handle it – meaning more people are likely to die, not just from coronavirus but from other illnesses as well.
So it’s vital to slow the spread of the disease.
Because that is the way we reduce the number of people needing hospital treatment at any one time, so we can protect the NHS’s ability to cope – and save more lives.
And that’s why we have been asking people to stay at home during this pandemic.
The restrictions will ban gatherings of more than two people who are not in the same household
And though huge numbers are complying – and I thank you all – the time has now come for us all to do more.
From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home.
Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households.
That is why people will only be allowed to leave their home for the following very limited purposes:
Shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible
One form of exercise a day – for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household.
Any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person; and
Travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home.
That’s all – these are the only reasons you should leave your home.
You should not be meeting friends. If your friends ask you to meet, you should say no.
You should not be meeting family members who do not live in your home.
You should not be going shopping except for essentials like food and medicine – and you should do this as little as you can. And use food delivery services where you can.
If you don’t follow the rules the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings.
To ensure compliance with the government’s instruction to stay at home, we will immediately:
Close all shops selling non-essential goods, including clothing and electronic stores and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms, and places of worship
We will stop all gatherings of more than two people in public – excluding people you live with
And we’ll stop all social events, including weddings, baptisms and other ceremonies, but excluding funerals
Parks will remain open for exercise but gatherings will be dispersed.
No prime minister wants to enact measures like this.
I know the damage that this disruption is doing and will do to people’s lives, to their businesses and to their jobs.
And that’s why we have produced a huge and unprecedented programme of support both for workers and for business.
And I can assure you that we will keep these restrictions under constant review. We will look again in three weeks and relax them if the evidence shows we are able to.
There have been more than 335 deaths from coronavirus in the UK – a third of them have been in London
But at present there are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard, and it is still true that many lives will sadly be lost and yet it is also true that there is a clear way through.
Day by day we are strengthening our amazing NHS with 7,500 former clinicians now coming back to the service.
With the time you buy – by simply staying at home – we are increasing our stocks of equipment.
We are accelerating our search for treatments. We are pioneering work on a vaccine.
And we are buying millions of testing kits that will enable us to turn the tide on this invisible killer.
I want to thank everyone who is working flat out to beat the virus. Everyone from the supermarket staff to the transport workers to the carers to the nurses and doctors on the frontline.
But in this fight we can be in no doubt that each and every one of us is directly enlisted. Each and every one of us is now obliged to join together.
To halt the spread of this disease. To protect our NHS and to save many many thousands of lives.
And I know that as they have in the past so many times, the people of this country will rise to that challenge and we will come through it stronger than ever.
We will beat the coronavirus and we will beat it together and therefore I urge you at this moment of national emergency to stay at home, protect our NHS and save lives.
Thank you.”