Many countries, early on, had official policies to not test those with only mild symptoms. Due to the effect of sampling bias, studies which obtain a more accurate number by extrapolating from a random sample have consistently found that total infections considerably exceed the reported case counts. Official 'case' counts refer to the number of people who have been tested for COVID-19 and whose test has been confirmed positive according to official protocols whether or not they experienced symptomatic disease. Main articles: COVID-19 pandemic by country and territory and COVID-19 pandemic cases Epidemiology For country-level data, see: A more systematic naming scheme reflects the variant's PANGO lineage (e.g., Omicron's lineage is B.1.1.529) and is used for other variants. Delta began as the 'Indian variant') is no longer common. The initial practice of naming them according to where the variants were identified (e.g. WHO named variants of concern and variants of interest using Greek letters. WHO additionally uses 'the COVID-19 virus' and 'the virus responsible for COVID-19' in public communications. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus explained: CO for corona, VI for virus, D for disease and 19 for when the outbreak was first identified (31 December 2019). WHO finalized the official names COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 on 11 February 2020. Wuhan, China), animal species, or groups of people in disease and virus names in part to prevent social stigma. In January 2020, the WHO recommended 2019-nCoV and 2019-nCoV acute respiratory disease as interim names for the virus and disease per 2015 international guidelines against using geographical locations (e.g. ĭuring the initial outbreak in Wuhan, the virus and disease were commonly referred to as 'coronavirus', 'Wuhan coronavirus', 'the coronavirus outbreak' and the 'Wuhan coronavirus outbreak', with the disease sometimes called 'Wuhan pneumonia'. During the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other pandemics, the meaning of this term has been challenged. In epidemiology, a pandemic is defined as 'an epidemic occurring over a very wide area, crossing international boundaries, and usually affecting a large number of people'. The pandemic raised issues of racial and geographic discrimination, health equity, and the balance between public health imperatives and individual rights.įurther information: COVID-19 naming Chinese medics in Huanggang, Hubei, in 2020 Misinformation circulated through social media and mass media, and political tensions intensified. Telework became much more common for white-collar workers as the pandemic evolved. Educational institutions and public areas were partially or fully closed in many jurisdictions, and many events were cancelled or postponed during 20. Reduced human activity led to an unprecedented temporary decrease in pollution. Widespread supply shortages, including food shortages, were caused by supply chain disruptions and panic buying. The pandemic caused severe social and economic disruption around the world, including the largest global recession since the Great Depression. Common mitigation measures during the public health emergency included travel restrictions, lockdowns, business restrictions and closures, workplace hazard controls, mask mandates, quarantines, testing systems, and contact tracing of the infected. Treatments include novel antiviral drugs and symptom control.

ĬOVID-19 vaccines were widely deployed in various countries beginning in December 2020. Mutations have produced many strains (variants) with varying degrees of infectivity and virulence. Transmission of the virus is often through airborne particles. As of 30 April 2024, the pandemic has caused 7,045,569 confirmed deaths, making it the fifth- deadliest pandemic or epidemic in history.ĬOVID-19 symptoms range from asymptomatic to deadly, but most commonly include fever, sore throat, nocturnal cough, and fatigue. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on 30 January 2020, and assessed the outbreak had become a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The novel virus was first identified in an outbreak in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, China, in December 2019, before it spread to other areas of Asia, and then worldwide in early 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is a global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Covid symptoms timeline mild case