PCR: I have been in communication with an experienced virologist in Belgium who worked for many years in the US on coronaviruses. Watching the inaction of the Belgium government, he has sent this letter to the country’s authorities.
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The new coronavirus, are the proposed public health measures adequate?
Marc G. Wathelet: What to do in Belgium about the new coronavirus epidemic that is spreading catastrophically in China?
Having led a small team of researchers for a dozen years in the United States on human coronaviruses, and in particular on SARS-CoV, I would like to share my perspective on the particular challenge that this new coronavirus poses for the population.
The new coronavirus is now called COVID-19 by the W.H.O., and SARS-CoV-2 by virologists to emphasize its genetic proximity to SARS-CoV. The commonalities and differences between the two, the lessons that can be learned from epidemics and the comparison with the flu virus shed light on the choices to be made for public health.
In addition, both the SARS epidemic and that caused in 2012 by another similar coronavirus, MERS-CoV, led only to a limited number of infected individuals and fatalities: SARS-CoV, 8,098 probable cases and 774 fatalities (9.6%); MERS-CoV, 2,492 probable cases and 858 fatalities (34.4%). In comparison, the influenza virus infects tens of millions each year and causes tens of thousands of fatalities worldwide (death rate ~ 0.1%).