Fake news spreading faster than the virus

Rumours and fake news about the disease are spreading even faster than the corona virus. Abstruse stories about virus clouds and infected cats are circulating, with the WHO speaking of an "infodemic". On Twitter and Facebook in particular, up to 95 percent of the articles on the subject of the corona virus are said to contain incorrect information. Here are 12 corrections regarding #covid19.

1. Do you need special protection for children?
No. The evaluation of the cases to date indicates that children are hardly at risk. Only one person under the age of twenty has been among the more than one thousand deaths so far. The lethality - the proportion of sick people who die from it - increases with age. It is 1.3% for 50 to 59-year-olds, 3.6% for 60 - 69-year-olds, 8% for 70- to 79-year-olds and 14.8% for the over-80s.

2. Is the death rate increasing?
No, the death rate is falling. After the first numbers of infected and dead became known in January, the lethality of the virus was estimated to be around 4 percent: That means four out of a hundred infected people die from it. At the beginning of February, the ratio of illnesses to deaths indicated a mortality rate of 2 percent. Infectiologists assume that the mortality rate will drop to one percent, because you can apparently have the disease without showing any symptoms, or with only weak symptoms, and these cases are often not reported, or are only recognised later on. With a death rate of one percent, the virus would still be more dangerous than the flu, which has a mortality rate of around 0.1 percent.

3. Is the Corona virus Convid more dangerous than Sars or Ebola?
No. During the Sars epidemic, an average of 11 percent died out of around 8,100 patients in 32 countries. The mortality rate among the over-65s was at least 50 percent. Around 70 percent of people infected with Ebola die.

4. Will the virus spread all over the world?
This depends on the Infection Rate, but this is not yet clear. And it strongly depends on how well the infected persons are recognised and what protective measures are taken against the spread of the disease. The infection rate number is not fixed: If it can be brought so low that, on average, one infected person infects one other person, the virus will continue to circulate, but if the number is higher, if will spread. If the number is lower, the disease can disappear.

5. Does everyone who becomes infected with the virus become seriously ill?
No. Some people who have been infected with it are only very slightly ill. Younger people and children in particular only show very weak symptoms. But the time between infection and the onset of the disease is sometimes very long, up to two weeks, and the symptoms can develop very slowly.

6. Can pets spread the virus?
No. In principle, the virus can also infect animals, and it is believed that it has even been transmitted from bats to humans. But there is nothing to suggest that pets, such as dogs or cats, will be infected.

Photo 1: For example, children are not particularly at risk from the Corona virus. This is a hoax. You can behave as usual, whether at school or at leisure. You do need to worry about old people and the sick.
Photo 2: According to the latest findings, pets cannot be infected with the virus.

7. Is kissing more contagious than shaking hands?
Exactly how people can infect others with the virus is still being researched. The corona viruses are probably primarily passed on through a droplet and contact infection - i.e. through direct coughing or physical contact with a sick person. Pure airborne transmission has not been proven so far. The WHO therefore recommends washing your hands thoroughly and more often. It’s better to avoid greeting people with a handshake, as many people hold their hands over their mouths when they cough/sneeze. It's also better to cough or sneeze into a handkerchief, and to then dispose of it in a closed container. In case of doubt, a greeting with three kisses on the cheek is less contagious. But in general, it’s better to avoid physical contact at the moment. The Asian bow as a greeting is the best solution immunologically.

8. Are there vaccinations to protect against the virus?
No, there is currently no vaccinations against it, and other vaccinations against flu or lung diseases also do not offer any protection either.

9. Are governments hiding the truth?
This cannot be assumed. The likelihood of conspiracy theories emerging increases in the face of threats, however. One of these claims that the virus was grown in the laboratory to deliberately harm people. There is no evidence for this - new viruses have repeatedly appeared in a spontaneous manner in human history. Governments may occasionally try to cover up mistakes, however, as Wuhan did - punishing a doctor who was one of the first to disclose the danger.

10. Could the virus wipe out humanity?
This is not impossible theoretically, but only if the virus mutates: in the end stage, it would have to develop into a highly contagious, long-unnoticed and very lethal virus against which there is no defence. As a rule, pathogens that quickly kill their hosts are not able to spread quickly, so that measures can be taken. If left untreated, pneumonia or rabies are almost 100 percent fatal. But there are good therapeutic options against both.

11. Do protective masks protect against the virus?
The mask alone does not offer reliable protection against infection. Medical personnel are recommended to wear protective masks, but these are only effective in combination with other measures, such as consistent hand hygiene. People who may be infected with the virus should wear masks so that they will not spread the virus further through coughing or sneezing.

12. Can you become infected through a letter or package from China?
No. According to the World Health Organization, mail from China can be handled without having to worry, as viruses cannot survive long on the surface of a letter or package. Even if all viruses have not died on the way, their total number would no longer be enough to cause an infection.