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Important facts you might not know about coronavirus

From what environment the virus thrives in to how many vaccines are already in clinical trials, here’s some important facts about COVID-19.

Melburnians have been wearing masks in areas where social distancing is not possible, after advice changed for locked down areas. Picture: Daniel Pockett
Melburnians have been wearing masks in areas where social distancing is not possible, after advice changed for locked down areas. Picture: Daniel Pockett

IMPORTANT FACTS ABOUT CORONAVIRUS:

- Coronavirus thrives in cold air, making it more dangerous in winter

- Symptoms can include diarrhoea, vomiting, conjunctivitis, loss of taste or smell, skin rash and discolouration of fingers or toes, not just fever, dry cough and fatigue

- You can potentially catch COVID by touching your eyes, as well as your mouth and nose

- Research shows some people are more prone to catching, and passing on, COVID-19 than others for reasons scientists don’t yet fully understand but are investigating

- Evidence now shows that as your immune system tries to battle coronavirus, some people can develop “a hyperactive immune response” that in itself can cause severe, and sometimes lethal, symptoms

- For this reason, corticosteroids - used to suppress the immune system - are a potential treatment, even though this seems counterintuitive

- Up to 30 potential coronavirus vaccines are already in clinical trials across the world

- COVID-19 is not only a respiratory or lung disease, as first thought. It can also cause harm in other parts of the body, including blood clots and injury to the heart, liver, kidneys as well as neurological symptoms.

- It was first thought once people had developed an immunity to coronavirus, they were protected forever, but Prof Dale Godfrey from the Doherty Institute says scientists now believe “it’s quite likely that the immunity won’t last very long”.

- While many were surprised by the coronavirus pandemic, CSIRO scientists were not. ”Scientists have been talking about Disease X for about the last five years and we predicted it would be likely be a coronavirus and it would likely be from bats in Southeast Asia. So it was no surprise to us when it emerged,” director of the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness, Prof Trevor Drew said.

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Original URL: https://www.heraldsun.com.au/coronavirus/important-facts-you-might-not-know-about-coronavirus/news-story/2a81f89627ea04df17031c7d6ac278d5