Medical and Scientific Community: "Proactive Measures Needed to Prevent Community Spread of Novel Coronavirus"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] There is an opinion that the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) is more contagious than initially known, and that preemptive measures should be strengthened, such as expanding early testing targets.

At the 'Measures to Respond to the Novel Coronavirus Infection' discussion held on the 5th at the Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, Professor Lee Jae-gap of Hallym University Infectious Diseases Department stated, "The situation is deteriorating quite rapidly, so we need to look ahead several days to weeks," and suggested, "To prevent further transmission within the community, frontline medical institutions should conduct diagnostics whenever there is even a slight suspicion of a novel coronavirus patient."

Professor Lee explained, "It appears that the novel coronavirus can infect others even in the early stages of symptoms," and added, "To block community transmission of the novel coronavirus, monitoring must be fully initiated."

According to Professor Lee, the transmissibility of the novel coronavirus is stronger than that of the novel flu. Initial data on the novel coronavirus estimated that one confirmed patient could infect an average of 1.4 to 2.5 people, but later data estimated that it could infect 2.5 to 3.3 people. In the case of novel flu patients, it is known that they transmit the virus to 1.4 to 2.5 people during the infectious period.

Professor Lee emphasized, "Confirmed cases have occurred among travelers from countries other than China, so it is time to prevent infections within the community," and urged strong quarantine measures, saying, "We need to consider measures to block the influx of confirmed cases."

Professor Lee Hyuk-min of Yonsei University College of Medicine said, "The virus is spreading worldwide, making it difficult to predict from which country confirmed cases will arrive," and stressed, "Although the current quarantine system is effectively blocking the entry of the novel coronavirus, additional transmission can occur from overlooked cases, so diagnosis is important."

Professor Lee Jong-gu of Seoul National University College of Medicine, former director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also emphasized the importance of quarantine. He said, "The full-scale outbreak of the novel coronavirus has begun," and added, "We must prepare for community transmission."

He continued, "Currently, quarantine is only conducted for travelers from countries other than Hubei Province, China, but there are concerns that this alone is insufficient."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.