- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
- Click here to share on LinkedIn (Opens in a new window)
- Click to email a friend (Opens in a new window)
Should Hong Kong close borders with China for the coronavirus? 3:07
Hong Kong (CNN) - Wuhan's coronavirus has raised alarm worldwide, but in Asia it has also brought back memories of another deadly virus.
For many, this outbreak feels strangely similar to 2003, when Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) spread throughout the region, infecting more than 8,000 people and killing 774.
Like SARS, the latter outbreak is caused by a coronavirus, a family of viruses common in animals that range from the common cold to more serious diseases, such as the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).
But although Wuhan's coronavirus and SARS are caused by a similar virus, they are not exactly the same.
These are the similarities and differences of the two.
- In which countries are there cases of Wuhan coronavirus? Look at the complete list and the number of cases
Origin
Both SARS and Wuhan coronavirus outbreaks began in China, and both are believed to have originated in wild animal markets.
Scientists believe that the coronavirus behind SARS came from a reservoir of bats that later spread to the civet cat - a wild animal considered a delicacy in parts of southern China - and then to humans.
In the case of this latest outbreak, it goes back to the wholesale seafood market Huanan de Wuhan, where several wild animals are sold, including raccoon dogs and snakes. Experts believe that the coronavirus was carried by animals, possibly snakes, and then spread to humans, probably again originated in bats.
After SARS, China banned the killing and consumption of civet cats. This time, China has gone one step further: on January 26, the government announced that it was banning all sales of wild animals across the country.
- What will it take to prevent Wuhan's coronavirus from spreading throughout the world?
Number of infected
More than 6,150 people worldwide have been infected worldwide since the first confirmed case of Wuhan's coronavirus in December.
In comparison, there were 8,098 confirmed cases of SARS between November 2002 and July 2003.
It has taken Wuhan's coronavirus less than two months to infect about 75% of the number of people infected with SARS in a period of nine months.
In China, the number of confirmed cases of Wuhan coronavirus has already exceeded the number infected by SARS in 2002 and 2003.
At least 6,060 cases have been reported in mainland China to date, compared with 5,327 confirmed cases of SARS on August 16, 2003, the last time the Chinese Ministry of Health reported such data.
Since 2003, Chinese national and international travel has increased dramatically, which may be helping to spread the disease faster. According to Chinese government figures, the number of tourists leaving increased from 16.6 million trips in 2003 to 149.7 million in 2018.
It is worth noting that this outbreak occurred at the worst time of the year for China, the Lunar New Year, when millions of people travel to their homes to see their family.
According to the Wuhan office of culture and tourism, there were still 4,096 Wuhan tourists abroad as of January 27.
- Watch in this video: This is all that is known about the Wihan coronavirus
Number of deaths
During the 2003 SARS outbreak, 774 people died. The vast majority of deaths occurred in mainland China and in Hong Kong.
This time, 132 people have died from the virus, and so far, all have been in mainland China.
But the best thing to consider when comparing deaths is the lethality rate: the measure of what proportion of infected people end up dying.
Currently, the fatality rate of Wuhan virus is about 2%, significantly lower than the mortality rate of 9.6% of SARS. This coronavirus is also smaller than the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), another type of coronavirus, which has a lethality rate of 35%.
But this calculation is as good as the numbers that are reported. Some experts are concerned that we cannot have an accurate picture of the number of infected in China, as there has been a shortage of test kits.
- US Airlines offer free exchange flights to China for another month for the coronavirus
Virus identification
One of the biggest differences between SARS and this current outbreak is how quickly it was reported and how soon scientists could identify it.
China informed the World Health Organization (WHO) about the new virus on December 31, 2019, approximately three weeks after the first case was detected. The virus behind the outbreak was identified on January 7. This is as fast as any other developed country could have identified it, said Ian Lipkin, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia University who worked to contain SARS in 2003.
Sequencing the genome has a great impact: it allows other countries to develop tests to detect the virus from the beginning and study it.
During the SARS, China kept the disease a secret. The disease was first reported publicly in February 2003, but by then, five people had died and another 300 had become ill from the disease in the Chinese province of Guangdong.
Nor was it until five months after the beginning of the SARS outbreak that American and Canadian scientists announced that they had sequenced the genome that is believed to be the cause of that virus. In 2003, health authorities were dealing with the lack of knowledge about the virus.
So this time, China has done things differently. Beijing not only had the scientific ability to identify the genome, but also informed other countries about it.
But there have still been questions about how transparent China has been. There are still some concerned that the magnitude of the problem may be much worse than official figures allow.
- Laura He of CNN contributed to this story.
Wuhan corona virus