What you need to know about the Wuhan Coronavirus if traveling to China

It is a challenging time for the population of China as they are plagued by the rapid spread of the deadly Wuhan Coronavirus. While it is confined mainly to the Hubei province (with Wuhan at its heart), with today’s travel, According to experts of Click Pharmacy it has been leaking out to other places with several cases documented in Europe too.

What exactly is the Wuhan Coronavirus?

It’s a strain of coronavirus that we have not seen in humans before. It is part of the same family as a severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) and Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (Mers) which caused widescale panic a few years ago. These viruses come from animal hosts and have been passed on to those who worked or shopped in the Huanan seafood wholesale market, which also sold newly slaughtered or living animals. Viruses of this type often originate in animals – Ebola and the flu are also examples of this. The virus causes pneumonia so basically damages the respiratory system. Symptoms are coughs, breathing difficulties and fevers. It’s spreading between people and survival seems to depend on the strength of the victim’s immune system.

Sometimes, regardless of the dangers we face, travel must still take place, so if you are in a position where you need to travel to China, there are certain things you should be aware of. We’ve put them here to advise you:

• The Foreign Office is advising against all travel to mainland China and Hubei province with Wuhan at its heart, so it’s a much better idea to delay your visit. If you choose to travel still, you are at risk of invalidating any insurance you may have so if you were to have an issue while there, you wouldn’t be covered
• If you’re traveling via China to an onward destination, your airline may well offer a full refund although they are not obliged to do so. You will need to check with them
• If you are planning to travel in the future, all you can do is wait and see what happens and change your plans if you need to closer to the time
• Be hygienic – the easiest way to contract an illness such as this is by poor personal hygiene, so make sure you keep clean. Wash your hands, wipe items that might have been touched by others and carry hand sanitizer with you. Avoid people who seem to be ill and only eat food that appears to have been thoroughly cooked, mainly if it is animal-based

There are no vaccinations against a virus of this type, and there is also no cure, so it is advisable to adhere to the Foreign Office’s advice and avoid travel to China until the situation is under control. It may cause some difficulties if your trip was deemed necessary, but it would be far more inconvenient to contract and spread a potentially life-threating condition such as this. International travel poses risks at the best of times so before you go anywhere (particularly to a tropical destination where the disease might be rife), seek advice from a medical expert such as those at Click Pharmacy. They will be able to advise on what you should have before you go and what to take with you to be healthy while traveling.