BE ALERT FOR THE NEW CORONAVIRUS 

Hello. I'm Dr. Susan Gerber, a medical epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). I'm speaking with you as part of the CDC Expert Commentaryseries on Medscape.

Today I will talk about a newly identified virus that has been associated with acute respiratory illnesses. I will refer to it as the novel coronavirus. I will also provide guidance to help you evaluate patients that you suspect might have novel coronavirus infection.

First, here are a few things you should know about coronaviruses. They are very common worldwide and usually cause mild or moderate upper respiratory tract illness. Young children are most likely to get infected. However, people can get multiple infections in their lifetime.

The novel coronavirus was first discovered in 2012, after it was detected in 2 adults from the Arabian Peninsula who had severe respiratory illness. The virus is different from any other coronaviruses known to infect people.

There is still a lot we don't know about novel coronavirus. However, recent developments may have shed light on some clues.

A cluster of cases last month in the United Kingdom provided the first clear evidence that the virus can spread from person to person. In that cluster, an infected person who had recently traveled to Pakistan and Saudi Arabia likely spread the virus to 2 family members after he had returned to the United Kingdom. Along with novel coronavirus, he also tested positive for H1N1 influenza A virus. This is the first documentation of a patient being simultaneously infected with the novel coronavirus and another virus. The third case in this cluster experienced a mild illness and fully recovered, providing the first example of mild illness associated with novel coronavirus.

The reservoir and route of transmission have not yet been determined. However, genetic sequences have shown that the novel coronavirus is most closely related to coronaviruses found in bats.

So far, no cases of novel coronavirus have been reported in the United States. However, healthcare providers should be alert to patients who develop severe lower respiratory illness within 10 days after traveling from countries in or near the Arabian Peninsula. When evaluating patients, healthcare providers should first consider more common causes of respiratory illness, such as influenza. They should use the CDC case definitions on CDC's novel coronavirus Website to assess whether a patient meets the criteria for "patient under investigation," and immediately report "patients under investigation" to the state or local health department. Also, health departments can help coordinate lab testing with the CDC.

CDC continues to work closely with the World Health Organization and international partners to better understand the source of the novel coronavirus, how it spreads, and the risks to public health. Healthcare providers should contact their state or local health departments if they have questions.

To learn more and to access CDC case definitions and guidance for novel coronavirus, visitcdc.gov/coronavirus.