What are the most contagious viruses?

How many people in contact with a sick person are in turn contaminated? Fortunately, the contagion capacity of a virus is not correlated with its dangerousness.

ehealth: 9 questions about the global coronavirus epidemic Find all the answers to your questions on the global epidemic caused by the Wuhan coronavirus in ehealth! From the origin of the epidemic to the means of prevention, this ehealth details all the key information in 9 questions.

Despite that lightning spread (more than 11,000 contaminations in a month), the coronavirus 2019-nCoV appeared in Wuhan in December 2019 is not particularly contagious compared to others virus. According to'WHO, the contagiousness of the virus (or basic reproduction rate) is estimated between 1.4 and 2.5; which means that each sick person will infect on average between 1.4 and 2.5 new people. This rate of contagion is substantially similar to that of SARS or from seasonal flu, and much less than the measles, which infects an average of 12 to 18 people in contact with a patient. In 2013, an American patient with measles virus had alone contaminated 58 other people, with an estimated healthcare bill of $ 400,000 for health services.

Contagious viruses: what are the modes of transmission?

Contamination by a virus is usually done through droplets of saliva from coughing, sneezing, or from close contact with a patient. It can also be done via objects contaminated with secretions of nose or throat (toys, handkerchiefs …). Other viruses are spread by sexual or blood contact (HIV), through bodily fluids (Ebola) or through a insect ((Zika, dengue). Unfortunately, it was during the incubation phase, when the symptoms are not yet visible, that the risk of contagion is highest. This incubation period lasts between six and 14 days depending on the virus and the individual.

Contagion: how to avoid contamination

Fortunately, there is a vaccine against the four most contagious viruses (measles, smallpox, polio, mumps). The opportunity to recall that the vaccination is not only to protect yourself, but also protects your loved ones and the entire population. Regarding viruses for which there is no way to prevention (coronavirus, Ebola …), containment measures and quarantine are the only effective ones to curb the spread. The city of Wuhan in China thus completely closed its accesses in January 2020.

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