China registers 17 new mystery coronavirus cases

CHINA: On Sunday, China found at least 17 news cases of the mysterious SARS-like virus, including three in serious condition, elevating concerns ahead of China’s Lunar New Year vacation when hundreds of millions of people move around the country.

The current coronavirus pressure has triggered alarm due to its linkage to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, which in 2002-2003 killed an estimated 650 people throughout mainland China and Hong Kong.

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Officials reported that 17 new cases in Wuhan’s central city, three were identified as “serious” as the epicenter of the epidemic, two of which were too critical to travel.

Local officials said that the virus has now affected 62 people in Wuhan, with eight in serious condition, 19 treated and discharged from hospital, and the remaining still in isolation undergoing treatment.

Two people died as far from the virus, including a 69-year-old man who died on Wednesday after pulmonary tuberculosis caused by the disease and harmed numerous organ functions.

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Scientists at MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis reported in a paper published on Monday that the number of cases in the region is likely to be closer to 1,700, much higher than the number currently reported in China.