A Coronavirus Update From Public Health Expert Jeremy Farrar

HOW CAN YOU ACTUALLY, IF YOU DON'T KNOW ALL THE DATA, AND THE RATES OF INFECTION HOW DOES ONE ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, GET A HANDLE ON IT.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO GET A HANDLE ON IT.

WE KNOW MORE THAN WE DID TWO WEEKS AGO.

AND THAT'S NOT ENCOURAGING IN SOME WAYS.

THE THINGS THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW.

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER.

OR WOULD I BE INFECTIOUS FOR ANOTHER WEEK OR TEN DAYS.

IF I WERE INFECTED TODAY HOW MANY PEOPLE IF I MET WOULD I GIVE IT TO?

IS IT ONE?

IS IT TWO, IS IT FOUR?

THAT TELLS A LOT ABOUT THE WAY THAT IT'S SPREADING.

IS IT A SYMPTOMATIC?

WILL SOME PEOPLE BE INFECTED AND IF THEY DO WILL THEY BE INFECTIOUS DURING THAT TIME IS IT DIFFERENT OR DOES IT LOOK SIMILAR?

IS IT A SORE THROAT?

HEADACHE, MUSCLE ACHES, COUGH?

WHICH PATIENTS WILL DEVELOP MORE SEVERE DISEASE AND WHAT CAN WE DO TO TREAT THOSE TO TRY TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT ARE DYING.

DO YOU HAVE ANY ANSWERS FOR ALL OF THOSE QUESTIONS?

I DO.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THESE SCENARIOS IS YOU START TO GET A PICTURE OF WHAT IS HAPPENING AND YOU HAVE TO MAKE DECISIONS, BIG, BIG PUB LIGAMEN -- PUBLIC HEALTH DECISIONS AND AS THE WEEKS GO ON THIS WEEK COMPARED TO LAST WEEK COMPARED TO A MONTH AGO WE'RE STARTING TO GET A BETTER PICTURE.

SO FOR INSTANCE THE FIGURE THAT I MENTIONED IF I HAD CORONAVIRUS TODAY HOW MANY PEOPLE WOULD I GIVE IT TO.

INCREASINGLY THAT'S 2.5 TO 3 PEOPLE.

THE INFECTIOUS PERIOD PROBABLY LASTS BETWEEN 2 AND MAYBE UP TO 10.

MAYBE 9 OR 10 DAYS.

THAT'S REALLY CRITICAL INFORMATION.

REALLY IMPORTANT.

AND THIS MAY BE A CLINICAL BIAS THAT WE HAVEN'T BEEN REPORTING IT.

WE HAD A CHILD BORN AND WITHIN 30 HOURS WAS KNOWN TO BE INFECTED.

WHEN DID THAT CHILD GET INFECTED?

WAS IT DURING BIRTH OR WAS IT PRIOR TO BIRTH?

AND AGAIN, THE IMPACT ON GESTATION AND PREGNANT WOMEN IS A REALLY IMPORTANT QUESTION THAT WE DON'T HAVE ANSWERS TODAY.