The flu and the new coronavirus have similar symptoms, but the Coronavirus is far deadlier — here's how the 2 compare

Business Insider ^ | 03/04/2020 | Holly Secon

[SeekAndFind]

The coronavirus outbreak came in the middle of flu season in the Northern Hemisphere.

Many people have highlighted the overlapping symptoms of the flu and COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Even President Donald Trump asked pharmaceutical execs if the flu vaccine could be used to stop the coronavirus.

But Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization, warned against taking such comparisons too far.

"This virus is not SARS, it's not MERS, and it's not influenza," Ghebreyesus said in a press conference on Tuesday. "It is a unique virus with unique characteristics."

The most crucial difference between the flu and the coronavirus is that the latter has been far deadlier. Whereas about 0.1% of people who get the flu die, the coronavirus' death rate is now at about 3.4%, based on the current numbers of cases and deaths.

The fatality rate of the novel coronavirus is still evolving, however, as more cases are confirmed. Many health experts believe that the rate will drop as the number of cases rises. That's because an estimated 80% of coronavirus cases are mild, and patients checking into hospitals have the most severe symptoms. People with symptoms mild enough to recover at home without seeking medical treatment aren't counted in the official totals.

The novel coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China, in December has killed over 3,200 people and infected nearly 94,000 people, mostly in China. It has spread to at least 80 other countries. The US has confirmed more than 125 cases and at least nine deaths.

Older people are far likelier to die from the coronavirus than younger people, and the same is true for the flu — though not to the same extent.

[daniel1212]

Deaths in the USA ... Every Single Day ... Heart Attack - 1,774 Cancer - 1,641 Accident (all kinds) - 466 Asthma, etc. - 439 Stroke - 401 Alzheimers - 333 Diabetes - 229 Flu/Pneumonia - 153 Kidney Failure - 139 Suicide - 129

Thanks. Its the sharks attacks that get the headlines, not the "car attack." But do you have a link to the source for these stats? The number of fatalities from such as the above makes the Coronavirus pale in comparison, though the communicable disease category is what should be compared. 80,000 Americans died from the Flu in 2018-2019

Over 50,000 drivers involved in fatal crashes in U.S. road traffic in 2016.

[Repeal The 17th]

I got it from CDC leading causes of death in the US (/365).
The last year I could find final published numbers for was 2017.
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/leading-causes-of-death.htm

[daniel1212]

I got it from CDC leading causes of death in the US (/365). The last year I could find final published numbers for was 2017. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/leading-causes-of-death.htm

I see. Thanks.