Valley mother believes her child may have the Coronavirus, as doctor speaks of the virus' dangers
PHOENIX - As health officials in China and now the United States scramble to contain a deadly outbreak of a Coronavirus, Valley residents are reacting to the developments.
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The disease began in the city of Wuhan in the People's Republic of China. Since then, Human-to-human transmission of the virus has been confirmed, and on Tuesday, a man in Washington was diagnosed with the illness, making him the first diagnosed case in the United States.
A general view of the closed Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, which has been linked to cases of Coronavirus, in Wuhan, People's Republic of China. (Photo by Getty Images)
On Tuesday night, a Valley mother named Brittany Swain said her daughter is at Phoenix Children's Hospital with the Coronavirus.
"They're definitely certain it's the coronavirus," said Swain.
Swain said she noticed that something wasn't right with her two-year-old daughter, Kylie.
"So Friday after school, I noticed she had a cough. Saturday, I noticed her breathing was pretty rapid, and Sunday I noticed it was still going on, so I was like I'm going to take her to Phoenix Children's Hospital," said Swain. "I didn't know it was going to be as serious as it is."
Meanwhile, a Valley doctor is speaking out about the dangers that come with the disease.
"Most of the people that have gotten sick are from Asia," said Dr. Dan Quan of Valleywise Health. "Being in a plane for more than 12 hours can make that plane very sick, and if it's person to person spread that can be an issue."
Dr. Dan Quan
Dr. Quan says there hasn't been a widespread infection of the virus in the U.S., but it can be easily contracted by handshakes, sneezing and person to person contact.
"Coronavirus is actually from animals that humans can contract," said Dr. Quan. "This particular virus has changed. Mutated into one that can be between people person-to-person contact."
The CDC sending out a warning to travellers, and warning airports to keep an eye out for any sick people. Major airports like New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles are now screening passengers arriving from China. Chicago and Atlanta will be added to the list as well.
"This could be anywhere from just a minor virus from a few people getting sick to a pandemic, goes across the globe from country to country, and a lot of people can die," said Quan. "A lot of the symptoms are simple like a common cold. Runny nose, cough, fever, pneumonia needing antibiotics, blood pressure support."
Statement from Phoenix Children's Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Michael Ritchey, MD:
“There are many strains of Coronavirus, which can produce illness ranging mild to severe in nature. Phoenix Children’s clinical team treats many patients each year with Coronavirus, but Phoenix Children’s has yet to treat a patient with the novel coronavirus strain from China. Our most recent patient case of Coronavirus that was mentioned in the Fox 10 Phoenix broadcast, is not severe, nor is it related to the virus from China.”