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You don’t need a facemask if you do not have coronavirus – CDC

By Amina Wako February 29th, 2020 1 min read

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not recommend the wearing of a protective mask to prevent coronavirus.

According to the CDC, the facemasks should only be used by people who show symptoms of Covid-19 to help prevent the spread of the disease to others.

They also recommend the facemasks for health workers and people who are taking care of someone who is suspected of having the virus or confirmed of having the virus.

For the rest, they recommend people to take everyday preventive actions like staying home when feeling unwell and washing hands with water and soap.

According to the centres, this will help slow down the spread of respiratory illness.

There is no treatment recommended for Covid-19. People with Covid-19 should receive supportive care to help relieve the symptoms.

For severe cases, treatment should include care to support vital organ functions.

The coronavirus, dubbed COVID-19, has led to more than 85,000 illnesses and 2,900 deaths, mostly in mainland China.

But according to Live Science website, Covid-19 is not the most killer disease. Currently, the most killer disease is the flu (influenza).

CDC estimates that the burden of illness during the 2018–2019 season included an estimated 35.5 million people getting sick with influenza, 16.5 million people going to a health care provider for their illness, 490,600 hospitalisations, and 34,200 deaths from influenza.

According to the CDC, the only issue is very little is known about Covid-19 because it’s so new. This means Covid-19 is something of a wild card in terms of how far it will spread and how many deaths it will cause.