COVID-19 has affected over 57,410,025 people and killed more than 1,368,848 of those affected in 220 countries as on November 20, 2020. Community-acquired coronaviruses are ubiquitous with a male preponderance. Unlike Western nations, majority of the cases in India are in the age group of 31–50 years, and the mortality rate is around 1.46%. The possible modes of transmission for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 include droplet, airborne, fomite, fecal-oral, bloodborne, mother-to-child, and animal-to-human transmission as per the World Health Organization. Apart from the known symptoms of influenza-like illness, COVID also presents with cutaneous, hematological, gastrointestinal, and neurological manifestations. In the absence of dedicated cures, until there is a hope of appropriate and effective vaccine development, the novel coronavirus will be a challenge to the existence of humanity.
Umar M M A Shareef, Vinod Kumar, Vasantha Kamath