The outbreak of the novel coronavirus, also known as the COVID-19, has now infected more than 92,000 people across 70 countries. However, it is important to note that more than half of those infected have recovered, that is over 47,000 people and over 3,000 have died.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has already declared the outbreak as a ''global emergency'' but has not declared it as pandemic yet and has warned that we are entering into "unchartered territory".

Data shows that daily new cases outside China are three times more than the case inside mainland China.

In India, over the last 24 hours, 3 people have tested positive in Delhi, Hyderabad and Jaipur. A school in Noida has been shut for 3 days and 40 students are in isolation. Six people in Agra are suspected to have come into contact with the Delhi patient, they are also in isolation.

The Indian government has expanded universal screening to cover all passengers coming in from 12 countries. Italy and Iran are the latest additions to the list. The government has also suspended all visas and e-visas granted to nationals from Italy, Iran, South Korea and Japan. Visas from China have already been suspended.

Amidst, all these developments, Dr Gagandeep Kang answered all the queries related to the coronavirus outbreak in an interview with CNBC-TV18. Dr Kang is the director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute. She is also the vice chair at 'the coalition for epidemic preparedness innovations'.

Dr Kang is a leading researcher with a major research focus on viral infections in children, and the testing of rotaviral vaccines. She has been awarded the prestigious Infosys prize in life sciences in 2016. In 2019, she became the first Indian woman to be elected as a royal society fellow.

When asked about how one could distinguishing the symptoms of COVID-19 from that of flu, she said, “You cannot distinguish the symptoms of flu from the symptoms that you have with COVID-19 disease. They are very similar. It is fever predominantly with coughs and colds. You can develop additional symptoms including diarrhoea and liver and kidney failure. Anytime you start feeling sick or you have a high fever, it is a good idea to go to a doctor and get yourself tested. This is particularly important if you have underlying conditions such as diabetes or hypertension or cardio-vascular disease or are an older individual. The treatment is almost identical, it is a supportive therapy.”

“Right now, it appears that children are less susceptible to COVID-19 disease. At least the data that we have seen coming out of China so far – it is the older adults that get the more severe infections and younger adults see less severe disease. Children seem to be spared and the few studies that are available on very young children don’t seem to show a lot of signs of disease. So, I think in terms of children, there does appear to be a better ability to handle infection if they are being exposed,” said Dr Kang.

In terms of number of government centers doing the testing, she added, “If you think about stratification, I did mention that you should go to doctors if you are feeling ill and that really is to get the right kind of medicine and the supportive therapy. It is not possible for everybody who has a cold, cough and fever to get tested with the limited amount of testing that is available in India and in fact, available around the world. So, in terms of testing to determine the burden of disease, we need a different strategy.”

“In terms of individuals, currently the strategy that we are following is risk based testing. So, if you have a prior exposure or you have come from a region where there is known disease, people are being tested. I think the government is doing the right thing in expanding testing. The US has also allowed for every laboratory that is accredited to institute testing, not just the labs that the CDC were supporting previously.'

"This might be something that we will need to think about in the coming days if cases and contacts of cases go up significantly,” she further mentioned.