Traveler's Infections: Understanding SARS-CoV-2 as a Potential Agent
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a major, global, public health challenge. More than 1,051,635 confirmed cases (and counting) have been reported worldwide, thus far, and both local and international travelers are considered to represent populations at high risk of acquiring the infection. Many factors are involved in the spread of this viral agent, including travel to and from endemic areas, a history of contact with a traveler from an endemic country, the virus infection rate at the destination, individual health, and inadequate prevention and control measures. COVID-19 symptoms range from fever and cough to difficulty breathing, and more severe cases can present with pneumonia and multi-organ failure. The virus is thought to be transmitted through large respiratory droplets, generated by coughing or sneezing and transmitted through close contact with infected persons or contaminated surfaces. Diagnostic strategies include the assays for the detection of antiviral antibodies, multiplex nucleic acid amplification, and microarray-based assays. Currently, no approved antiviral therapy or vaccine exists to treat or prevent the infection. Public health measures, such as quarantine, have been enforced, to slow the community spread of the virus, by governments, worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have recommended COVID-19 infection screening be performed at airports, for all travelers, before traveling to endemic countries and the restriction of travel to countries more than one thousand cases of infection. In response to the global outbreak, this review examines COVID-19 as a potential traveler's infection.