Renowned Chinese respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan, along with his team members, has published an article in the European Respiratory Journal, a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering respirology, detailing his experience in epidemic prevention and control.

In the article, entitled Strategies for the Prevention and Management of Coronavirus Disease 2019, Zhong's team stressed that asymptomatic viral carriers could also be a source of infection, and early diagnosis and isolation of pneumonia patients is important.

The novel coronavirus can be transmitted though the fecal-oral route, which means people should maintain good sanitary conditions in their houses and communities, according to the article.

The interagency mechanism that integrates early protection, early identification, early diagnosis, and early isolation has effectively curbed the rapidly growing outbreak, the article pointed out.

It also listed the measures that the Chinese government has taken to prevent and control the epidemic, including calling on the public not to travel to Hubei province, the epicenter of the pneumonia outbreak in China, locking down severely stricken cities such as Wuhan and Huanggang, and taking the temperatures of passers-by in communities and other public places.

The Chinese government also mandated that the number of confirmed cases, suspected cases and deaths be reported in real-time, constructed temporary hospitals in a short time and sent medical workers and supplies to Hubei province for assistance, the article said.

It mentioned that China has developed nucleic acid test reagents, which will help track down viral carriers and thus prevent the spread of the epidemic.

Based on recent scientific research, it summarized the clinical characteristics of patients infected with the novel coronavirus in China, which will further improve diagnosis and treatment plans and strengthen the joint prevention and control mechanism.

In the article, the Chinese experts also shared the latest development in clinical treatment. For example, traditional Chinese medicine such as Lianhuaqingwen capsules and Liushen capsules have been shown to inhibit viral replication in vitro, while hydrogen and oxygen mixed gas inhalation may improve the condition of pneumonia patients.

The article pointed out that the priorities in the future lie in determining the proportion of super-spreaders in the population, the connection between the release of the virus and the occurrence and development of clinical symptoms, the differences between severe and non-severe cases, and exploring the causes of the epidemic and effective medicine for clinical treatment.