SANTIAGO, April 4 (Xinhua) -- "It is a final guide for ordinary people," said Monica Tejos, director of Simplemente Editores, a publisher that distributes a manual written by Chinese doctor Zhang Wenhong on COVID-19 prevention and control in Chile.

The manual titled "Prevention and Control of COVID-19," which elaborates on the novel coronavirus, including its symptoms, treatment and prognosis, the susceptible population and the incubation period, also focuses on the importance of the wearing of masks and social distancing, Tejos told Xinhua.

Zhang, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Fudan-Huashan Hospital in Shanghai, has led a team of medical experts to fight the epidemic in Shanghai since January 2020.

The professor participated in the treatment and control of SARS in 2003 and H7N9 avian flu in 2013.

"We chose this book from among others because it is very didactic and it is written in easy language that can reach the general population," said Tejos, adding that it is the most important instructional work of its kind.

She discussed how the book supports the wearing of masks, a measure that has not been fully adopted in Chile and caused a great deal of confusion among the citizens.

The book was published in China in February, the Chilean publisher said, adding that Simplemente Editores proposed editing it in March and now has the global copyright of the Spanish edition.

Sun Xintang, the book's coordinator, told Xinhua that the book is very popular in China and other countries in Asia.

According to data, the book has so far sold more than a million copies in China and abroad, with 1.6 million downloads of its digital versions. It has been translated into Spanish, English, Italian, Persian, Russian, Thai, and Vietnamese.

"I think it is necessary to present these experiences to the Chilean public and I am very happy that the publisher Simplemente Editores has translated and published it with extraordinary efficiency," said Sun.

"I am convinced that this knowledge and advice will be a timely and useful contribution to overcoming this pandemic that is attacking us in a way that is unprecedented in human history," Sun added.