Health News Roundup: UK faces 'massive shortage' of ventilators; Imported cases outpace local infections for fifth day and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

UK faces 'massive shortage' of ventilators - Swiss manufacturer

Britain faces a "massive shortage" of ventilators that will be needed to treat critically ill patients suffering from coronavirus after it failed to invest enough in intensive care equipment, a leading ventilator manufacturer said on Wednesday. "England is very poorly equipped," said Andreas Wieland, chief executive of Hamilton Medical in Switzerland, which says it is the world's largest ventilator maker.

Imported coronavirus cases in China outpace local infections for fifth day

China's imported coronavirus cases outnumbered domestic transmissions for a fifth straight day as infected travelers passed through major transport hubs in Beijing, Shanghai, and the southern cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Mainland China had 13 new infections on Tuesday, the National Health Commission said, down from 21 a day earlier. A dozen of the new cases involved infected arrivals from abroad.

U.S. CDC reports 7,087 coronavirus cases, 97 deaths

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday reported 7,087 cases of the coronavirus, an increase of 2,812 cases from its previous count, and said the number of deaths had risen by 22 to 97. The tally of COVID-19 cases is as of 4 p.m. ET on March 17. The agency said coronavirus cases had been reported by all 50 states, up from its previous report of 49 states. Cases were also reported in the District of Columbia and three territories. (https://bit.ly/2IVY1JT)

Here's what you need to know about coronavirus right now

Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus outbreak right now:

Come home, don't leave, Australians urged FDA recommends virtual patient visits to limit coronavirus impact on clinical trials

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned on Wednesday that the coronavirus outbreak could impact clinical trials and recommended that companies consider conducting virtual patient visits as the regulator looks to contain the spread of the virus. The FDA noted that quarantines, site closures, travel limitations, supply chain interruptions, or potential infections among on-site personnel or trial participants could lead to difficulties in conducting clinical trials. (http://bit.ly/39WbflT)

Rattled world 'at war' with coronavirus as deaths surge in Italy, France

Hundreds of millions of people faced a world turned upside down on Wednesday by unprecedented emergency measures against the coronavirus pandemic that is killing the old and vulnerable and threatening prolonged economic misery. "This is a once-in-a-hundred-year type event," said Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, warning the crisis could last six months as his nation became the latest to restrict gatherings and overseas travel.

Special Report: How Korea trounced U.S. in race to test people for coronavirus

In late January, South Korean health officials summoned representatives from more than 20 medical companies from their lunar New Year celebrations to a conference room tucked inside Seoul's busy train station. One of the country's top infectious disease officials delivered an urgent message: South Korea needed an effective test immediately to detect the novel coronavirus, then running rampant in China. He promised the companies swift regulatory approval.

Patients with breathing, lung problems at highest risk with COVID-19 - study

Patients with existing illnesses that cause breathlessness, wheezing or lung problems run a higher risk of developing severe cases of COVID-19 infection due to the new coronavirus, according to a pooled analysis study published on Wednesday. It also found that shortness of breath - also known as dyspnoea - is the only symptom of COVID-19 that is significantly associated with severe cases and with patients requiring admission to intensive care units (ICU).

WHO says testing, tracing must be 'backbone' of COVID-19 response

Countries across the world must take a comprehensive approach to fight the pandemic of COVID-19 disease caused by the new coronavirus and isolate, test and trace as many cases as possible, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. "To suppress and control the epidemic, countries must isolate, test, treat and trace," the WHO's director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a media briefing.

Synairgen gets green light for coronavirus drug trial

British pharmaceutical company Synairgen said on Wednesday it had the go-ahead to test a drug that could boost the lung function of patients with coronavirus, potentially assisting in the global fight against the pandemic. The company said it had received expedited approvals from regulators to trial the drug - an inhaled formulation of interferon-beta-1a - in hospital patients who have COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.