Background
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), viral diseases
continue to emerge and become a serious issue to public health. Several
viral epidemics such as the severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in 2002 to 2003, H1N1 influenza in 2009, and
Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV-2) which was
first identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012, are threatening the world in
the last twenty years. In a timeline, an epidemic of cases with
unexplained low respiratory infections detected in Wuhan, China emerged
at the beginning of December 2019. The disease was reported to WHO on
December 31, 2019, and WHO launched the disease in Corona Virus
Disease-2019(COVID-19). The disease is declared as international concern
public health risk on January 30, 2020(1).
Coronavirus Disease 2019 is currently affecting more than 210 countries
worldwide. According to the report on April 28, 2020, around 3,221,617
cases and 228,263 deaths recorded globally. According to these figures,
the case fatality rate (CFR) is around 7% even the rate is varied
across countries(2). With the presence of a great trade relationship
between Africa and China, and with the absence of equipped and modern
public health system, Africa is in a greater risk of introduction and
spread of the disease(3). According to WHO COVID-19 updated report on
April 29, 2020, there are 36,456 confirmed cases and 1,586 deaths in
Africa, 130 case and three deaths in Ethiopia (4). Major factors
contributed to the high spread of COVID-19 are the economic status of
the populations (5), populations mobility and travel(6, 7), human
behavior like stay at home, use of face masks, frequent handwashing
practice, eye/mouse touching habits, and habit of using bar fingers to
remove mucous from the nose (8), asymptomatic nature of segments of
patients(9). Countries like Italia, Spain, and others are seriously
harmed and paid value by the coronavirus. This was because of the
negligence of the people in practicing of COVID-19 prevention
instructions from the government(10, 11). By considering the urgency of
the pandemic, this review aimed to provide evidence regarding public
health implications of SARS-COV-2 while asymptomatic, which provide
information for future research related to this topic and may support
decision making on strategies to handle this public health emergency.