The Japanese Ministry of Health Labour and Welfare today informed the World Health Organization WHO of a confirmed case of a novel coronavirus 2019 nCoV in a person who travelled to Wuhan China This is the second confirmed case of 2019 nCoV that has been detected outside of China following confirmation of a case in Thailand on 13 January Considering global travel patterns additional cases in other countries are likely Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome 2019 nCoV is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans