[What we learned from SARS may provide important insights into understanding and management of coronavirus disease 2019].

The rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a global threat. But the pathogenesis and treatment of the disease are not clear yet. Virological researches revealed close relationship between 2019-nCoV and SARS-CoV. The experience and knowledge we gained from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), especially with regard to the time course of viral replication, host immune response and clinical progression of the patient, may provide important insights into understanding and management of COVID-19. Clinical deterioration accompanied by decreasing viral load in the second week after symptom onset was noted both in SARS and COVID-19, suggesting that the lung damage at this phase is more related to excessive host immune response rather than uncontrolled viral replication.