eli5: Why is it important to find “patient zero” when trying to understand a disease?

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Doesn’t everyone infected carry the same disease if it has spread?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

Patient zero just doesn’t help understand the disease, but how fast it could spread. Patient zero helps with tracking other people who may have come in contact and who they have come in contact.. etc to help contain the situation. Also, when it comes to viruses, they mutate, so if you find the original strain quicker, it’s better to work with that one before it mutates from the spread.

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