China now has more cases of coronavirus than it had of SARS.

Mainland China now has more cases of coronavirus than it had of SARS, a respiratory infection that spread across China in 2002 and 2003 and killed 774 people in 17 countries. During the SARS outbreak, China had 5,327 cases and 349 deaths, according to the World Health Organization.

The number of confirmed cases increased to more than 7,700 worldwide by early Thursday, according to Chinese officials and the World Health Organization, with all but 68 of the infections taking place in mainland China. On Wednesday, there were about 6,000 infections worldwide.

In China, a total of 170 people have now died from the mysterious new coronavirus, according to official Chinese statistics, but the real number is likely much higher. A dearth of test kits has hindered health officials ability to accurately diagnose and track the illness.

Here’s what we know about how the disease has spread:

◆ China said early Thursday that 38 more people had died from the virus, which is believed to have originated in the central city of Wuhan and is spreading across the country. The previous count, on Wednesday, was 132.