Health officials have reported the first apparent case of person-to-person transmission of the MERS virus in the U.S., with an Illinois man exhibiting evidence of infection after meeting with a doctor who was the first diagnosed U.S. case. The man is a business associate of the doctor and didnt get sick enough to seek medical care, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is monitoring for and investigating Middle East Respiratory Syndrome cases in the U.S.online.wsj/news/articles/SB10001424052702304908304579568251158291602?mod=e2fb He and the doctor met for about 40 minutes in Illinois on April 25, sitting face to face about six feet apart, and had a second shorter meeting on April 26, the CDC said Saturday. The two men shook hands during the meetings. The doctor, a U.S. citizen who lives and works in Saudi Arabia, had just arrived in the U.S. to visit family and had developed a fever and other early symptoms of MERS. The Illinois mans experience underscores two points scientists have been urging countries such as Saudi Arabia, which has had the bulk of MERS cases, to study more thoroughly: how the disease is transmitted, and how many people are infected, including those who dont get very sick. Little is known about the diseases dynamics even though the first cases emerged more than two years ago. It is the first known case of transmission of MERS within the U.S. and suggests that the disease may be caught through more casual encounters than public health officials have previously described. They have said that they believe MERS spreads from person to person generally through only close contact such as living with an infected person or caring for them in a hospital. 1 MERS IS A DEADLY VIRAL ILLNESS THAT TARGETS THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.MERS, which stands for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, is a deadly virus that was first identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012 and now has been reported in at least 18 countries. Most people diagnosed with MERS have developed severe respiratory illness, with symptoms including fever, cough and shortness of breath, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pneumonia and gastrointestinal symptoms also have been reported. About 27% of people with MERS have died. As of May 9, more than 500 cases had been confirmed, the World Health Organization says. 2 SO FAR, ALL REPORTED MERS CASES HAVE BEEN LINKED TO THE MIDDLE EAST.The majority of MERS cases have been concentrated in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia. The United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Jordan and several other countries in the Arabian Peninsula have reported cases as well. Travel from the region has caused cases to pop up elsewhere, including in European countries such as France, Germany and the U.K. Malaysia and the Philippines have also reported cases, as have Egypt and Tunisia. This week, a second confirmed case appeared in the U.S. Within the U.S., however, the risk of contracting the virus is very low, the CDC says. Second U.S. Case of MERS Virus Confirmed by Officials 3 THE VIRUS APPEARS TO SPREAD FROM CLOSE HUMAN CONTACT.Little is known about how the virus is transmitted, though the CDC says MERS spreads among people in close physical contact, such as family members and health-care workers treating MERS patients. Both U.S. cases, for example, are health-care workers who traveled from Saudi Arabia, while up to one-fifth of all cases have involved health-care workers, according to the CDC. Also, some people infected with MERS haven’t appeared to experience symptoms, the WHO says. Health organizations say humans might have first contracted the virus from animals, which could still be infecting people. Camels in several Middle Eastern countries have been confirmed carrying the MERS coronavirus, the strain that causes MERS in people. Health authorities suspect an animal source may have first spread MERS to humans. 4 AUTHORITIES ARE TAKING STEPS TO CURB THE VIRUS. There is no vaccine or specific treatment for MERS, leaving hospitals largely to just treat the symptoms. The WHO this week called for urgent measures to control the virus, but stopped short of declaring its recent spread an international public-health emergency. It did ask for countries to take more prevention steps, such as improving infection control in hospitals, where most of the recent cases have occurred. The CDC, meanwhile, has increased its laboratory testing capacity to detect cases, has provided information for travelers and is discussing the possibility of developing a vaccine with partners.
Posted on: Tue, 20 May 2014 01:19:45 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015