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 News Archive 2014






The U.S. has its first confirmed case of
MERS-CoV
by Nathan'ette Burdine: May 6, 2014
 


On Friday, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced the first confirmed case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the United States.

MERS-CoV attacks the respiratory system and causes the infected person to cough, have shortness of breath and a fever.

Health officials in Indiana identified the disease in an individual who travelled to Saudi Arabia. According to the CDC, MERS-CoV is prevalent in Saudi Arabia and five other countries (United Araba Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman, Jordan, and Kuwait) that make up the Arabian Peninsula.

The CDC reported that within three days of arriving in the U.S., the individual began showing signs of the symptoms (coughing, shortness of breath, and a fever) associated with the MERS-CoV virus.

After going to the hospital emergency room, the individual was admitted and isolated from the rest of the patients.

According to the CDC, the individual is currently in stable condition. Tom Frieden, the director of the CDC, said that he is not surprised that the U.S. has its first MERS-CoV case.

The CDC quoted Frieden in a press release as saying, “In this interconnected world we live in, we expected MERS-CoV to make its way to the United States. We have been preparing since 2012 for this possibility.”

MERS-CoV was first confirmed in 2012 in Saudi Arabia. The disease is part of the coronavirus group, which is a common virus affecting the respiratory system.

The CDC has stated that it is not clear how a person contracts the disease or how it spreads from one individual to the next.

Frieden stated that the CDC and Indiana health officials are notifying the public and trying to contact people who may have had contact with the infected individual.

Dr. Anne Schuchat, assistant surgeon general and director of CDC’s national center for Immunizations and Respiratory Diseases, says that the public doesn’t need to be too concern about the virus spreading. The CDC quoted Schuchat in a press release as saying, “It is understandable that some may be concerned about this situation, but this first U.S. case of MERS-CoV infection represents a very low risk to the general public.”

The CDC reported that all of the 401 MERS-CoV cases began in the 6 countries in the Arabian Peninsula.

The symptoms began showing within 14 days of the infection. And the CDC advises individuals who’ve travelled to or around the Arabian Peninsula to go to their nearest health care provider and to get check if they began showing signs of the MERS-CoV virus.

There have been 93 deaths resulting from the virus. According to the CDC, 30% of the people who’ve died had MERS-CoV as well as another illness.




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