Mers young woman dies of the virus

More and more Mers-Infected worldwide

05/17/2014

More and more people around the world are becoming infected with the deadly coronavirus Mers. Now, in the Netherlands, the first two cases have occurred. The two patients had previously been in Saudi Arabia. The World Health Organization (WHO) still sees no global emergency at Mers.

Mers now arrived in Europe
The number of Mers infected is increasing worldwide. On Thursday, a second case of the dangerous coronavirus Mers (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) has also occurred in the Netherlands. According to information from the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), the woman became infected during a visit to Saudi Arabia. Accordingly, she was traveling with a family member whose illness had been announced on Wednesday. The patient is quarantined in a hospital in the Dutch city of Zwolle. The condition of the woman is stable. The infected man was treated in strict isolation at a The Hague hospital. Like the Yemeni news portal „Barakish.net“ During the night of Friday, a mother of two died of a Mers infection after being denied treatment by several state hospitals. The patient had finally landed in a private clinic in the capital Sanaa, in which the doctors were not specialized in the Mers virus and the woman could not save.

New pathogen leads more often to death
The Mers-CoV was first identified in September 2012 in patients with severe respiratory infection and is similar to the SARS virus. It can cause flu-like symptoms, such as fever, shortness of breath and coughing, but it can also lead to severe pneumonia. Mers also leads to kidney failure in contrast to SARS. In general, the new pathogen is considered to be less infectious, but more often leads to death than is the case with many other infectious diseases. The new virus had started in Saudi Arabia. According to recent data from the World Health Organization (WHO), 496 Mers cases have been confirmed worldwide. Although the exact transmission route is still unclear, it is believed that camels and bats play a role in this. But there is still no official confirmation.

Camels in Saudi Arabia are to receive microchip
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 30 percent of the cases were fatal. A second Mers case has also recently surfaced in the US. The first patient in the state of Indiana is now on the road to recovery, the second is isolated and he is fine. However, the hardest hit is the Arabian Peninsula. According to official sources, the infection in Saudi Arabia has so far killed 142 people. As the Ministry of Health in Riyadh announced on Friday, two more women have died. In addition, the authorities had found the virus in the cities of Medina, Riyadh and Jeddah in 14 other patients. Since it is believed that the virus is transmitted by camels and dromedaries, the Saudi authorities recommend that breeders and traders comply with safety precautions. In addition, all camels in Saudi Arabia are to receive a microchip storing information about the breeders and the origin of the animals in order to prevent further spread of the deadly virus. The two infected people in the Netherlands also visited a dromedary during their trip to Saudi Arabia.

Pilgrimages could accelerate the worldwide spread of the virus
Experts fear that the worldwide spread of the virus could be accelerated by the large number of pilgrims from all over the world visiting the holy places of Islam in Saudi Arabia each year. In the most important pilgrimage site of the Muslims, in Mecca, the pathogen has already appeared. Individual Muslim countries have already responded. After reporting the first coronavirus death in Malaysia in April, the local ministry of health warned to wear a mask during a pilgrimage to Mecca or Medina. The authorities in neighboring Indonesia even recommended that their Muslim authorities postpone pilgrimages to Saudi Arabia until they know more about the causes of the infections. Two Indonesian citizens were on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia infected with Mers and had died this week in Bali or Sumatra. Three more are still in quarantine. Especially for the Muslim month of fasting Ramadan, which begins at the end of June, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims are again expected in Saudi Arabia.

No international health emergency yet
Although WHO is increasingly concerned about the spread of the virus, there are few measures to counteract it. The organization said after meeting a disaster committee that there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission. The statement said that the deadly infectious disease is therefore not yet „health emergency with international consequences“ founded. All affected countries are called for better infection prevention and control. In addition, there must be faster environmental and animal studies to gain insights into transmission routes and risk factors. When traveling to affected countries, experts also recommend taking basic precautions, such as keeping distance from people with acute respiratory infections, and avoiding animal contact. In addition, general hygiene measures such as regular hand washing and the omission of meat that has not been completely cooked, as well as raw vegetables and unpeeled fruit, are recommended. (Ad)