MERS Coronavirus: Will the Hajj Trigger a Global Pandemic?

MERS Coronavirus: Will the Hajj Trigger a Global Pandemic?(ABC).

A new virus spreading through the Middle East has claimed three more lives, according to Saudi health officials, bringing the death toll to 30.
At least 50 people have been sickened by the virus, newly-dubbed MERS-CoV for “Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus.” The majority of cases have clustered in Saudi Arabia. But infections have also emerged in Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Germany, the United Kingdom and France.
All of the cases have ties to the Middle East, according to the World Health Organization.
A Frenchman, who became ill after travelling to Dubai, died earlier this week roughly one month after being hospitalized with respiratory symptoms. His roommate at the hospital also contracted the virus, reaffirming suspicions that MERS-CoV can be passed from person-to-person.

The virus has also spread through a health care facility Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia, where at least 22 patients have been sickened and 10 have died. In light of such cases, doctors on Wednesday recommended quarantining patients for at least 12 days.

Until recently, MERS-CoV was known widely as the “SARS-like virus” because of its semblance to the deadly SARS virus, which a decade ago sickened more than 8,000 people and killed 774. But experts caution that while both viruses can cause pneumonia and organ failure, MERS-CoV appears to spread less readily than SARS — so far.

Unlike SARS, this is spreading much slower.  The first case was identified in April 2012 and to date there have been 50 cases and 30 deaths.   The majority of cases have occurred in Saudi Arabia.  All patients either traveled to the Middle East or had close contact with someone who did. There is evidence of transmission within hospitals, but it has not been determined how community transmission is occurring.  According to CDC, the MERS coronavirus is most similar to coronaviruses seen in bats.

At this point, there is not much that the public needs to do. If you are traveling to the Middle East, check out the precautions recommended by the CDC. Basically, they recommend following standard practices to avoid infections: frequent hand washing, avoiding close contact with sick people. In addition avoid contact with wildlife. If you travel to the Middle East and develop any flu like symptoms (fever, chills, muscle aches) tell your doctor where you have been so you can be tested.Read the full story here.