Qatar: Supreme Council of Health reports fourth MERS case.

Qatar: Supreme Council of Health reports fourth MERS case.HT: Croft.

August 27 report in The Peninsula: SCH reports fourth case of coronavirus. Excerpt and then a comment:

A 29-year-old Qatari youth has been infected with the coronavirus-Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS)  in the second incident of its kind reported in the country in a week. 

The new case apparently involves the youngest victim in Qatar, infected with the virus until now, and has taken the total number of MERS cases in the country to four. 

The Supreme Council of Health (SCH) said yesterday that the patient was in a critical condition, in  the intensive care unit of the Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).  

The victim was suffering from asthma, the SCH said in a statement last evening. 

“After checking the patient, samples have been sent to the National Influenza Laboratory and abroad for further tests.  

Last Tuesday, the SCH announced the third MERS case in Qatar, involving a 59-year-old citizen, who experienced symptoms while he was out of the country. The case was confirmed after tests at the laboratory. 

Two Qataris were infected by the virus earlier, one of them died in a London hospital in June, about nine months after he was reported ill.  

Until now, 104 MERS cases have been reported across the world and 49 victims have died. Majority of the dead were above 40 years.  

The highest number of cases — 82 — were reported in the neighbouring Saudi Arabia, including 41 deaths.

Note that the report says nothing about this new patient having been out of the country.

Note also that CIDRAP, FluTrackers and Avian Flu Diary have the story, but WHO has not published an outbreak report on MERS since August 1. I have no idea why.

Update: Qatar: New MERS patient was exposed to earlier case