Mers virus: What is Middle East Respiratory Syndrome?

What is MERS?

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a viral respiratory illness. It belongs to the coronavirus family – the same group that includes SARS and the common cold.

Is it contagious?

According to the WHO the virus does not pass “easily from person to person unless there is close contact, such as providing unprotected care to an infected patient”.

Most outbreaks have been in healthcare facilities such as hospitals and no “sustained” transmission in the general community has been documented.

When was it discovered?

It was first fatality was reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

What are the symptoms?

Symptoms can range from none to severe acute respiratory disease and death.

A typical sufferer will present at the hospitals or doctor with fever, cough and shortness of breath.

Pneumonia is common, but does not occur in all patients. Gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhoea, have also been reported.

Is it deadly?

According to the World Health Organisation approximately 36% of reported patients with MERS have died.

As of June 2, a total of 1,179 laboratory-confirmed cases of human infection with MERS-CoV have been reported to WHO, including at least 442 deaths.

The virus can affect anyone. Reported cases have gone been as young as one-year-old and as old as 99.

How is it transmitted to humans?

The route of transmission from animals to humans is not fully understood, but camels are likely to be a major host for MERS-CoV and an animal source of infection in humans.

Strains of MERS that are identical to human strains have been isolated from camels in several countries, including Egypt, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

Where did this outbreak come from?

We don’t know. However South Korea has been battling an outbreak over the past month with 33 patients dead, 184 confirmed cases and over 2,000 people quarantined.

The first case in South Korea was confirmed on May 20. A 68-year-old man returning from the Middle East was diagnosed with MERS nine days after he initially sought medical help. By the middle of June over 2,000 schools had been temporarily closed.

Previous cases have all originated from in and around the Arabian Peninsula.

Can it be treated?

No vaccine or specific treatment is available. Those who become ill with the virus are treated based on how the virus is affecting them.

How can you protect yourself?

The WHO says those visiting farms, markets, barns, or other places where camels and other animals are present should practice general hygiene measures, including regular hand washing before and after touching animals, and should avoid contact with sick animals.