Coronavirus – Credit CDC PHIL
UPDATE: SEE WHO Announces Additional Coronavirus Cases
# 6733
News this morning of another (presumably the 5th) novel coronavirus case out of the Middle East in the past few months, this time a patient from Qatar who has been treated at a specialty clinic in Germany since last month.
You may recall that two days ago we learned of the 4th case (see Saudi Arabian MOH Reports New Coronavirus Case). And earlier this week, we saw additional evidence suggesting that these viruses are Linked To Bats.
The following is a machine translation of a statement (in German) from the Robert Koch Institute.
Fall ill with the novel coronavirus in Germany
The Robert Koch Institute was informed within the international health regulations that another case of disease with the novel coronavirus (HCoV-EMC) has been confirmed in a patient from Qatar.
The patient was treated after symptom onset in October initially treated in the hospital in Qatar, but then postponed because of his severe respiratory symptoms to a specialist chest clinic in Germany. That had taken place after the intensive medical treatment, his condition has improved considerably, so that he could be discharged from the hospital this week.
The case is the fifth case became known disease with the novel coronavirus; previously been another case of Qatar and three cases from Saudi Arabia confirmed. Between the individual cases was no epidemiological link, and they performed at longer intervals.
It is further assumed that sporadic infections of unknown cause in these two countries. There is currently no evidence of human-to-human transmission.
With no evidence of human-to-human transmission, five non-epidemiologically linked cases from two countries in the Middle East over a short period of time raises some intriguing questions.
Not the least of which are:
- What is the route of transmission to humans?
- Why are we suddenly seeing multiple cases now?
- How do we prevent future infections?
With reports of two new cases this week (albeit both from last month), no doubt epidemiologists around the world will increase their efforts to solve this emerging medical mystery.
