# 7348
We’ve a few more details on yesterday’s report (see Italian MOH: Imported MERS-CoV Case in Italy) on that country’s first imported case of the novel coronavirus.
Today we learn from La Nazione that the 5 year-old grandson of the 45-year old Jordanian patient has been hospitalized as a precaution (he has a `cough’, but is otherwise said to be well), and that 43 other close contacts are under surveillance.
As this syntax-challenged machine translation reveals, the index patient is doing better, and test results on some of his relatives are expected as soon as tonight.
New SARS, the first case in Tuscany: the patient is better
Meyer admitted to his grandson as a precaution dle patient than 5 years: 43 people under surveillance
Florence, June 1, 2013 - It 'been hospitalized pediatric Meyer, but just as a precaution, the grandson of five years of patient Jordanian who lives in Florence affected by the new Sars. The child is not sick, he just a little 'cough, as he explained in a press conference this morning, Professor Alessandro Bartoloni, head of the department of infectious diseases where the man is being treated in isolation.
Under supervision over the child, it was explained, there are 43 people, including health professionals and relatives and co-workers who have been in contact with the forty-five. For all, it was stressed, there is no prophylaxis but just be careful if you presented in any of them a symptom of the virus. The results of the analysis on the patient's niece will be announced tonight.
Another report this morning, this time from Giornalettismo describes the current situation:
Coronavirus: fear for the new Sars in Italy
by Dario Ferri - Experts explain how to protect themselves from infection
<EXCERPT>
THE CASE IN FLORENCE - There are about fifteen doctors and nurses, health care workers come into contact with the 45 year old, came under observation for the risk of contagion. The man presented himself at the hospital, in recent days, the onset of symptoms and was then promptly transferred to the department for control infectious diseases. Subsequently, he was placed in solitary confinement. The exams are still going on even on his brother, the only person who would remain in contact for a long time and in a range for a long time.
This marks the second time in 10 days that we’ve seen a traveler – recently returned from the Middle East – diagnosed with the MERS coronavirus (see KUNA Report On Tunisian Coronavirus Case).
With Umrah pilgrimages expected to bring more than a million visitors to the Middle East over the next 60 days, and the upcoming Hajj in October, these two incidents are raising concerns that this virus may be exported to other countries around the world.
Today, Vietnam sent a dispatch to all hospitals in that country to be on the lookout for suspicious respiratory cases.
We also learn from the following SGGP report that Vietnam has their own medical mystery to unravel; the Central Tropical Disease Hospital and Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi have admitted several patients - gold diggers from the highland areas of Dak Lak Province – with serious lung ailments of, as yet, unknown etiology.
Vietnam warns of Corona Virus
Following a World Health Organization's warning of the Corona Virus, the Ministry of Health on May 31 sent a dispatch to all hospitals across the country asking to raise awareness of the new virus strain.
As per the dispatch, medical workers should be aware of respiratory diseases due to the virus by taking X-rays and tests to early detect the virus.
WHO has issued a blunt assessment of the Corona Virus outbreak, acknowledging for the first time that there are concerns the virus may be spreading from person to person, at least in a limited way.
With the enhanced surveillance and viral vigilance around the world, I fully expect that we are going to see a lot of reports of people being isolated and tested over the next several months.
Many (likely most) will be shown to have something far more mundane than this emerging coronavirus.
But along with determining just how widespread (and serious) the MERS coronavirus really is, this heightened surveillance may tell us a good deal more about the types of respiratory infections that are currently circulating around the globe.
And that could turn out to be a treasure trove of data for epidemiologists around the world.
