# 7521
This week’s MERS meme appears to be the comparison of the characteristics of this new coronavirus to the SARS coronavirus of a decade ago (see articles Is MERS another SARS? & MERS and SARS: Similar Not Identical).
This debate has been sparked by comments from KSA Deputy Health Minister, Professor Ziad Memish, lead author of a MERS-CoV study published last week (see Lancet: Epidemiological, Demographic & Clinical Characteristics of MERS-CoV).
Dr. Memish argues that the vast majority of serious MERS cases in Saudi Arabia have been among the elderly with serious co-morbidities, and has been quoted by Reuters as stating that, "So far there is little to indicate that MERS will follow a similar path to SARS."
But at the same time, Dr. Memish concedes there remain serious gaps in our knowledge of the epidemiology, community prevalence, and clinical spectrum of symptoms from this infection.
The impact of infectious diseases can vary widely between populations due to demographic, geographic, economic, and cultural differences. Since SARS never made it into Saudi Arabia in 2003, we really can’t know how it would have affected that particular population.
Topics that Dr. Ian Mackay addresses this morning in his Virology Down Under blog. Follow the link to read:
MERS-CoV & SARS-CoV zoonoses....what about the endemic human CoVs?
Sunday, 28 July 2013
