Thursday, September 17, 2015

Saudi MOH Reports 2 Additional MERS Cases In Riyadh

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# 10,533

 

Riyadh’s MERS outbreak – which began in earnest more than 6 weeks ago – rolls on today with two more cases announced by the MOH, along with 4 recent fatalities.


Of note, one of the cases is only 14 years of age.  While we’ve seen a handful of pediatric MERS cases reported, the demographics of MERS infection has been heavily skewed towards older males.

 

Those under 20 make up roughly 40% of the Saudi population, yet they account for only about 2% of known MERS cases.  That age shift, along with the 2:1 male to female ratio of patients, are both currently unexplained.

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