Credit WHO
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It's been just over a month since the WHO last updated us on MERS in Saudi Arabia, and while we've seen a slowdown in cases during the month of March, there remains a backlog of cases from late January and much of February that have yet to be published.
Overnight the WHO has released a new update that looks at 19 cases with onset dates between January 31st and February 25th, which occurred in areas outside of the hard-hit town of Wadi Aldawasir.The last WHO update (Feb 26th) covered the first 39 cases reported from Wadi Aldwasir between January 29th and February 13th. Today's update promises:
A separate Disease Outbreak News will provide an update on the outbreak in Wadi Aldwasir which affected 49 cases and resulted in seven deaths in February making a total of 52 cases since the onset of the outbreak.Two small clusters are described (in Buraidah & Riyadh). As usual, details on the individual cases are provided via the attached xls spreadsheet file.
Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) – The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Disease Outbreak News: Update
29 March 2019
From 1 through 28 February 2019, the National IHR Focal Point of Saudi Arabia reported 68 additional cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, including 10 deaths. Of the 68 MERS cases reported in February, 19 cases occurred in cities other than Wadi Aldwasir.
This Disease Outbreak News update describes the 19 cases. Among these cases, fifteen were sporadic, and four were reported as part of two unrelated clusters. Cluster 1 involved two cases in Buridah city; and Cluster 2 involved two cases in Riyadh city. The link below provides details of the 19 reported cases.
MERS-CoV cases reported from 1 February through 28 February 2019 xls, 116kbA separate Disease Outbreak News will provide an update on the outbreak in Wadi Aldwasir which affected 49 cases and resulted in seven deaths in February making a total of 52 cases since the onset of the outbreak.
From 2012 through 28 February 2019, the total number of laboratory-confirmed MERS cases reported globally to WHO is 2374 with 823 associated deaths. The global number reflects the total number of laboratory-confirmed cases reported to WHO under IHR to date. The total number of deaths includes the deaths that WHO is aware of to date through follow-up with affected member states.
WHO risk assessment
Infection with MERS-CoV can cause severe disease resulting in high morbidity and mortality. Humans are infected with MERS-CoV from direct or indirect contact with infected dromedary camels. MERS-CoV has demonstrated the ability to transmit between humans, especially from close unprotected contact with infected patients. So far, the observed non-sustained human-to-human transmission has occurred mainly in health care settings.
The notification of these additional cases does not change WHO’s overall risk assessment of MERS. WHO expects that additional cases of MERS will be reported from the Middle East, and that cases will continue to be exported to other countries by individuals who might acquire the infection after exposure to dromedary camels, animal products (e.g. consumption of camel’s raw milk), or humans (e.g. in a health care setting). WHO continues to monitor the epidemiological situation and conducts risk assessment based on the latest available information.
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