#18,970
While MERS-CoV has been out of the news cycle for quite some time, it has not gone away, and starting in early 2025 we've seen an increase in the number of cases reported by Saudi Arabia (see Oct. ECDC Report).
Even when countries aggressively look for cases (and many appear disinclined), detecting MERS-CoV can be difficult. Official case counts are widely assumed to be undercounts (see EID Journal: Estimation of Severe MERS Cases in the Middle East, 2012–2016.Overnight the French Ministry of Health has announced the detection of 2 MERS-CoV cases in a tour group recently returned from the Arabian Peninsula. The details released thus far are disappointingly scant (i.e. no travel dates, onset dates, itineraries, potential exposures, etc.).
(Continue . . . )(Translation)
Two cases of MERS-CoV, returning from abroad, identified on national territory
Published on 04.12.25
Health alerts Press releases Stéphanie Rist Press releases and dossiers Diseases Health
The Ministry of Health, Families, Autonomy and Persons with Disabilities and Public Health France have been informed of two cases of MERS-CoV in France. These two cases were confirmed following suggestive symptoms and a history of shared travel to the Arabian Peninsula. Management measures have been implemented to limit the risk of virus transmission.
Stéphanie Rist, Minister of Health, Families, Autonomy and Persons with Disabilities, confirms: “These patients are being monitored in hospital as a precautionary measure and their condition is stable. All management measures have been put in place to limit the risk of transmission of the virus to the patients' contacts and healthcare staff: contact tracing to offer them follow-up, barrier gestures, testing, isolation and procedures to follow in case of the appearance of symptoms, even mild ones.”
These two cases occurred in individuals who had participated in the same trip, but no secondary transmission chains have been identified within the country at this stage. The other individuals who participated in the trip have also been monitored since the identification of the first confirmed case.
If you experience these symptoms and have recently traveled to these areas and/or have been in contact with people who have experienced these symptoms, do not hesitate to consult your doctor.
Prior to SARS-CoV-2's arrival in late 2019, MERS-CoV was the top contender for sparking a coronavirus pandemic, sporting a high mortality rate, and spreading easily through hospitals in the Middle East (and South Korea) (see Ziad Memish: Two MERS-CoV Hospital Super Spreading Studies).
Last June we looked at an editorial in Journal of Epidemiology & Global Health on the importance of continued healthcare preparedness and surveillance (see Al-Tawfiq & Memish On Recurrent MERS-CoV Transmission in Saudi Arabia), with an emphasis on identifying asymptomatic carriers.
Also last June, in JEGH: Epidemiological Characteristics of MERS-CoV Human Cases, 2012- 2025, we looked at the changing epidemiology of MERS-CoV cases since 2012, as well as substantial gaps in our current understanding of the disease.
Although dromedary camels are the primary animal reservoir for MERS - and direct or indirect contact are viewed as a major risk factor for infection - sporadic cases continue to show up in the community without any known exposures (camels, camel products, or known MERS cases).Update: Since the previous update on 1 September 2025, and as of 6 October 2025, one new MERS fatality in Saudi Arabia with date of onset in July 2025 has been reported by the World Health Organisation Eastern Mediterranean Region (WHO EMRO).
The case reported no contact with camels, had comorbidities, and resided in the Riyad province. All close contacts are being followed up with no secondary cases reported so far.
Summary: Since the beginning of 2025, and as of 6 October 2025, 12 MERS cases have been reported in Saudi Arabia with date of onset in 2025, including three fatalities.
Since April 2012, and as of 6 October 2025, a total of 2640 cases of MERS, including 958 deaths, have been reported by health authorities worldwide.
A 2020 Perspective published in the EID Journal (see Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Transmission) reported that `. . . among 1,125 laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV cases reported to WHO during January 1, 2015–April 13, 2018, a total of 157 (14%) had unknown exposure.'Compared with the hundreds of cases reported each year in KSA during the last decade, this 2025 surge in activity is hardly earthshaking, but it does represent a noticeable uptick.
