Saudi Arabia reports one more death as well as two additional cases of lab confirmed infections of MERS-CoV

Saudi Arabia reports one more death from new virus

 March 14, 2014 12:28 PM 
Men wearing surgical masks as a precautionary measure against the novel coronavirus, speak at a hospital in Khobar city in Dammam May 23, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia says a man has died from a new respiratory virus related to SARS, bringing to 63 the deaths in the kingdom at the center of the outbreak.
The Health Ministry said Friday the latest victim, a 19-year-old, died in the city of al-Kharj, southeast of Riyadh. Two of his sisters are in hospital on suspicion they have been infected with the virus. If they prove to be positive, it would further raise the number of people infected.
Read More Here

.....

The New Zealand Herald

Saudi Arabia reports 1 more death from new virus

11:25 PM Friday Mar 14, 2014

.....So far, 150 people have been infected in the kingdom since September 2012.
The new virus is related to SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, which killed some 800 people in a global outbreak in 2003. It belongs to a family of viruses that most often causes the common cold.

Read More Here
.....

RSOE EDIS

Biological Hazard in Saudi Arabia on Monday, 24 February, 2014 at 04:05 (04:05 AM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Wednesday, 12 March, 2014 at 04:14 UTC
Description
The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) revealed Tuesday it has been informed of two additional laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in Saudi Arabia. The case pertains to a 58-year-old man from Al-Ahsa province, who took ill on February 2 and was hospitalized on February 4. He recovered from the infection and was discharged from hospital on February 24. The patient suffered from multiple chronic diseases, and was reported to have had contact with animals. The second case is an 81 year-old woman from the Riyadh region. She had multiple underlying medical conditions, and was hospitalized on February 2. She developed symptoms of MERS on February 5 and died three days later. WHO said she had no reported contact with animals prior to falling ill. From September 2012 to date, WHO has been informed of a total of 186 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV globally, including 81 deaths. Based on the current situation and available information, WHO urged all Member-States to continue their surveillance for Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARI) and carefully review any unusual patterns. WHO stressed that recent travelers returning from the Middle East who develop SARI should be tested for MERS-CoV as advised in the current surveillance recommendations. "WHO does not advise special screening at points of entry with regard to this event nor does it currently recommend the application of any travel or trade restrictions," the press release read.

.....

Related articles

• Saudi Arabia reports one more death from new virus
• Saudi Arabia reports 1 more death from new virus
• Saudi Arabia reports 1 more death from new virus
• ` Saudi Arabia ` SAR's Deaths ' now reach a total of `63 ' with `150 ' having been infected in the Kingdom since 2012′

Hong Kong reports first H7N9 death

by Staff Writers
Hong Kong (AFP) Dec 26, 2013

A Hong Kong man infected with the H7N9 strain of bird flu died on Thursday, the first such death in the city since the virus emerged there this month.
The 80-year-old man was the second reported case of H7N9 infection in Hong Kong after one reported on December 2.
A government spokesman confirmed the death of the man, who had been suffering from other underlying medical conditions.
He had been taken to hospital after returning to Hong Kong from the neighbouring city of Shenzhen in mainland China, where he lives.
Hong Kong officials have stepped up border checks and traced hundreds who had been in contact with the two people infected.
Read More Here


.....

Man dies from H7N9 in Hong Kong

H7N9

Photo: EPA

A Hong Kong man infected with the H7N9 strain of bird flu died on Thursday, the first such death in the city since the virus emerged there this month. The 80-year-old man was the second reported case of H7N9 infection in Hong Kong after one reported on December 2.

A government spokesman confirmed the death of the man, who had been suffering from other underlying medical conditions.

He had been taken to hospital after returning to Hong Kong from the neighbouring city of Shenzhen in mainland China, where he lives.

Hong Kong officials have stepped up border checks and traced hundreds who had been in contact with the two people infected.

The first case involved a 36-year-old Indonesian domestic helper who also had a history of travelling to Shenzhen.

Health officials had expected human cases of avian influenza in low winter temperatures, given the number of cases in mainland China.

In all, 138 human cases of H7N9 have been reported in mainland China since February with 45 deaths, according to the World Health Organisation.

Hong Kong is especially alert to the spread of viruses after an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome swept through the city in 2003, killing 299 people and infecting around 1,800.

Voice of Russia, AFP

.....

Related articles

• Hong Kong reports first H7N9 death; officials step up border checks
• Hong Kong Reports First H7N9 Death
• Man dies from H7N9 in Hong Kong
• Hong Kong reports first H7N9 death
• Hong Kong reports first H7N9 death
• Hong Kong quarantines 19 people over second bird flu case
• Hong Kong confirms first human case of H7N9 bird flu: report
• Hong Kong confirms first death from H7N9 bird flu
• Hong Kong confirms first death from H7N9 bird flu

Blood study suggests camels could be MERS-CoV carriers

Earth Watch Report  -  Biological Hazards

Image Source  :  Wikimedia.org
Author kallerna


Image Source  :  Wikimedia.org
Author kallerna
...

Lisa Schnirring | Staff Writer | CIDRAP News

Aug 08, 2013
A WHO spokesman said the findings in camels provide clues, but the issue of how humans are being infected is still unresolved.
Researchers who conducted blood tests on animals from different regions found evidence that camels have been exposed to the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) or a very close relative, the outbreak's first strong clue about a possible animal reservoir.
Until now, the only animal clue has been from genetic sequencing studies, which suggested the virus came from bats. Though there are no reports that any of the patients had contact with bats, a man from the United Arab Emirates who was treated for his fatal infection in Germany had been exposed to a sick racing camel.
The investigators, mostly from the Netherlands and Germany, reported their findings today in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.
The first MERS-CoV illness was reported a year ago, and so far 94 cases and 46 deaths have been confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO), all of them from or linked to Middle Eastern countries.
Human-to-human infections have been rare, and health officials suspect that an animal reservoir could be playing a yet unknown key role in the spread of the new virus.
The research team obtained 349 blood serum samples from livestock animals including dromedary camels, cows, sheep, goats, and other animals closely related to dromedaries. The animals were from different areas, including Oman, the Netherlands, Spain, and Chile.
They analyzed the blood samples for antibodies to MERS-CoV, other antibodies that react to SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) coronavirus, and HCoV-OC43, another strain of coronavirus that can infect humans and is related to a bovine form of the virus.
No cross-reactivity was seen between MERS-CoV antibodies and those for SARS or HCoV-OC43, and the team confirmed those findings with highly specific virus neutralization tests. Presence of MERS-CoV antibodies probably shows previous infection with MERS-CoV, or a closely related virus, the group reported.
No MERS-CoV antibodies were found in the blood of 160 animals from the Netherlands and Spain, but evidence of earlier exposure to the virus was found in all 50 samples taken from dromedary camels in Oman. Sampling in Oman involved camels from different parts of the country, suggesting that MERS-CoV or a close relative is circulating widely in the region's dromedary camels, the authors reported.
No antibodies were found in animals from the Netherlands and Chile that are closely related to dromedaries, such as Bactrian camels, alpacas, and llamas.
Lower levels of MERS-CoV antibodies were found in 14% (15) of samples taken from two herds of dromedaries from the Canary Islands, a Spanish island group located off the coast of mainland Africa that has not reported any human MERS-CoV cases.
The authors said in a journal press release that the dromedaries from Oman were positive more often and had much higher antibody MERS-CoV antibody levels than the ones from Spain. "The best way to explain this is that there is a MERS-CoV-like virus circulating in dromedary camels, but that the behavior of this virus in the Middle East is somehow different to that in Spain," they noted.
The findings suggest dromedary camels may be one reservoir for MERS-CoV and that their popularity in the Middle East, where they are used for racing, meat, and milk, presents a variety of contacts with humans that could lead to virus transmission, the investigators said in the press release.


Read More Here

Related articles

• Signs of MERS coronavirus found in dromedary camels
• Are camels the source of the Mers virus?
• Signs Of MERS Found In Camels
• Study: Arabian camel may be MERS virus host
• MERS virus could be linked to camels
• Camels linked to spread of Sars-like coronavirus
• Dromedary camels can be source of deadly coronavirus
• News in Brief: Camels implicated as possible hosts of MERS virus
• Camels May Transmit New Middle Eastern Virus
• Camels May Be Link to Deadly MERS Virus

Epidemic Hazard - United Arab Emirates Capital City, Abu Dhabi : Health officials in Abu Dhabi have confirmed that an 82-year-old Emirati has been diagnosed with the SARS-type coronovirus.

Earth Watch Report  -  Epidemic Hazards

....

12.07.2013

Biological Hazard

United Arab Emirates

Capital City, Abu Dhabi

....

Biological Hazard in United Arab Emirates on Friday, 12 July, 2013 at 19:14 (07:14 PM) UTC.

Description
Health officials in Abu Dhabi have confirmed that an 82-year-old Emirati has been diagnosed with the SARS-type coronovirus. The elderly man was diagnosed while being treated in one of the hospitals in the UAE capital. It represents the first diagnosed case of the disease within UAE, news agency WAM reported. The patient is male with multiple myeloma and currently admitted in the ICU, the Health Authority in Abu Dhabi (HAAD) confirmed. It added that it is coordinating with the Ministry of Health and other authorities in the country and has taken the necessary measures as per the international standards and recommendations of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Biohazard name:	MERS-CoV (novel coronavirus)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

....

First SARS-type virus case confirmed in the UAE

By Andy Sambidge

• Friday, 12 July 2013 10:46 AM

Health officials in Abu Dhabi have confirmed that an 82-year-old Emirati has been diagnosed with the SARS-type coronovirus.


The elderly man was diagnosed while being treated in one of the hospitals in the UAE capital. It represents the first diagnosed case of the disease within UAE, news agency WAM reported.
The patient is male with multiple myeloma and currently admitted in the ICU, the Health Authority in Abu Dhabi (HAAD) confirmed.
It added that it is coordinating with the Ministry of Health and other authorities in the country and has taken the necessary measures as per the international standards and recommendations of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The Ministry of Health said that WHO first issued an international alert in September 2012 and a total of 80 cases of MERS-CoV have been confirmed worldwide.


Read More  Here
....

Related articles

• UAE citizen diagnosed with coronavirus
• UAE Health Authorities Confirm First Case of MERS Virus Infection in the Country
• Biological Hazard - Middle-East - United Arab Emirates
• Emirati man diagnosed with Sars-like virus
• UAE announces first case of MERS-virus infection
• Epidemic Hazard - Saudi Arabia, MultiProvinces, [Provinces of Eastern and Al-Qassim]
• Epidemic Hazard - Saudi Arabia, MultiProvinces, [Provinces of Eastern and Al-Qassim] UPDATE : victims from the new SARS virus have reached 25. Another 39 cases confirmed and 1300 suspected cases reported

Epidemic Hazard - United Kingdom, Capital City, London [St Thomas Hospital] UPDATE

Earth Watch Report  -  Epidemic Hazards

Image Source
....

05.07.2013

Epidemic Hazard

United Kingdom

Capital City, London [St Thomas Hospital]

....

Epidemic Hazard in United Kingdom on Thursday, 04 July, 2013 at 12:36 (12:36 PM) UTC.

Description
A man infected with a Sars-like respiratory illness has died in London, officials say. The Qatari man, who was being treated in an intensive care unit at St Thomas's hospital in central London, had contracted the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus - or Mers-CoV. Hospital officials said the man, who was 49 when he was admitted, died after his condition deteriorated. The patient, who was suffering from acute respiratory syndrome and renal failure, was admitted to an intensive care unit in Doha, Qatar, on 7 September last year. The man, who has not been named by officials, was transferred to the UK by air ambulance on 11 September. Before he became ill he had travelled to Saudi Arabia, officials said. Despite doctors' efforts to keep him alive, including connecting him to an artificial lung, he died on Friday last week. A hospital spokeswoman said: "Guy's and St Thomas's can confirm that the patient with severe respiratory illness due to novel coronavirus ... sadly died on Friday 28 June, after his condition deteriorated despite every effort and full supportive treatment."
Biohazard name:	Mers-CoV (SARS-like virus)
Biohazard level:	4/4 Hazardous
Biohazard desc.:	Viruses and bacteria that cause severe to fatal disease in humans, and for which vaccines or other treatments are not available, such as Bolivian and Argentine hemorrhagic fevers, H5N1(bird flu), Dengue hemorrhagic fever, Marburg virus, Ebola virus, hantaviruses, Lassa fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, and other hemorrhagic or unidentified diseases. When dealing with biological hazards at this level the use of a Hazmat suit and a self-contained oxygen supply is mandatory. The entrance and exit of a Level Four biolab will contain multiple showers, a vacuum room, an ultraviolet light room, autonomous detection system, and other safety precautions designed to destroy all traces of the biohazard. Multiple airlocks are employed and are electronically secured to prevent both doors opening at the same time. All air and water service going to and coming from a Biosafety Level 4 (P4) lab will undergo similar decontamination procedures to eliminate the possibility of an accidental release.
Symptoms:
Status:	confirmed

....

Epidemic Hazard in United Kingdom on Thursday, 04 July, 2013 at 12:36 (12:36 PM) UTC.

Back

Updated:	Friday, 05 July, 2013 at 03:17 UTC
Description
A Qatari man has died in a British hospital from the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome virus which has been causing increasing alarm among world health experts, officials said. The death brings to 43 the number of people to date who have died from the SARS-like infection, which has an extremely high mortality rate. The unnamed 49-year-old man had been in a London hospital since September 2012 receiving treatment for acute symptoms from the virus, having earlier been airlifted from the Qatari capital Doha. The man had previously traveled to Saudi Arabia where the majority of cases have been concentrated. He died last week after his condition sharply deteriorated, a spokeswoman for Guy's and St Thomas' hospital said. MERS is a member of the coronavirus family, which includes the pathogen that causes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The World Health Organization (WHO) said on June 26 that 77 laboratory-confirmed cases had surfaced worldwide with 40 deaths. Saudi Arabia announced two further deaths on Wednesday.

....

The Telegraph

Middle East virus claims third life as fears of pandemic spread

A man being treated in a London hospital for a lethal 'Sars-like' Middle Eastern virus has died.

The patient had severe respiratory illness due to novel coronavirus (MERS-nCV) Photo: Health Protection Agency/AP

 

 

By Harriet Alexander

7:24PM BST 03 Jul 2013

 

The man, a Qatari national, had been admitted to a private clinic in London in September, before being transferred to the specialist centre at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital.

He was diagnosed as suffering from the Mers virus – Middle East Respiratory Syndrome – which has affected 77 people worldwide, with 43 deaths.

"Guy's and St Thomas' can confirm that the patient with severe respiratory illness due to novel coronavirus (MERS-nCV) sadly died on Friday 28 June, after his condition deteriorated, despite every effort and full supportive treatment," said Robin Wilkinson, a spokesman for the hospital.

The death of the Qatari man brings to three the number of victims who have died in the UK.

In February two members of the same family died from the virus. One, a 39-year-old man, died in Birmingham having picked up the virus from his father, who had recently travelled to Saudi Arabia. The father then died around a month later in Manchester's Wythenshaw hospital. A female relative was also treated for mild Mers symptoms, raising fears of human-to-human contact.

The disease is spread by people coughing or sneezing and can cause breathing difficulties, lung damage and pneumonia.
Known cases of the illness have quadrupled since April, and it is deadlier than Sars, which killed 774 people in 2003. SARS killed one in ten affected people; Mers has proved fatal in 65 per cent of cases.


Read More  Here


....

Related articles

• Qatari patient dies from MERS-CoV at London's St Thomas' Hospital, brings global death count to 43
• UK: A third death from MERS
• Man in Britain dies of Sars-like respiratory illness
• London man dies of MERS-CoV virus: fourth death reported in two days, Pandemic Fears rise
• New coronavirus not spreading like SARS, so far
• Middle Eastern 'Sars' kills man in UK hospital
• Coronavirus: Third person dies in Britain from deadly Sars-like virus
• Man with Sars-like illness dies
• UK Reports Third Death From Middle East Virus
• Study finds MERS virus has not yet reached pandemic potential