MERS Infection (Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome)

MERS-CoV (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus), previously known as the Novel Coronavirus or SARS-like virus, is a member of the coronavirus family.

Coronaviruses commonly cause respiratory illness in humans. Coronaviruses are responsible for approximately 1 in every 3 cases of the common cold. MERS is much more deadly than any other coronavirus seen before.

As of 7 May 2014, the World Health Organisation has been informed of a total of 496 laboratory-confirmed cases of MERS infection. The majority of these cases (229) have been in Saudi Arabia.

What are the signs and symptoms of MERS infection?

Not all infected people have symptoms, i.e. some individuals may be infected with MERS-CoV and do not get ill. An infected man in Jordan had no symptoms at all.

Infected patients may have the following signs and symptoms:

• Coughing
• Mucous
• Shortness of breath
• Malaise - a general feeling of being unwell
• Chest pain
• Fever
• Diarrhoea (in some cases)
• Renal (kidney) failure.

Treatment:

There are currently no vaccines or treatments for patients who become ill with MERS

Risks related to MERS-CoV include pneumonia, kidney failure and death.

People who become ill while on a trip should avoid close contact with other people.

Unless you are caring for a person who is sick and infected with MERS-CoV, your risk of contracting the virus is small.

All doctors can do right now is provide supportive medical care to help relieve the symptoms. Supportive care means providing treatment to prevent, control or relieve complications and side effects, as well as attempting to improve the patient's comfort and quality of life. Supportive care (supportive therapy) does not include treating or improving the illness/condition.

Complications:

• Pneumonia
• Kidney failure
• Death - over 60% of infected patients die.

Who are more vulnerable to infections and complications?

The following groups of people are more susceptible to MERS-CoV infections and complications:

• Patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart conditions
• Organ transplant recipients who are on immunosuppressive medications
• Other patients whose immune systems are weak, such as cancer patients undergoing treatment
• Of the over sixty cases of MERS infections confirmed so far, the vast majority have been male (it is too early to confirm that males are more vulnerable than females)

How dangerous is MERS compared to SARS?

• SARS-CoV is more human-transmissible than MERS. However, MERS is more deadly:
• Over 60% of people infected with MERS so far have died SARS had a death rate of approximately 10%.
• Experts have noticed that MERS-CoV is more human-transmissible in hospital settings than originally thought.
• We know very little about MERS - we don't know where it comes from. Experts believe MERS originated from bats. Nobody is quite sure how many people are infected without symptoms. Until scientists know more about this new virus strain, it is difficult to determine whether it is a serious public health threat. According to Margaret Chan, Director General of WHO, "(MERS-CoV) is a threat to the entire world”.

How can I protect myself from MERS infection?

As nobody knows what the source of transmission of MERS is, exactly how people become infected, or its mode of transmission, WHO says it cannot give specific advice on prevention of infection.