MERS spreads to Italy, kills 3 more in Saudi Arabia

Little is known about the SARS-like Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, but more than half of the reported cases have been fatal.

By Victoria Taylor / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Sunday, June 2, 2013, 10:03 PM


CNN

There have been at least 38 cases of the MERS virus in Saudi Arabia and 24 of them have been deadly.


The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) continues to spread.
Health officials in Saudi Arabia have confirmed that three more people had died from the virus, ABC News reported. At least 38 cases have been reported in the country, and 24 of them have been fatal.
RELATED: MERS DEATH TOLL RISES TO 30
On Saturday, three new infections were confirmed in Italy.
MERS had already been reported in Europe, but a 45-year-old man who recently traveled to Jordan was Italy's first resident sickened by the virus. A two-year-old girl and a 42-year-old woman, both of whom were in close contact with the man, also fell ill. All three were in stable condition as of Sunday, according to the World Health Organization.
RELATED: WHO SOUNDS ALARM OVER MIDDLE EASTERN VIRUS
Little is known about the rapidly-spreading viral respiratory illness, which first appeared in 2012. Before the recent Saudi cases, WHO was notified of at least 50 people instances of MERS, 30 of which were fatal.
In addition to the recent one in Italy, clusters have been confirmed in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Germany, France, Tunisia and the United Kingdom.
RELATED: DEADLY NEW SARS-LIKE VIRUS CONFIRMED IN FRANCE
The cases in Europe and Africa were still connected to the Middle East, as those people affected had recently traveled to the area or had close contact with someone who had, WHO said.
The head of WHO recently called the virus a "threat to the entire world."
"Looking at the overall global situation, my greatest concern right now is the novel coronavirus," Dr. Margaret Chan said at a conference in Geneva on May 27. "We understand too little about this virus when viewed against the magnitude of its potential threat. Any new disease that is emerging faster than our understanding is never under control."
MERS isn't believed to be as early transmitted as SARS, which killed 774 people and sickened thousands about 10 years ago. However, both are coronaviruses.

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