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| Second case of MERS surfaces in the U.S. | Second case of MERS surfaces in the U.S. |
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| A second case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome has emerged in the United States, infecting another U.S. resident who was serving as a health-care worker in Saudi Arabia and imported the virus, health officials said Monday. | A second case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome has emerged in the United States, infecting another U.S. resident who was serving as a health-care worker in Saudi Arabia and imported the virus, health officials said Monday. |
| The man has been hospitalized in the Orlando area, where he showed up at a hospital with symptoms of the virus on May 8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Thomas Frieden confirmed the presence of the MERS virus Sunday night. | |
| The person traveled by plane beginning May 1 from Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, to London, then on to Boston, Atlanta and Orlando. The patient began to feel ill on the way to London. U.S. health officials are attempting to contact more than 500 people who may have been exposed to the patient along the route here, and international authorities are doing the same overseas. | |
| Nevertheless, officials said that the virus does not appear to be transmitted by casual contact with people who are infected — rather, it seems to require close contact for transmission, Frieden said. | |
| “Our experience with MERS so far suggests that the risk to the general public is extremely low,” he said. | |
| MERS comes from the same family, coronavirus, as the one that caused Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS, which killed almost 800 people worldwide in 2003. MERS has been confirmed in 538 people in at least 12 countries, causing 145 deaths. Saudi Arabia alone has seen 450 cases and 112 deaths. | |
| The new patient was visiting family in Orlando and did not go to theme parks in the area, said John H. Armstrong, Florida’s secretary of health. | The new patient was visiting family in Orlando and did not go to theme parks in the area, said John H. Armstrong, Florida’s secretary of health. |
| Monday’s announcement comes just days after a man who was the first confirmed U.S. case of MERS was released from an Indiana hospital Friday, after health officials said he is no longer symptomatic, has tested negative for the virus and poses no threat to the community. | Monday’s announcement comes just days after a man who was the first confirmed U.S. case of MERS was released from an Indiana hospital Friday, after health officials said he is no longer symptomatic, has tested negative for the virus and poses no threat to the community. |
| That man, a U.S. citizen and health-care worker who had been living and working in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, flew to Indiana late last month to visit family. The hospital where he worked in Saudi Arabia had treated some MERS cases, health officials said. | That man, a U.S. citizen and health-care worker who had been living and working in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, flew to Indiana late last month to visit family. The hospital where he worked in Saudi Arabia had treated some MERS cases, health officials said. |
| The man flew from Riyadh through London to Chicago on April 24 before boarding a bus to the Highland, Ind., area and went to Community Hospital in Munster, Ind., on April 28 after becoming sick. He was kept in isolation until he recovered. | |
| Authorities contacted most of the passengers on the flights and the bus, and none are symptomatic, according to the Indiana health department. So far there has been no clear evidence that the virus can be transmitted by casual contact. | Authorities contacted most of the passengers on the flights and the bus, and none are symptomatic, according to the Indiana health department. So far there has been no clear evidence that the virus can be transmitted by casual contact. |
| Hospital staff who had direct contact with the patient are still off duty and remain in temporary isolation in their homes until lab results confirm they are not infected. | Hospital staff who had direct contact with the patient are still off duty and remain in temporary isolation in their homes until lab results confirm they are not infected. |
| On Sunday, Saudi Arabia said people who handle camels should wear masks and gloves to prevent spreading the virus, issuing that warning for the first time as cases of the potentially fatal virus neared 500 in the kingdom. | On Sunday, Saudi Arabia said people who handle camels should wear masks and gloves to prevent spreading the virus, issuing that warning for the first time as cases of the potentially fatal virus neared 500 in the kingdom. |
| Health experts say camels are the most likely animal source of infection for the disease. The Saudi Health Ministry said on Sunday that three more people had caught the virus and four had died from MERS. | |
| The CDC has tested well over 100 suspected cases of MERS in the United States since the outbreak began overseas, said Tom Skinner, a spokesman for the health agency. | The CDC has tested well over 100 suspected cases of MERS in the United States since the outbreak began overseas, said Tom Skinner, a spokesman for the health agency. |
| Related: | Related: |
| First MERS victim has fully recovered | First MERS victim has fully recovered |
| CDC confirms first case of deadly MERS virus in Indiana | CDC confirms first case of deadly MERS virus in Indiana |