MERS coronavirusWIKIMEDIA, NIHSince 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported 1,154 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), including 434 related deaths. The ongoing MERS-CoV outbreak, which originated in Saudi Arabia, is again on the move: the WHO last week (May 30) reported on China’s first confirmed case and today (June 1) announced two additional confirmed cases of MERS-CoV infection in South Korea.
Altogether, there have been 11 confirmed cases in South Korea. The first patient is a 68-year-old man who had traveled to Saudi Arabia and Qatar, among other places, and was asymptomatic upon arrival in South Korea last month. He then visited two separate health-care facilities. All 10 additional patients were in close contact with the first patient or with people who were in close contact with him. “Investigation of the source of infection is ongoing,” the WHO noted in a May 30 statement. “Contact tracing of household contacts and healthcare contacts is ongoing for the cases.”
China’s first MERS patient, a 44-year-old man, is the son of a MERS patient in South Korea. The man traveled to China after having visited with his MERS-infected parent ...
