The new virus is not the same as SARS, but similar to it and also to other coronaviruses found in bats. (Reuters)
Posted on 05/02/2013 8:56:45 PM PDT by null and void
The new virus is not the same as SARS, but similar to it and also to other coronaviruses found in bats. (Reuters)
Saudi Arabia said five more people have died of a deadly new virus from the same family as SARS, and two other people were in intensive care.
The seven cases were discovered in al-Ahsa governorate in the Eastern Province, the Saudi news agency SPA quoted the Saudi Health Ministry as saying in a statement late on Wednesday.
A Saudi man died in March from the virus.
The novel coronavirus (NCoV) is from the same family of viruses as those that cause common colds and the one that caused the deadly outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that first emerged in Asia in 2003.
The new virus is not the same as SARS, but similar to it and also to other coronaviruses found in bats. It was unknown in humans until it emerged in the Middle East last year. There have been confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Britain.
Research by scientists in Europe has found that NCoV is well adapted to infecting humans and may be treatable with medicines similar to the ones used for SARS, which killed a tenth of the 8,000 people it infected.
In a March 26 update on its website the World Health Organization (WHO) said it had been informed of a global total of 17 confirmed cases of human infection with NCoV, including 11 deaths.
The Geneva-based WHO said it was monitoring the situation closely and urged its member states to continue surveillance for severe acute respiratory infections and to carefully review any unusual patterns.
“WHO is currently working with international experts and countries where cases have been reported to assess the situation and review recommendations for surveillance and monitoring,” it said, adding that national authorities should “promptly assess and notify” it of any new NCoV cases.
Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.
The purpose of the “Bring Out Your Dead” ping list (formerly the “Ebola” ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.
So far the false positive rate is 100%.
At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the “Bring Out Your Dead” threads will miss the beginning entirely.
*sigh* Such is life, and death...
Ah, yes, the deadly side of the coronavirus family.
One of these days it’s going to be “bring out your dead” for real.
And the Muslims are going to be behind it.
If it’s a worldwide scourge then nature is more likely to be behind it.
Call me after the rest of Saudi Arabia is dead.
I’ll throw a party with Bacon Vodka.
Thanks for posting this, null and void!
LucyT, MestaMachine
Ping to the story!
First China, then Arabia...
and to think that in our parents / grandparents day, there was such a thing as quarantine for I.ternational arrivals....
Just keep it within the borders of SA.
Call it Muslim AIDS.
YES!
How insensative and INTOLERANT, eh?
We're all going to die from POLITICAL CORRECTNESS!!
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