Middle East coronavirus outbreak reported in Saudi Arabia
Healthcare
Between March 1 and April 21, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health reported nine cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection in humans, two of which were fatal.
In Riyadh, six health and social workers contracted the virus while caring for one infected patient, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The outbreak was identified through contact tracing and testing of infected people. Four of the six health and social workers were asymptomatic, while the other two showed only mild, non-specific symptoms.
The information about mild cases of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, the WHO emphasized, does not change the overall risk assessment, which remains moderate both globally and regionally. The virus continues to pose a threat in countries where it circulates among dromedary camels and can be transmitted to humans.
Middle East respiratory syndrome is an acute infectious respiratory disease caused by a coronavirus. It was first identified in the Middle East in 2012, when a 60-year-old man with pneumonia symptoms died in a hospital in the Saudi city of Jeddah. Postmortem laboratory tests showed that the causative agent of the disease was a previously unknown coronavirus.
Approximately 35 percent of cases of MERS reported to WHO have been fatal.
The World Health Organization recommends that countries implement targeted infection prevention and control measures to prevent the spread of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus.
Also on Tuesday, the WHO reported that large-scale transmission of the disease caused by the chikungunya virus has been recorded in Réunion, a French territory in the Indian Ocean, since August 2024. An increase in infections has also been recorded on the island of Mayotte.
Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease. The disease usually appears 4-8 days after the insect bite. It is characterized by a sudden fever, often accompanied by severe joint pain. The joint pain is often very debilitating; it usually goes away within a few days, but can last for weeks, months, or even years. Other common signs and symptoms of the disease include joint swelling, muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue, and rash.
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