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Mers virus: US confirms second 'imported' case Mers virus: US confirms second 'imported' case
(about 1 hour later)
Health officials have confirmed a second US case of Mers, a virus which has killed more than 100 people. US health officials have confirmed a second case in the country of Mers, a virus that has killed at least 145 people, mostly in Saudi Arabia.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said the second case had been "imported", meaning a traveller to the US contracted the virus elsewhere. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified the patient as a healthcare worker who travelled from Saudi Arabia to Orlando, Florida.
Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers) is highly lethal and causes symptoms including fever and kidney failure. Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers) causes fever and kidney failure but is not considered highly contagious.
The patient in the first confirmed case has been released from hospital, which says he is "fully recovered". The patient has been isolated in hospital, health officials said.
The latest case occurred in Florida, US health officials said. A press conference is scheduled for Monday afternoon. Mers belongs to the coronavirus family, which includes the common cold and Sars, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, which caused some 800 deaths globally in 2003.
CDC officials said the man in the first US case was a citizen who was travelling to Indiana from Saudi Arabia, where he is a healthcare worker. Health officials say Mers only appears to spread through close contact, but there is no known cure.
He flew to Chicago from Saudi Arabia via London, and took a bus from Chicago to Indiana, where he was admitted to hospital. 'No change' to virus
Saudi Arabia says more than 130 people infected with Mers have died since an outbreak began in 2012. "This is unwelcome but not unexpected news," CDC director Tom Friden told reporters on Monday of the Florida case.
On Sunday, the country urged its citizens to wear masks and gloves when dealing with camels so as to avoid spreading Mers. The Florida patient is not connected to the first confirmed US case, reported two weeks ago in Indiana, although the patients' circumstances are similar.
Mers belongs to the coronavirus family that includes the common cold and Sars, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, which caused some 800 deaths globally in 2003. A healthcare worker who "works and resides" in Saudi Arabia, the Florida patient took a flight on 1 May from Jeddah to London's Heathrow Airport, then continued on to Boston, Atlanta and finally Orlando.
Health officials say it is not highly contagious, only appearing to spread through close contact, but there is no known cure. Health officials said they were contacting passengers on those flights "out of an abundance of caution" and directing them to look out for symptoms which include high fever, cough and shortness of breath.
The first confirmed Mers patient, also a healthcare worker in Saudi Arabia, has been released from hospital and is "fully recovered".
CDC officials said they had found no secondary infections from the Indiana case and genome testing suggested the virus was not changing, despite a growing number of cases reported in Saudi Arabia since March.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 538 Mers cases have been reported worldwide since 2012, with 145 deaths. The vast majority of cases have been found in Saudi Arabia, especially among healthcare workers.
On Sunday, Saudi Arabia urged its citizens to wear masks and gloves when dealing with camels so as to avoid spreading Mers.