Asians need to keep guard against MERS: WHO
Iran Press TV
Thu Jul 10, 2014 12:43PM GMT
The World Health Organization (WHO) has called on Asian countries to remain vigilant regarding the spread of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome or MERS, although the virus is unlikely to spread to the region.
The WHO's director for communicable diseases in the Western Pacific, Mark Jacobs, told reporters on Thursday that those Asians who plan to visit Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj Pilgrimage in October should take precautions.
He said that MERS appears to be less infectious than originally thought even though it has already killed 294 people in the country, adding the relatives of those infected have not been showing any signs of catching it.
However, Mark Jacobs advised that pilgrims be careful about proper hygiene and staying away from people exhibiting symptoms like coughing.
The warning comes as the Philippines and Malaysia have both reported cases of patients who caught the virus after travelling to Saudi Arabia.
Last week, the Philippines called on its Muslim population to hold back plans to join this year's Hajj Pilgrimage until the threat from the virus has dissipated.
'A spread in our part of the world is small,' Jacobs told reporters.
MERS was discovered in September 2012 in a Qatari man who had traveled to Saudi Arabia.
The virus, which causes coughing, fever and pneumonia, does not appear to be as contagious as its cousin SARS, which killed some 800 people in a 2003 epidemic.
In addition to Saudi Arabia, which is worst hit by the virus, MERS infections have been reported in a number of other countries including France, Germany, Italy, Britain, and the United States.
MOL/AB
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