RENO - People in Nevada may be interested in the public health implications linked to the first U.S. transmission of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or "MERS."
The virus can spread from person to person but isn't easily transmitted, said Dr. David Swerdlow with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who is leading the agency's response team for the virus.
"There's been no sustained transmission like you see with flu, where it goes from person to person to person," Swerdlow said. "So, at the current time, we are concerned about the virus, we do think that there could be imported cases, but we don't see this as being a major problem in the U.S. with widespread cases."
According to the CDC, the first U.S. transmission happened when an Illinois resident had contact with a person in Indiana, who was infected while traveling in Saudi Arabia. These two cases of MERS are not linked to a third patient in Florida, who had also traveled to Saudi Arabia.
MERS first was reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012. There have been almost 600 confirmed cases in 15 countries, and 173 deaths. Swerdlow said most patients develop respiratory illness with fever, cough and shortness of breath, adding that there is no specific treatment.
"Of course, if a person gets a respiratory illness like this, they can be treated in an intensive-care unit if needed, and sort of the standard things that we do for patients with respiratory illness," he said. "But there's no specific treatment, like an anti-viral."
The CDC advises health-care workers traveling to the Arabian Peninsula to follow guidelines for infection control, and for other travelers to take precautions to protect their health. As with any respiratory illness, Swerdlow said that means frequent hand-washing, covering coughs and sneezes, and avoiding contact with those who are sick.
More information on MERS is online at cdc.gov.[[In-content Ad]]
