In late September, three people in the Middle East (2 from Saudi Arabia, 1 from Qatar) were diagnosed with a new SARS-like virus. One of the Saudis died, the Qatari man is still in serious condition in a London hospital, reportedly in isolation on an artificial lung, receiving blood and oxygen around the clock. The second Saudi man has now recovered.
According to the Health Protection Agency in London, England, “a small number of other cases” were also being investigated as possibly related to this new strain of virus. Other reports from Saudi Arabia revealed that a 4th man from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia was also treated for the virus.
You may remember the SARS outbreak that started in China back in 2003 that killed 916 people, mostly in Asia. With these 3 new cases, it was feared by World Health Organization officials that the former SARS virus might be on the rise again. An alert was issued but it was learned that this new virus didn’t appear to spread between humans very easily and was thought to be less contagious. Here’s what’s known at this time about the new SARS-like virus.
What is SARS Virus and How Does it Affect You?
The family of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) viruses is from the same family that causes the common cold – coronaviruses. Discovered in the 1960’s, these viruses create an upper respiratory infection in both humans and animals. They are fairly fragile viruses, however, and only survive outside the body for about 24 hours. They can be easily destroyed with cleaning agents and detergents. It is thought that the previous SARS viruses, and the new SARS-like strain of virus, are mutations of existing coronaviruses circulating in animals or birds. At this time, though, it is not known where they came from.
The symptoms for the SARS-like coronaviruses are similar to pneumonia – fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulty – but much more severe. The incubation period for SARS is about 7 days and treatment has been acute respiratory support. It was confirmed that the Qatari man treated in London, had traveled to Saudi Arabia a month earlier, which may account for the source of his illness.
At this time there is very little known about how the small number of people contracted the same virus – whether they came in contact with each other or some other person is unknown. Health officials are not quite sure at this time whether these cases represent the early beginnings of a new outbreak, or if the virus may be more widespread already but causing milder, less contagious symptoms. Presently, there is no vaccine for this particular virus.
What You Can Do To Protect Yourself
Unless additional cases of the new SARS-like virus start to crop up in Europe or the United States, it’s a fairly safe bet that you won’t contract this new strain of SARS-like virus. However, many people from the United States and Europe travel to the Middle East on a regular basis for business and religious reasons. As such, you may want to take more precautions to protect yourself.
As with most coronaviruses, wash your hands often especially after being out in public places and touching things that other people have handled. You may not want to go as far as wearing a surgical mask out in public, but it would help block any viruses from getting into your respiratory system.
Keep in mind that airports and airplanes can be potent sources of getting many upper respiratory infections like the flu and/or common cold. At this time, you would be far more likely to get more common illnesses through travel than the new SARS-like virus. Since health officials don’t really know yet how the new SARS virus is transmitted, being very aware of your environment, people around you, as well as personal and public hygiene are very important.
Similarly, if you are hosting visitors who have recently traveled to Saudi Arabia, you may want to inquire whether they have any upper respiratory symptoms, are running a fever, or if they had been around people in that region recently who have.
My Recommendations
Respiratory viruses can cause pandemics and this particular virus has already been shown to cause serious, and fatal, illness. The former research teams that fought the 2003 SARS virus have rejoined in research to determine information about the new SARS-like virus. They are trying to determine whether the known cases are isolated events or if they are somehow related to one another.
As noted earlier, the good news is that this virus does not appear to spread quickly between humans. More good news is that researchers have already learned the virus’ DNA genetic makeup. This information is invaluable in developing a vaccine, and/or treatment drugs, should this virus become a more widespread problem.
Even if you are visiting the Middle East soon, I feel your likelihood of getting this strain of coronavirus is very slim. That said, being proactive and staying on guard with your usual hygiene practices against viruses – washing hands frequently, staying away from people who show signs of fever or cough – can help assure that you’ll stay healthy.
Stay Well,
Mark Rosenberg, M.D.
Natural Health News
Saudis confirm third case of newly discovered SARS-like virus, http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/04/us-coronavirus-saudi-idUSBRE8A30EH20121104
What is the SARS-like coronavirus and how worried should we be? http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/sep/24/sars-coronavirus
