Two health workers at a hospital in Orlando, Florida, who were exposed to a patient with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome have begun showing flu-like symptoms, and one of the two has been hospitalized.
Officials at the Dr. P. Phillips Hospital said on Tuesday the two healthcare workers were exposed to the patient - the second confirmed case of MERS on U.S. soil - in the emergency department before it became clear that he might be infected with the virus, which is often deadly.
The second healthcare worker is being isolated in his home and watched for signs of infection.
Hospital and local health officials said at a press conference that the MERS patient, also a healthcare worker, had made a visit last week to the Orlando Regional Medical Center to accompany another person who was having a medical procedure. The MERS patient was symptomatic at the time, but did not seek treatment.
Five healthcare workers from the regional medical center and another 15 from the Dr. P. Phillips Hospital are being tested for MERS, including the two patients who have developed symptoms.
Hospital officials said they are awaiting test results to determine whether any of the exposed hospital workers have MERS.
link.
Saudi health authorities announced Tuesday five new deaths from MERS, raising the total death toll in the country worst-hit by the mysterious coronavirus to 152 since it appeared in 2012.
Meanwhile, four new infections by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome have been registered, raising the total of cases to 495, the health ministry said.
The ministry added that six patients who had been infected by the SARS-like virus have been cured.
The new deaths occurred on Monday, with one patient dying in Riyadh and the remaining four in the commercial capital Jeddah.
link.
No comments:
Post a Comment