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The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (March 11) closely monitoring a total of eight additional cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and Qatar, including one fatal case. The CHP again urged the public to pay special attention to safety during travel, taking due consideration of health risks in the places they visit.
According to the WHO, the seven patients in the KSA are six men and one woman, aged from 24 to 74, with four having underlying illnesses. Among them, one is a healthcare worker who had contact with a previously confirmed case, one owns sheep, goats and cows, while another patient owns and has frequent contact with camels and consumed raw camel milk.
The fatal case in Qatar is a male heavy smoker aged 66 with underlying illnesses. He frequently visited a camel barn he owned in the KSA and had frequent contact with camels and consumed raw camel milk.
To date, 1 652 cases have been reported to the WHO, including at least 591 deaths. Of note, 1 438 were confirmed in nine Middle East countries, including 1 299 in KSA, 78 in the United Arab Emirates, 28 in Jordan, 14 in Qatar, seven in Oman, six in Iran, four in Kuwait, and one each in Lebanon and Yemen.
"Travellers to the Middle East should avoid going to farms, barns or markets with camels, avoid contact with sick persons and animals, especially camels, birds or poultry, and avoid unnecessary visits to healthcare facilities. We strongly advise travel agents organising tours to the Middle East to abstain from arranging camel rides and activities involving direct contact with camels, which are known risk factors for acquiring MERS Coronavirus," a spokesman for the CHP said.
"We will maintain close communication with the WHO and relevant health authorities," the spokesman added.
Travellers to affected areas should maintain vigilance, adopt appropriate health precautions and take heed of personal, food and environmental hygiene. The public may visit the pages below for more information and health advice:
* The CHP's MERS page (www.chp.gov.hk/en/view_content/26511.html);
* MERS statistics in affected areas (www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/distribution_of_mers_cases_en.pdf);
* The MERS page of the DH's Travel Health Service (www.travelhealth.gov.hk/english/popup/popup.html);
* The CHP Facebook Page (www.fb.com/CentreforHealthProtection);
* The CHP YouTube Channel (www.youtube.com/c/ChpGovHkChannel); and
* The WHO's latest news (www.who.int/csr/don/archive/disease/coronavirus_infections/en).
Tour leaders and tour guides operating overseas tours are advised to refer to the CHP's health advice on MERS (www.chp.gov.hk/en/view_content/26551.html).
Ends/Friday, March 11, 2016
Issued at HKT 12:15
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