Middle East Respiratory Syndrome
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome is an infectious disease that has been evolving. Numerous laboratories have confirmed the fatality of this respiratory syndrome with eighty-five percent of the cases have been reported in Saudi Arabia (CDC, 2016). This illness is characterized by high fever, coughs, and dyspnea. In severe cases, it causes acute respiratory distress, organ failure and finally death. Most of such symptomatic infections that have been documented have been seen to have resulted from human-to-human transmission (CDC, 2016). These transmissions can be among healthcare workers, patients in hospitals especially the ones on dialysis and families as well. This respiratory syndrome has been thought to spread through respiratory secretions although the precise mode of spread is not perfectly understood (CDC, 2016).
The World Health Organization got a report from the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health on the increase in the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. Genetic typing suggested that the outbreak was caused by the transmission of a viral subtype that is single. The contact role with surfaces that have been contaminated by respiratory secretions is quite unclear (CDC, 2016). Results have shown that the incubation period is between five to seven days. Incidences of inpatient transmission of the syndrome were substantially very high when there is an outbreak of the syndrome than during other periods when it is not on an outbreak. The incidence rate was quite higher for other nationals than for the Saudi nationals (CDC, 2016). The incidence rate was also higher for older people than younger ones. The part that is unclear is the higher incidence in males than in females though the difference was not very significant. This Middle East Respiratory Syndrome has been reported to be quite dangerous although increased awareness of the disease, strict isolation as well as strict infection control measures has been associated with a rapid decrease in transmission (CDC, 2016)
Reference
CDC, (2016). Emerging infectious diseases. Available at http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/pdfs/vol22no5_pdf-version.pdf
