MERS (Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome) is a respiratory illness that first was reported in the Arabian Peninsula in 2012. MERS is caused by a Corona virus and causes a potentially fatal respiratory illness that may include cough, fever, and shortness of breath. In May 2015, there has been an outbreak in South Korea, and this has been the largest outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outside of the Arabian Peninsula. The Korean outbreak is believed to be from a Korean businessman who returned from Saudia Arabia in May 2015 and then was spread primarily from contacts in health facilities that were visited by infected individuals. After MERS was first reported in 2014, there have been 2 cases reported in the United States and both were in 2014, with one case reported in Florida and another in Indiana. So, with a previous case last year reported in our neighboring state of Indiana, should the residents of Central Ohio be concerned that MERS will be here soon?

The Federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website apparently believes that the risk must be low because the CDC states, “CDC does not recommend that Americans change their travel plans to the Republic of Korea or other countries because of MERS.”  The LA Times presents information obtained from Health officials and states,  “Despite the anxiety about MERS, health experts say, Americans are unlikely to contract the illness, even if they’re traveling to South Korea. All infections so far have been associated with healthcare facilities visited by the original infected patient and haven’t spread to the outside community. Plus, numbers of new cases appear to be peaking.” The LA Times included very strong statements from Laurene Mascola, who is the Chief of the Acute Communicable Disease Control Program for the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.  According to the LA Times, she said, “”You’re not going to get it,” and “”Go about your business. Eat Korean food. Visit Korea.” If these statements are true for Los Angeles, we hope that MERS will not become a problem in Central Ohio.

For more information:

http://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/mers/

http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/watch/mers-republic-of-korea

http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-mers-jitters-20150615-story.html

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/826889

http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=8632457