Medical scientists are confronting alarming situations due to sudden outbreaks of newly reported diseases like Ebola virus infection and the Middle East respiratory syndrome with dangerous morbidity and mortality rates. Despite enormous progress and success in medical science, scientists face new health-related challenges like MERS. We have become successful in controlling many infectious problems but still, many problems urge scientists to focus their directions on them.
History of MERS
The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is the virus that causes the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). After the first case of MERS was documented in Saudi Arabia in 2012, it was believed that the illness was endemic to the country and that camel infections were the source of its transmission. In July 2012, the first recorded fatality in Saudi Arabia was also attributed to this ailment. However, it quickly turned into a pandemic, with instances being reported in London, France, Italy, and Abu Dhabi, among other places. In July 2013, the first MERS-related fatality in Abu Dhabi was recorded (one year after in Saudi Arabia). Till September 2013, a total of 45 deaths have been reported from confirmed cases. Out of these 38 deaths have occurred in Saudi Arabia.
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Mode of Transmission
In addition to being passed from person to person through intimate contact, the virus has also been known to infect medical professionals.
Recent Challenges
There were widespread reports of a new pandemic of this illness in the final week of May and the first week of June 2015. Twelve instances involving individuals who returned from Saudi Arabia have been recorded in Korea, and these patients are being monitored. There have also been reports of more exposure to Chinese individuals among the citizens who have just returned from Korea. The Chinese government is looking for passengers who were in close vicinity to the sick individual to keep them under monitoring and restrict the disease’s spread, as close contact with an infected person is how this illness is transferred.
Matter of Concern for the Government of Pakistan
We should take care of the virus since there is a chance that it will infect Pakistan due to the large number of people working in the Middle East and the number of people present in China for work and other activities.
In the broad interest of the public, checkpoints at seaports and airports ought to be established to identify any suspicious instances. We need to raise public awareness and prevent MERS from entering Pakistan. Since the virus has a stronger tendency to impact healthcare professionals who have close patient contact and may be negligent or take fewer precautions, we should educate our staff about the present pandemic problem, and its preventive methods.
