Doctor may have brought MERS into Canada
Canada has yet to confirm its first case of MERS. Officials have not
issued any warnings, but Foreign Affairs does advise travellers who come
down with flu-like symptoms within two weeks of returning to Canada
from the Middle East to seek immediate medical attention.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has posted
advisories at more than 20 American airports to alert travelers about
the virus.
The MERS virus is in the same family as SARS and likely originated in
camels. It’s not yet known how the disease is spread, but it’s proven
fatal in about one-third of cases.
A doctor may have brought Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) to
Canada after it’s believed he was exposed to the virus from a patient in
Florida, according to reports citing U.S. health officials.
According to reports, the doctor is apparently not showing symptoms
of MERS, and health officials have not revealed where the physician is
right now.
The doctor is one of about 100 people who may have come into contact with a patient in Orlando who has a confirmed case of MERS.
Hospital officials said he travelled to Canada before he knew he
might be at risk. They said he’s taking the proper precautions and will
undergo testing.
“It all happened before the proper isolation precautions were
initiated,” a health official at the Dr. P. Phillips Hospital in Orlando
said on Tuesday.
Two health workers in Orlando were taken to the emergency room with
flu-like symptoms after having been in contact with a patient confirmed
to have MERS.
This is the first known possible exposure in Canada, but Sunnybrook
Health Sciences Centre microbiologist Dr. Mary Vearncombe told the CBC
she believes MERS is heading to Canada.
Canada has yet to confirm its first case of MERS. Officials have not
issued any warnings, but Foreign Affairs does advise travellers who come
down with flu-like symptoms within two weeks of returning to Canada
from the Middle East to seek immediate medical attention.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has posted
advisories at more than 20 American airports to alert travelers about
the virus.
The MERS virus is in the same family as SARS and likely originated in
camels. It’s not yet known how the disease is spread, but it’s proven
fatal in about one-third of cases.
A doctor may have brought Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) to
Canada after it’s believed he was exposed to the virus from a patient in
Florida, according to reports citing U.S. health officials.
According to reports, the doctor is apparently not showing symptoms
of MERS, and health officials have not revealed where the physician is
right now.
The doctor is one of about 100 people who may have come into contact with a patient in Orlando who has a confirmed case of MERS.
Hospital officials said he travelled to Canada before he knew he
might be at risk. They said he’s taking the proper precautions and will
undergo testing.
“It all happened before the proper isolation precautions were
initiated,” a health official at the Dr. P. Phillips Hospital in Orlando
said on Tuesday.
Two health workers in Orlando were taken to the emergency room with
flu-like symptoms after having been in contact with a patient confirmed
to have MERS.
This is the first known possible exposure in Canada, but Sunnybrook
Health Sciences Centre microbiologist Dr. Mary Vearncombe told the CBC
she believes MERS is heading to Canada.
