Media Briefing:Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus

(MERS-CoV)

Disease Control DivisionMinistry of Health Malaysia

5 July 2013

Media & MERS-CoV:What Is Your Role?

• Keeping the community informed about MERS-CoV, through sustained engagement with the Ministry of Health (MOH) Malaysia

• Media’s social obligation to the public in providing verified information from the identified MOH sources

Overview of MERS-CoV:• New strain of coronavirus that has not been seen in humans

before

• Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illness in humans and animals

• SARS-CoV (2003) is distantly related to MERS-CoV

• UNKNOWN:– Source of infection?– Mechanism of transmission?– Widespread of infection?– Clinical pattern and course of the disease?

• Presenting symptoms: acute, severe respiratory illness

• No specific treatment for the disease and should be based on the patient’s symptoms

• No vaccine is currently available

MERS-CoV Cases and Deaths: April 2012 – June 2013

Countries Cases (Deaths)

France 2 (1)

Italy 3 (0)

Jordan 2 (2)

Qatar 2 (0)

Saudi Arabia 62 (34)

Tunisia 2 (0)

United Kingdom (UK) 3 (2)

United Arab Emirates (UAE) 1 (1)

TOTAL 77 (40)

WHO does not recommend any travel or trade restrictions with respect to MERS-CoV

Malaysia & MERS-CoV: The Preparedness Activities

• Dissemination of information to the public and the healthcare community

• Management of Malaysian hajj / umrah pilgrims

• Screening of travellers and flight crews at the international points of entry

• Surveillance of respiratory illness i.e. clinical-based and laboratory based surveillance

• Management of respiratory illness Clinical management of the patients Laboratory management of the clinical samples

“The future of humanity and microbs likely will unfold as episodes of a suspense thriller that

could be titled Our Wits Versus Their Genes”

Dr. Joshua Lederberg

˜ THANK YOU ˜