New Case of MERS-CoV in Oman is Reported to WHO

On Jan. 17, 2015, the National IHR Focal Point of Oman notified the World Health Organization (WHO) of one additional case of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection.

Details of the case are as follows:

A 43-year-old male from Dakhelyia Region is a direct contact of a laboratory-confirmed, fatal MERS-CoV case and was identified through contact screening. He was admitted to a hospital on Jan. 16  and discharged on Jan. 19 but the patient remains asymptomatic. He has no comorbidities. The patient visited the fatal case at home and participated in the funeral rites. He has no history of exposure to other known risk factors in the 14 days prior to a respiratory sample being taken.

Tracing and monitoring of household contacts and healthcare contacts is ongoing for this case.

Globally, WHO has been notified of 956 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV, including at least 351 related deaths.

Source: WHO