WHO is Notified of 14 More Cases of MERS-CoV in the Republic of Korea

On June 7, 2015, the National IHR Focal Point of the Republic of Korea notified the World Health Organization (WHO) of 14 additional confirmed cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection, including one death. Details of the cases are as follows:

1. A 72-year-old female developed symptoms on June 2 while admitted to a hospital due to an unrelated medical condition since May 12. The patient was in the same ward as the first case. She tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 5. Further investigation is ongoing.

2. A 54-year-old female was admitted to a hospital due to an unrelated medical condition from May 23 to May 28. She was in the same ward as a patient that was later confirmed to be a MERS-CoV case. On May 31, while isolated at home, she visited the emergency room of another hospital with symptoms. The patient tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

3. A 51-year-old male was admitted to a hospital between May 26 and May 28. The patient was in the same ward as another patient that was later confirmed to be a MERS-CoV case. He was discharged on May 28 and developed symptoms on May 29. The patient tested positive for MERS-COV on June 6.

4. A 63-year-old female developed symptoms on June 3 while she was isolated at home. She was a caregiver of a patient who shared the room with a laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV case on May 28. She tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 4 and was transferred to the nationally designated hospital on June 5.

5. A 36-year-old male developed symptoms on May 30. On May 27, the patient visited his father at a hospital and stayed in the same zone with a laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV case that was reported previously. Between June 1 and June 3, he was admitted to a different hospital and tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

6. A 45-year-old male developed symptoms on June 2. Between May 26 May and June 1, the patient was admitted to the same ward as another patient that was later confirmed to be a MERS-CoV case. On 3 June, he sought medical care at another clinic. He tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 4.

7. A 57-year-old male sought medical care at a hospital to treat an unrelated medical condition on May 27. During this time, the patient was in the same zone with a laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV case that was reported previously. On June 3, he was admitted to hospital with symptoms and discharged on the next day. He was isolated on June 5 and tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

8. A 55-year-old male developed symptoms on June 2. On May 27, the patient visited his mother who was admitted to a hospital that reported several laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV cases. He was isolated on June 5 and tested positive for MERS-CoV on the same day.

9. A 44-year-old male developed symptoms on June 5. The patient visited a hospital for an unrelated medical condition on May 27. During this time, he was in the same zone as a confirmed MERS-CoV case. The patient tested positive for MERS-CoV on Jun 6. Further investigation is ongoing.

10. A 37-year-old, female health worker developed symptoms on June 1. On May 27, the patient worked in the emergency room of a hospital that reported several MERS-CoV cases. She was isolated on June 4 and tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

11. A 55-year-old male developed symptoms on June 2. Between May 27 and May 28, the patient was admitted to hospital in the same zone as a laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV case between May 27 and May 28. He was isolated at the hospital on June 5 and tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

12. A 32-year-old, male health worker developed symptoms on May 30. Between May 28 and May 29, the patient visited the emergency room of a hospital that reported several MERS-CoV cases. He tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6. Further investigation is ongoing.

13. A 58-year-old female developed symptoms on June 3. Between May 27 and May 28, the patient visited the emergency room of a hospital that reported several MERS-CoV cases. She started self-isolation at home on May 31 and tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 6.

14. A 75-year-old male developed symptoms on June 4. Between May 27 and May 29, the patient visited the emergency room of a hospital that reported several MERS-CoV cases. During this time, he stayed in the same zone as a laboratory-confirmed MERS-CoV case. On June 5, the patient died. He tested positive for MERS-CoV on June 5.

Contact tracing of household and healthcare contacts is ongoing for the cases.

So far, a total of 64 MERS-CoV cases, including five deaths, have been reported to WHO by the National IHR Focal Point of the Republic of Korea. One of the 64 cases is the case that was confirmed in China and also notified by the National IHR Focal Point of China.

Globally, since September 2012, WHO has been notified of 1,218 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV, including at least 449 related deaths.

Source: WHO