In Lebanon, a first patient with Coronavirus Mers has been detected. Globally, 500 patients have been affected since 2012, of which 121 have died.
The virus has struck again. It was this time in Lebanon that a patient with the Mers coronavirus (Middle East respiratory syndrome) was detected. “On Thursday afternoon, a patient was diagnosed with the Mers coronavirus while being treated in a hospital,” said the Minister of Health. He said the patient’s state of health improved and he was able to leave the hospital.
The spread of this virus is caused by camels, as recently demonstrated by an American study. The epidemic is hitting Saudi Arabia hardest. On May 8, 18 new infections and four new deaths were announced by the Ministry of Health of the Wahhabi monarchy. It is in this country, as well as in Dubai, that 90% of the contaminations were detected. In all, since 2012, more than 500 people have been affected by the coronavirus, and 121 have died from it.
Moreover, the French authorities have decided to react: the French site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs thus advises against “the elderly, those suffering from chronic illness, pregnant women and children, to make the small pilgrimage (oumra) and the great pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca this year” in order to avoid spreading the virus.
The coronavirus is a more dangerous but less contagious “cousin” than SARS, with a death rate of 65% compared to 8% for SARS. A patient who is the victim suffers from a lung infection, fever, cough and severe breathing difficulties. The only difference is that MERS also causes acute kidney failure.
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