For Only 2nd Time In History, The World Health Organization Calls An Emergency Meeting About a virus
For Only The Second Time In History, The World Health Organization Calls An Emergency Meeting About A Virus
While the Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS CoV) hasn't yet reached pandemic potential, the World Health Organization (WHO) is worried enough about the virus to call its second-ever emergency meeting.
The first emergency meeting happened in 2009 and the subject was the H1N1 bird flu virus, which sickened thousands. The meetings are part of a relatively new system called the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee, which was implemented after the SARS outbreak in 2002.
The talks will take place on Tuesday, July 9, and Thursday, July 11, over a phone conference with experts from around the world. The virus was first reported on back in September of last year, but researchers still haven't been able to figure out where it's coming from and how it's infecting humans.
Eighty people have been sickened and 45 have died, according to the latest numbers. Most cases are either in Saudi Arabia or in people who had recently visited that country. Researchers have seen limited human-to-human spread, as well.
During the meeting, researchers may decide to label the virus an "international health emergency," according to the AFP. Experts are worried about the potential for spread during the annual Hajj pilgrimage — one of the world's largest gatherings, taking place in Mecca and Medina.
http://www.businessinsider.com/who-emergency-meeting-about-mers-2013-7
Also:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023136822
Muslim hajj pilgrimage in focus amid virus fearsus fears
Virologists are casting a worried eye on this year's Islamic hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia as they struggle with the enigmatic, deadly virus known as MERS which is striking hardest in the kingdom.
Little is known about the new pathogen, beyond the fact that it can be lethal by causing respiratory problems, pneumonia and kidney failure. It can be transmitted between humans, but unlike its cousin, the SARS virus, which sparked a scare a decade ago, it does not seem very contagious.
Even so, for any respiratory virus the mass gathering of the hajj provides a perfect opportunity to first spread at the two holiest Muslim shrines in the cities of Mecca and Medina, and then travel around the globe at jet speed as pilgrims return home.
The 2012 hajj drew 3.1 million people -- and this year's event likewise occurs in October, as the northern hemisphere slides into the season for coughs and sneezes.
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