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First US case of MERS reported in Indiana

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The CDC and the Indiana State Department of Public Health today confirmed the first US case of Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, a viral respiratory illness first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

The patient is reported to be a health care provider who has recently returned to the United States after traveling and working in Saudi Arabia.

In a telebriefing this afternoon, Anne Schuchat, MD, assistant surgeon general of the US Public Health Service and director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said the hospitalized patient is in stable condition and receiving oxygen support. The patient had previously traveled via bus and plane before being hospitalized in Indiana. Schuchat also said the patient was providing health care in Saudi Arabia and developed symptoms after returning to the United States.

 

Anne Schuchat

US health care providers have reported various levels of contact with the patient before the official diagnosis was announced; however, the CDC announced in the telebriefing that the disease is not believed to be easily communicable in group settings. The first reported instance of the disease does not represent a broad risk to Americans, Schuchat said.

She also said the CDC has worked with WHO and with non-governmental organizations to investigate the disease within the borders of Saudi Arabia. Treatment for the disease has been nonspecific, and there is no current drug that targets the coronavirus. Clinicians have focused on treating pulmonary and fever-related symptoms.

In the telebriefing, the CDC reported a 5-day incubation period for MERS; however, it urged those who develop severe respiratory illness, including fever and cough, within 14 days of traveling near the Arabian Peninsula to contact their state health department for appropriate testing and sample collection. Those with severe respiratory symptoms who have been in contact with travelers in or near the Arabian Peninsula in the past 14 days should also contact their state health department.