The world should learn from the Ebola crisis to combat MERS in Saudi Arabia

EDITORIAL, THE WASHINGTON POST                                                                      Feb. 27, 2015

A DISEASE outbreak has a source and a pathway for transmission, but both can be exceedingly difficult to discover. Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, is surging anew in Saudi Arabia and raising familiar questions: Where is this coronavirus coming from and how is it spreading?

A man wearing a mask looks on as he stands in front of camels at a camel market in the village of al-Thamama near Riyadh May 11, 2014. Saudi Arabia said people handling camels should wear masks and gloves to prevent spreading Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), (Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters)

There is growing evidence that the natural reservoir of MERS, which first appeared in 2012, is dromedary camels, and last year’s peak in the spring seemed to coincide with the weaning period of camel calves. A new seasonal oscillation may be starting now. But there are worrisome and unexplained gaps in recent case reports.

This month alone, the kingdom reported 57 new cases, and 21 deaths, and many had no known exposure to camels. A large number of the new cases are in Riyadh. Since 2012, the virus has infected 1,042 people and killed 419. There is no known vaccine or cure. So far, there is not sustained human-to-human transmission, although the virus has spread among people in close contact and in hospitals.

The World Health Organization, slow to respond to the Ebola crisis, just sent a team of experts to Saudi Arabia. Their report was disturbing. While data collection and surveillance have improved in recent months, the team said, “critical gaps in knowledge remain,” and there are obstacles still to be overcome. “For example, how and why infections occur in the community is yet to be understood, and this is critical for stopping the outbreak."

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-world-should-learn-from-the-ebola-crisis-to-combat-mers-in-saudi-arabia/2015/02/26/db4192d0-bd3b-11e4-8668-4e7ba8439ca6_story.html