Suspected MERS case from Saudi arrives at Cairo airport

The quarantine authority at Cairo International Airport announced the arrival of an Egyptian passenger on Tuesday who is suspected of being infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus, privately owned Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper reported.

The patient, who was transferred to Abbasseya Fever Hospital for further examination, arrived on an airplane from the Saudi city of Abha, and was reportedly in recent contact with infected cases, one of which was fatal.

Earlier on Monday, a woman died in Port Said of what was suspected to be the MERS coronavirus. The woman, who was in her 60s and had been generally in good health, exhibited symptoms of the virus after returning from Umra in Saudi Arabia, and died in the Port Said Fever Hospital on Monday.

The Health Ministry said that test results confirming or denying the cause of death would take up to 72 hours.

Another woman, who died in Monufiya on Monday, was suspected of contracting the virus. However, the undersecretary of the Health Ministry in Monufiya, Dr Hanaa Sorour, told Al-Masry Al-Youm that 59 year old Zeinab Kafafy’s death was due to a severe asthmatic attack and old age, adding that the samples sent to the ministry’s central labs came back negative for MERS.

According to Sorour, Kafafy was suffering from a heart condition and flu symptoms. However, he added that all precautionary measures were taken, including vaccinating all those who came in contact with her, to avoid the spread of the infection.  

Meanwhile, former Health Minister and member of the High Committee for Influenza and the Coronavirus, Dr Awad Tag al-Deen, said in an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm, that the committee has made recommendations for the prevention of vulnerable individuals and groups from going to Saudi Arabia, including those seeking Hajj. The most susceptible groups include children, patients of chronic diseases including kidney and liver disease, those who have gone through organ transplant and those with weak immune systems.

The first confirmed case of MERS was identified in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia in a 60-year-old patient, who died of acute pneumonia and acute renal failure on June 24, 2012. Ever since, 414 cases have been confirmed, the latest of which died on Monday. A 45-year-old man and two women in their 50s died from MERS in Jeddah, according to the Associated Press.    

On April 26, the Health Ministry announced the discovery of the first case of MERS in Egypt, in a young man coming from Saudi Arabia. The case was discovered by the quarantine authority at the Cairo International Airport and was transferred to the Abbasseya Fever Hospital, where tests were conducted confirming the diagnosis.

Symptoms of MERS infection include a high fever, cough and shortness of breath. The illness can also lead to renal failure and severe acute pneumonia, which are potentially fatal.