What To Do If You Think You Have Been Exposed To MERS

While there are no specific treatments for MERS, there are reasonably good diagnostics. The US Centers for Disease Control recommend the use of molecular diagnostic methods that identify the virus as well as an antibody test. To make sure the virus is detected, the CDC recommends collection of the virus at multiple sites in the respiratory tract. One sample should come from the lungs, but testing should also involve swabs of the nose and throat. The antibody testing supplies have to come from state health departments, which get them from the CDC.

Currently, MERS testing is only recommended for people who have returned from Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, or Yemen in the last 2 to 14 days. People who do not develop symptoms during the first 14 days after their return from the Middle East (symptoms usually would show up sooner) are assumed not to have been exposed to the virus.

There is no need to test their family members and close personal contacts because the virus is not spread when there are no symptoms.

There is also an orderly progression of symptoms in MERS.

The more severe respiratory symptoms follow. But it's important to remember that as of the third week of May 2014, there have been only three total cases in the USA.

Frequently asked questions about MERS:

Q. Does MERS have the potential to become a global pandemic?

A. Not yet. The virus has not mutated into a form that is easily spread from person to person. Many cases have occurred in health care workers who had direct exposure to respiratory secretions containing the virus.

Q. But hasn't the number of cases in Saudi Arabia greatly increased since March 2014?

A. Yes, but this is due to improvements in testing. The antibody test, allowing quick diagnosis of the infection, only recently became available. Virologists from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) did not find in changes in the DNA of the virus even after the number of diagnosed cases in Saudi Arabia greatly increased in March 2014.

Q. Is it safe to travel to the Middle East?

A. The CDC advises that there is no reason to postpone travel plans for the Middle East, although people traveling to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for contracts as healthcare workers should make themselves familiar with CDC guidelines for preventing MERS infection.

See Also: Swine Flu Pandemic Sweeping Through Britain Even Though 70% Vaccinated Last Year

Q. What can be done to prevent catching MERS?

Commonsense precautions apply. Wash you hands frequently with warm water and soap, soaping them thoroughly and holding them under the tap for 15 seconds (long enough to sing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" or "Happy Birthday to You" twice). Wash your hands both before (to protect yourself) and after (to protect others) touching your mouth, nose, or face. See a doctor for diagnosis at the very first signs of MERS infection or if someone with whom you are in close personal contact contracts the virus.