Tour guides have been urged to stop including camel rides in their itineraries after Saudi Arabia discovered 30 more incidents of a SARS-like virus over the weekend, and Egypt announced its first case on Saturday.
Camels have been identified as one of the culprits in transmitting the deadly Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), whose exact source is yet unknown. In August, researchers found MERS-like antibodies in the Arabian camel, suggesting that the animal was infected at some point with MERS or a related illness. This was followed by Saudi Arabia and Qatar announcing that scientists had found infected camels in November.
University of Hong Kong microbiologist, Dr Ho Pak-leung, suggested that "travel agencies should cancel all camel-riding activities," in a bid to curtail the spread of the disease. He commented that little had been done to stop the spread of the illness since the first case was reported in 2012, with local authorities failing to clarify whether confirmed reports of the illness this year included virus mutations. "The recent developments are worrying," he said.
Whilst EGL Tours executive director Steve Huen Kwok-chuen said the travel agency had stopped offering camel rides in Turkey, Dubai and Egypt, because of MERS fears, travel industry council executive director Joseph Tung Yao-chung said that camel rides are optional extras on itineraries. "It is usually up to the tourist whether to pay for camel rides," he said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) laboratory has confirmed 254 cases of the disease with 93 deaths since the virus was first reported- but actual numbers are suspected to be around 350 cases, with over 100 deaths. The disease is linked to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)- though is thought to be deadlier but more difficult to spread- and can cause shortness of breath, acute respiratory failure and kidney failure. The death rate for the illness stands at around 40 percent, and cases have spiked by 65 percent since the onset of April, with 143 cases announced this month.
Ho further advised maintaining high hygiene standards to avoid spread of the disease, citing urine and faeces as substances through which the disease is transmitted. Ho said that 10 to 15 per cent of MERS cases tend to be mild, but severe pneumonia is also possible.
Hong Kong's centre for health protection said that approximately 75 percent of recent cases were predominantly medical workers infected by patients, and had mild symptoms.
[Image via Flickr]
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