M'sia's Health Ministry Collaborates With WHO In Monitoring MERS-CoV In South Korea

PUTRAJAYA, June 5 (Bernama) -- The health ministry will work closely with the World Health Organisation (WHO) in monitoring the spread of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) currently in South Korea, to ensure appropriate control and preventive measures are undertaken. In a statement issued here Thursday, the ministry said to date, WHO had not issued a travel ban to South Korea, but advised all visitors to the country to be cautious. "All visitors, umrah and future Haj pilgrims who will be travelling to countries affected by MERS-CoV in the Middle East and other countries are advised to take care of their health and maintain good hygiene practices. "They are also advised not to visit animal farms, especially camel farms while in countries affected by MERS-CoV," it said. According to local media reports in Seoul, since MERS-CoV cases were detected on June 2, to date 25 cases were confirmed positive with two deaths, while the number of people quarantined had reached 1,600. Based on WHO reports, the spread of MERS-CoV in South Korea stemmed from a failure to ensure the principles of prevention and infection control effectively, at all levels of health and medical care, according to the statement. Subsequently, the ministry took various preparatory and counter-measures in facing a possible outbreak of MERS-CoV in Malaysia, including conducting health screening at international gateways. Any suspected case or MERS-CoV Patient Under Investigation detected during screening at international gateways of the country, hospitals or clinics would be referred to hospitals for treatment. From November 2013 to the end of last month, the ministry had received almost 800 notifications related to the outbreak which mostly involved umrah and Haj pilgrims. However, laboratory tests conducted to confirm all the cases were free of MERS-CoV infection except for one, tested positive in April 2014, the statement said. -- BERNAMA