MERS-CoV Case in Jordan is Reported to WHO

On May 25, 2014, the National IHR Focal Point of Jordan reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) an additional Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) case in Amman, Jordan.

The case is a 69-year-old male Jordanian citizen and resident of Amman governorate. The patient was admitted to hospital on April 29, 2014 for a surgical procedure. He was discharged on May 3, 2014. On May 8, the patient presented with fever. His condition deteriorated and he was admitted to the same hospital on May 11. Two days later, he started to complain of cough. A specimen was collected from the patient and it tested negative for MERS on the same day, but a chest X-ray showed pneumonia. A second specimen was collected and it tested positive by PCR on May 23. The patient is currently in the intensive care unit in a critical condition.

The patient is known to have comorbidities, no history of travel, and no history of contact with animals. He also has no history of contact with a laboratory confirmed MERS-CoV case. However, he was admitted to the same hospital where a laboratory confirmed MERS-CoV fatal case was admitted. This case was reported to WHO on May 6. Contact tracing and screening of family members, health workers, and patients for MERS-CoV is currently ongoing.

Globally, 636 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV have officially been reported to WHO, including 193 deaths. This global total includes all of the cases reported in this update, plus 17 laboratory confirmed cases officially reported to WHO by Saudi Arabia between May 16 and May 18.

Source: WHO