World Report: April 11, 2003 Vol. 8 No. 23
- This Issue:
- Table of Contents
- Cover Story
- Cover Story - Spanish Version
- Mini-Lesson
- Comprehension Quiz
- Teacher's Guide and Worksheets
Asia's Mystery Illness
On April 3, an international team of scientists from the World Health Organization (WHO) arrived in Guangzhou, China, to do important detective work. They are on the trail of SARS, a mysterious illness.
Medical experts believe that SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) first appeared in southern China last fall. They hope to identify its cause. The main suspect is a type of coronavirus. This is a large family of viruses that includes the kind that causes colds.
Early SARS symptoms are similar to those of the flu. More than 2,300 people in at least 12 countries, including Canada and the U.S., have been infected. Asian countries have been hit the hardest. Health officials think the disease first spread from China as infected travelers boarded airplanes. Most people fully recover, but 84 had died as of last Friday. In the worst cases, about 10%, patients need help from a ventilator to breathe.
Health officials are taking aggressive steps to stop SARS from spreading. In many Asian cities, they have closed schools and limited travel. By Friday, researchers said that the measures seemed to be working. "There are still new cases," said Chris Powell, of the WHO team, "but the number is going down."
