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S. Korea reports no new MERS cases for 12th day

July 17, 2015
Medical staff at Samsung Medical Center in Seoul restrict people from entering the hospital on July 12, 2015. The hospital has been partially closed since June after many of its patients and employees contracted MERS. (Yonhap)

Medical staff at Samsung Medical Center in Seoul restrict people from entering the hospital on July 12, 2015. The hospital has been partially closed since June after many of its patients and employees contracted MERS. (Yonhap)

SEJONG, July 17 (Yonhap) — South Korea reported no additional cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) for the 12th straight day Friday, with no fatalities occurring in a week, the health ministry said.

The number of people diagnosed with MERS in the country remained unchanged at 186 with the death toll also staying flat at 36, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

There were 155 people in isolation as of Friday as suspected cases following possible exposure to the MERS coronavirus, down 103 people from the day before, it said.

Since the country reported its first case on May 20, nearly 16,700 people have been subject to isolation for possible infection. So far, 16,538 of them have been released after showing no symptoms of MERS for more than the known maximum incubation period of 14 days for the disease.

Out of those diagnosed with MERS, 134 have been discharged from hospitals following complete recoveries, up one compared with the day before.

Of the remaining 16 receiving treatment in hospitals, four are in unstable condition.

The health ministry said Thursday that if no new cases are reported in the coming days, the country may declare an end to MERS next month, although no date has been set.

At present, authorities are forecasting an official declaration is expected 28 days after the last MERS patient tests negative for the coronavirus at least twice.

Related to no new MERS cases, health authorities said in a news briefing that Samsung Medical Center (SMC) in southern Seoul will be allowed to resume normal operations on midnight Sunday, if there are no unforeseen developments.

The hospital, one of the largest in the country, has been partially closed since the middle of June after many of its patients and staff came down with the disease.

“The government has been examining MERS-related actions taken by the hospital so far and what plans it will implement after operational restriction have been lifted to prevent further problems,” said Kwon Deok-cheol, head of the central MERS task force, hinting that SMC has met all conditions.

SMC is the last of 15 hospitals in the country that were partially closed or shutdown to prevent the spread of MERS.

MERS is a viral respiratory disease that is still fairly new to humans. The disease has claimed over 530 lives globally, posting a fatality rate of over 36 percent.

In South Korea, the fatality rate stands at 19.4 percent, with most of the people succumbing to the illness having had underlying medical conditions. The ministry said 91.7 percent of the people who died were being treated for cancer or had serious heart, lung or kidney conditions.

There currently is no vaccine or treatment for the disease that was first reported only in 2012 in Saudi Arabia.