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S. Korea reports tenth MERS death, continues to spread

June 11, 2015

A worker wearing protective gear fumigates as a precaution against the spread of MERS, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, virus outside Wangsimni Subway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, June 11, 2015. Experts from the World Health Organization and South Korea on Wednesday urged the reopening of more than 2,700 schools closed over fears of the deadly MERS virus.(AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

SEJONG, June 11 (Yonhap) — South Korea reported an additional fatality from Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) on Thursday, along with 14 new cases that brought the total number of people diagnosed with the disease to 122.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, a 75-year-old man died while undergoing treatment. He got infected while receiving treatment at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon for terminal lung cancer.

The latest fatality marked the 10th MERS-related death in South Korea since the outbreak of the viral respiratory illness was first confirmed on May 20.

The number of people diagnosed with the disease also climbed to 122 as the country confirmed 14 new cases.

Out of the 14 new patients, eight have been infected while visiting Samsung Medical Center in Seoul, according to the health ministry.

The hospital, one of the largest in the capital, has been a major source of infection after it had unknowingly treated a MERS patient prior to the person’s diagnosis.

One of the patients is a 39-year-old woman in the late stage of her pregnancy, who is believed to have been infected while visiting her sick mother at the emergency room of Samsung Medical Center.

The woman is currently in stable condition, while the medical team tending to her said they will perform a cesarean section if her condition deteriorates.

As of Thursday morning, 13 people diagnosed with MERS were in unstable condition, according to the health ministry.

MERS is a viral respiratory illness that is fairly new to humans with the first-ever case reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012. Some 1,100 cases have since been reported in about 20 countries, mostly in and around the Middle East.

The disease had a very high fatality rate of over 40 percent before the outbreak here.

Even with the latest fatality, the disease currently has a fatality rate of less than 10 percent in South Korea.

To help prevent the disease from spreading further, the government is isolating all MERS patients and those who have come in close contact with them.

As of Thursday, the number of people in isolation reached 3,805, up from 3,439 the previous day.

So far, seven people previously diagnosed with the viral disease have been discharged from hospitals following complete recoveries.

The government is also daily updating the list of hospitals affected by MERS, meaning they either have been identified as a source of infection or a person diagnosed with the disease has visited them.

The number of MERS-affected hospitals reached 55 as of Thursday, up from 29 on Monday.

The ministry said it will also release a list of those unaffected by the disease, a move aimed at allowing the people who need medical attention to visit hospitals that are safe from MERS.