SARS
The SARS pandemic
SARS originated in China in 2002. It's thought a strain of the coronavirus usually only found in small mammals mutated, enabling it to infect humans.
The SARS infection quickly spread from China to other Asian countries.There were also a small number of cases in several other countries, including four inthe UK, plus a significant outbreak in Toronto, Canada.
The SARS pandemic was eventually brought under control in July 2003, followinga policy of isolating people suspected of having the condition and screening all passengers travelling by air from affected countries for signs of the infection.
During the period of infection, there were 8,098 reported cases of SARS and 774 deaths. This means the virus killed about 1 in 10 people who were infected. People over the age of 65were particularly at risk, with overhalf dying from the infectionin this age group.
In 2004 there was another small SARS outbreak linked to a medical laboratory in China. It was thoughtto have been the result ofsomeone coming into direct contact with a sample of the virus, rather than being caused by animal-to-human or human-to-human transmission.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
Read about severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a highly contagious, serious and potentially life threatening form of pneumonia.
The SARS pandemic
SARS originated in China in 2002. It's thought a strain of the coronavirus usually only found in small mammals mutated, enabling it to infect humans. The SARS infection quickly spread from China to o
Viral mutations
Like all living things, viruses are constantly changing and evolving. A mutation iswhere genetic information stored inside an organism changes. Many global outbreaks of infectious illnesses (pandemic
How SARS is spread
SARS is an airborne virus, which means it's spread in a similar way to colds and flu . The SARS virus is spread in small droplets of saliva coughed or sneezed into the air by an infected person. If s
Symptoms of SARS
SARS has flu-like symptoms that usuallybegin two to seven days after infection. In some cases, the time between exposure to the virus and the onset of symptoms (incubation period)can be up to 10 days
Treatment for SARS
There's currently no cure for SARS, but research to find a vaccine is ongoing. A person suspected of having SARS should be admitted to hospital immediately and kept in isolation under close observati
Preventing the spread of SARS
Avoid travelling to areas of the world where there's an uncontrolled SARS outbreak. To reduce your risk ofbecoming infected, avoid direct contact with people withSARS until at least 10 days after the
Subscribe
Ask the doctor
Rate this article
Find products