MERS complacency feared

RIYADH: The Ministry of Agriculture has revealed new confirmation about the relationship between camels and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), noting that respiratory secretions have been tested for 20 camels in Jeddah market, of which 11 came back positive for the live virus.
Positive testing was also noted in Bisha, which means that people should be very careful in dealing with camels there.
The Ministry of Health has called for serious precautionary measures to be taken by people coming into contact with camels, and has confirmed that the decreased rate of infections during the past months may be a false indication of the absence of the virus, leading medical staff to lower their guard against the virus.
The ministry also recently held a video meeting with some control centers in various parts of the Kingdom under the chairmanship Abdulaziz bin Saeed, president of the Control Center, which sought to follow up on recent developments relating to the virus, and sought to stress the importance of taking high level preparations and preventive measures.
The discussions also led to the warning that this is the mating season for camels, which could expose people who come into contact with them to infections.