SARS

Highly infectious disease with symptoms similar to influenza, notably chills, headaches, muscle pains, a sore throat, and a high fever. Pneumonia develops as the disease progresses, and can result in death – the mortality rate is estimated by the World Health Organization (WHO) at around 15%. First identified in 2003, there is no known cure or vaccine for the disease.

SARS is caused by a type of coronavirus, which usually produces colds in humans but severe conditions such as pneumonia and diarrhoea in animals. The SARS virus was thought to have mutated to allow it to jump the species barrier from animals to humans. Analysis of the virus genome suggests that it is a recombinant of a mouse hepatitis virus and a bird bronchitis virus. The incubation period of SARS varies but is on average between two and ten days. The risk of death increases with age and the mortality rate is as high as 50% in those over 60 years of age.