Antibody Test Developed To Detect SARS
Jittery International Passengers Don Surgical Masks
Updated: 5:32 p.m. EST April 3, 2003
U.S. health officials say they now have a test to determine whether coughing, feverish patients have the mystery ilness from Asia.
Overview
New Cases Scare You?
All About SARS
How SARS WorksDr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday that the CDC will soon be giving test results in suspected SARS cases to state health officials. The test detects the new form of the coronavirus, which CDC officials say they are "90 percent" sure causes SARS.
Doctors in the United States suspect that 85 people -- nearly all of them having recently traveled to SARS-affected areas in Asia -- have the illness, which has killed at least 78 people and sickened more than 2,200 around the world.
But physicians cannot be sure if their patients have SARS or other flulike illnesses. Gerberding said this test will help confirm SARS cases.
Gerberding commended the speed at which federal and world health officials have investigated the emerging illness. She said the communications capacity is "absolutely unprecedented."
But she said experts still face a lot of challenges in identifying and containing the epidemic.
Jittery international travelers who are trying to avoid SARS have donned white surgical masks during their flights.
Passengers wore masks when they stepped off flights from Tokyo and Beijing Wednesday at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.
They also carried leaflets advising them to monitor their health for at least 10 days and tell a doctor of their Asian travels if they come down with a fever and cough or difficulty breathing.
A student returning to Chicago from Hong Kong said, "Everybody (in Hong Kong) is wearing masks, and if you cough on a train, everyone panics."
However, Gerberding said the CDC is not recommending surgical masks for the general public -- but only for SARS patients and people in close contact with SARS patients.
Meanwhile, in parts of Asia, even those who haven't contracted SARS are being affected by it.
In Hong Kong, there was a hoax in which people were told the city had been declared "infected." It sent panicked people rushing out and stocking up on food.
Economists are warning that SARS could batter the economy throughout Asia as consumers avoid malls and restaurants, and tourists are urged to stay away.
The World Health Organization investigators have arrived in China and are studying the SARS outbreak in the southern province of Guangdong, where the outbreak of SARS is worst. Experts are looking for details about how people got sick and how they're being treated.
The WHO said it has already seen a drop in the number of reported cases in the region. But it's still concerned about a further spread of the illness, especially through travelers in and out of Asia.
The WHO team waited days for permission to enter China. They are hoping to find out how victims contracted SARS and what doctors have learned from treating them.
China's health minister told a Beijing news conference Thursday that the epidemic is under control. He said China is a safe place to live and a safe place to visit.
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