A new “SARS-like” virus has been detected in the UK, according to widespread media reports. The headlines are based on press releases from the UK’s Health Protection Agency (HPA) and the World Health Organization (WHO). SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) is a serious and potentially life-threatening viral infection that mostly affects the lungs. SARS is caused by a family of viruses known as coronaviruses. These types of virus can vary widely in their severity. Some types of coronaviruses can just trigger the symptoms of a common cold. Others can be life threatening. There was a large outbreak of cases (pandemic) of SARS that occurred during 2002 and 2003, with most cases being confined to east Asia. The HPA has confirmed the diagnosis of a severe respiratory illness associate...

Source: CAS (Central Alerting System) Area: News The Department of Health has issued an alert via the Central Alerting System (CAS) regarding a case of a novel coronavirus in a Qatari national receiving treatment for a severe respiratory illness in a London Hospital.   The virus is virtually identical genetically to a novel coronavirus recently identified by Dutch researchers in a clinical sample from a Saudi Arabian national who was ill with pneumonia over three months ago. These are currently the only two known cases from whom this virus has been isolated.   In the light of the severity of the illness in the two confirmed cases and the novel nature of the virus, contacts of the cases are being contacted to ensure they are well and that further transmission has not occurred...

Source: Cochrane Area: Evidence > Drug Specific Reviews Background Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) comprise a large and heterogeneous group of infections including bacterial, viral and other aetiologies. In recent years, procalcitonin - the prohormone of calcitonin - has emerged as a promising marker for the diagnosis of bacterial infections and for improving decisions about antibiotic therapy. Several randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have demonstrated the feasibility of using procalcitonin for starting and stopping antibiotics in different patient populations with acute respiratory infections and different settings ranging from primary care to emergency departments (EDs), hospital wards and intensive care units (ICUs).       Objectives The aim of this...

Children living in low-income urban areas appear especially prone to developing asthma, possibly related to infections they acquire early in life. In a new study in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, available online, researchers from the University of Wisconsin in Madison investigated viral respiratory illnesses and their possible role in the development of asthma in urban versus suburban babies. The differences in viral illness patterns they found provide insights that could help guide the development of new asthma treatments in children... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)