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| WHO: SARS contained in areas including Guangdong, China |
| CCTV.COM 2003-04-12 15:04:35 |
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Latest figures from the World Health Organization claim there were 111 deaths and 2,781 cases of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome worldwide by Thursday. WHO experts say the disease is being contained, and the epidemic situation in China's Guangdong Province is under control.
Nearly a month after the WHO launched its first global alert about the mystery disease that has created panic in much of Asia, it has now said at a press briefing in Geneva that there are signs that it may have peaked.
WHO official Mike Ryan said, "The story of hope is that it is being contained. There is absolutely no question that this virus is being contained. But we have still remaining threats. We have many developing countries who are at risk from this virus. The good news is that the team in Hanoi have contained the outbreak extremely well."
On the SARS situation in China, WHO head of communicable disease David Heymann said the Chinese government is cooperating actively in preventing the spread of SARS. He said that based on information at hand, the WHO understood that the situation in Guangdong was under control, and the number of new cases is decreasing gradually. He said the WHO is sending another team of experts to China to inspect the situation in Guangdong, Beijing and Shanghai.
At the briefing, WHO experts said the SARS virus could spread through the nose, mouth, eyes and hands, and it could not be transmitted by animals. They also recommended ways for people to prevent infection.
WHO official Mark Salter said, "So we would have to anticipate that if people were to wash their hands, wipe their toilet seats down with a normal disinfectant and disinfect the things they normally disinfect at home, this virus would be rendered unviable."
The WHO plans to hold an international conference in Geneva in June to assess the progress in fighting the epidemic.
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Editor: Yang Feiyang CCTV.com
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