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| Experts speak on SARS |
| CCTV.COM 2003-04-05 10:04:49 |
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The outbreak of SARS, or atypical pneumonia, has aroused the attention of people in China and around the world. CCTV interviews experts and officials to examine the syndrome and the latest developments in tackling it.
During the Spring Festival period this February, atypical pneumonia cases －－－ also known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS, were discovered in south China's Guangdong Province. Afterwards, a few cases occurred in China's Shanxi province and in the capital, Beijing. The central government and various government agencies at all levels have paid vital importance to the illness since it first appeared. A series of comprehensive preventative measures and treatments have been adopted.
By March 31st, 1,190 SARS cases had been reported and 934 patients had recovered after effective treatment and been released from hospital. On April 2nd, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stressed the urgent need to prioritize the controlling of the disease at a State Council Standing Committee meeting. A special working team was set up and headed by Health Minister Zhang Wenkang.
During an interview with CCTV early this week, the health minister said the cause of the disease has not yet been found, but added he was certain that SARS has nothing to do with plague, anthrax, Epidemic Hemorrhagic Fever, Leptospirosis or Legionella. He said that domestic experts have now found the way of its spread and have brought it under control. Meanwhile, medical officials have developed some effective treatment measures. The Ministry of Health and Guangdong Province have taken measures to ensure that every patient gets timely and effective treatment. Relevant experts said there is no need to panic.
Yang Weizhong, director of Emergency Office of China Disease Prevention & Control Center said, " We don't need to worry about some cough or cold because this might be just a respiratory tract infection, bronchitis or typical pneumonia. They are likely to occur in spring. But people need to be alert if they have severe fever, cough, headache and exhaustion and have travelled to SARS－affected areas."
Yang said, "There are three causes leading to death from SARS. One is that some patients don't pay enough attention in the beginning and don't go to hospital when it worsens. Another cause is that the patients have some other illness like heart disease or diabetes. But most patients will recover."
Since the first case of SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, was discovered in China's Guangdong Province, more cases have been found in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Canada and parts of the United States. The latest statistics show that by April 1, 2003, SARS had been found in a total of 15 countries and regions. Most of the infected have been effectively treated and recovered while 62 people died. Related departments in the countries and regions affected have taken measures to stop the spread of the disease and provide people with basic knowledge about avoiding it. Some of them say the situation is almost under control. The disease, which has spread worldwide within such a short time, has put the World Health Organisation on high alert. To find out the cause and means of SARS infection, a team of WHO experts arrived in China on March 23rd upon the request of the Chinese Ministry of Health.
Zhang Wenkang, Chinese Health Minister, said, "The WHO has sent three expert teams to Beijing since March to work with Chinese authorities in dealing with the disease. Much work has been done in searching for the pathogene responsible for the virus. Now these experts have completed their work in Beijing and are heading for Guangdong Province where they will continue their research with Chinese experts. During their stay in Beijing, the WHO teams held two press conferences, which caused quite a sensation among the media.
At the press conferences, they answered questions relating to the cause of the disease and the ways it is spread, as well as prevention measures. According to the experts, the SARS pathogen has not been fully identified and needs further study. What they plan to do next is to go through all the cases found in Guangdong and other areas so as to identify the SARS pathogene and come up with more effective treatment suggestions."
The pathogene and cause of the SARS virus haven't yet been clarified. However, the experts have come up with some treatment measures, which have proved to be fairly effective in clinical practice. Most of the people infected have been cured and recovered without any after－effects. The experts suggest that strictly following the prevention measures will help keep the infection rate to a minimum. Therefore, there's no need to feel frightened.
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Editor: Inner Wu CCTV.com
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