Ten years after SARS, a novel coronavirus causes global health concerns

Gabriel Ortiz

A new virus emerged nearly a year ago in Jordan, predominantly infecting people who live in or have traveled to the Middle East. Two days ago, the World Health Organization confirmed the fifteenth case of infection with the novel coronavirus—a family of viruses that includes both the common cold and SARS—and a fatality that brought the death count to nine. The World Health Organization has been monitoring the situation closely and has been working with agencies in member states, such as the Center for Disease Control, to better understand the public health risk posed by the virus.

Ten years ago, the SARS outbreak spurred efforts by the World Health Organization to improve global responses to health threats and crises. In November 2002, a middle-aged man went to the hospital in Foshan, China with what appeared to be pneumonia. The man recovered and returned home. It would have been an unremarkable event, except for the fact that it was likely to have been the first case of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS.

Others were infected with the mystery virus, but it didn’t come to the world’s attention until February 21, 2003, when a professor of nephrology from a neighboring municipality traveled to Hong Kong. Shortly after his arrival, he realized he had the same symptoms of the patients he had been treating, so he checked himself into the local hospital. He died 11 days later.