Tennessee Has First Suspect SARS Case

By Press Release

May 16, 2003

The Tennessee Department of Health today announced the first suspect case of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in a Tennessee resident. An adult male from Shelby County who traveled in the Toronto area is under quarantine at his home and poses no public health threat. The case is under investigation, and the man is in good condition.

In addition, a Mississippi resident who is considered a probable SARS case was treated in the emergency room of a Shelby County hospital and released. The man had recently traveled to Hong Kong. All appropriate infection control procedures have been taken, and the general public is not at risk for infection from either of these possible cases of SARS. Samples have been sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for testing.

"The Department of Health has worked to insure that health care providers in Tennessee are aware of the symptoms of SARS so that we can quickly respond to any possible cases. We have evaluated a number of potential cases, but this is the first one that has met the case definition for the disease," said Health Commissioner Kenneth Robinson, MD. "Both of these cases were very quickly diagnosed and reported to the Department of Health, and all appropriate precautions were taken," said Robinson.

SARS is a respiratory illness that has recently been reported in Asia, North America, and Europe. Most of the U.S. cases of SARS have occurred among travelers returning to the United States from other parts of the world with SARS. There have been very few cases as a result of spread to close contacts such as family members and health care workers.

In general, SARS begins with a fever greater than 100.4°F. Other symptoms may include headache, chills, and body aches. Some people also experience mild respiratory symptoms. After two to seven days, SARS patients may develop a dry cough and have trouble breathing. CDC currently recommends that patients with SARS receive the same treatment that would be used for any patient with serious community-acquired atypical pneumonia.

"All of the cases in the United States so far have been in people who traveled to high-risk areas or had close contact with suspected cases. There has not been community-wide spread in the United States and anyone who has not traveled in those areas is at extremely low risk," said Commissioner Robinson.

In the United States, there are currently 282 suspect cases and 65 probable SARS cases among 39 states.