Blue said the local Health Department is alert to this situation and is taking seriously information dispensed by the state Department of Health and Human Services.
“The state is looking very closely at the situation, and we’re taking our guidance from them,” Blue said.
The state last week reported a seventh suspected case of SARS. However, none of the cases reported in North Carolina so far has been diagnosed as SARS.
The seventh case was a Wake County woman who developed fever and respiratory symptoms after traveling to Toronto, Canada, an area that has been added to the list of areas with documented or suspected community transmission of SARS.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has expanded its SARS case definition to differentiate between “suspected” and “probable” cases.
“Probable” cases include pneumonia or respiratory distress syndrome. North Carolina has no probable cases.
“Our health advice to the public has not changed,” said Dr. Jeffrey Engel, state epidemiologist. “The best way to avoid the spread of an illness like SARS is to observe good health practices, especially frequent handwashing. And we do recommend that people not travel to SARS areas identified by WHO [World Health Organization] and CDC, if they can avoid it.”
The microbe causing SARS was identified earlier this month as a new type of coronavirus. Medical experts are working on possible cures and vaccines.
Even without a cure, about 96 percent of SARS patients recover, according to the state agency.
Symptoms include fever, aches, dry cough and shortness of breath in a person who has either traveled to an affected area of Asia or Toronto or has had close contact with a suspected SARS case.
Four of the suspected cases in North Carolina were reported in Wake County, with one each reported in Orange, Mecklenburg and Iredell counties. All patients have either fully recovered or are expected to recover.
