Masks may not prevent contracting SARS

BEIJING, May 4 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) continued Sunday, May 4, to claim more lives in China and Hong Kong, as scientists found out that the killer virus can live for hours or even days on common surfaces at room temperature.

China Sunday reported seven new deaths from SARS and 163 new cases, the health ministry said, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The new statistics took the nationwide death toll from SARS to 197 and the total of detected cases to 4,125.

Beijing, the worst affected city in the country, bore the brunt of the new deaths, accounting for four of the seven. It also claimed 69 of the new infections.

The capital now accounts for 100 of all China's SARS dead and 1,803 of its total infections, the ministry added.

In Hong Kong…

Another five people have died in Hong Kong after contracting SARS, while eight new cases of the disease have been recorded, health officials said Sunday.

The additional deaths were of four males and one female, bringing the total death toll for the territory to 184 from 1,629 infections.

Of those still being treated in hospital, 77 were in intensive care, the officials added.

In another development, ten crew members suspected to have contracted the deadly SARS virus have been transferred from their Malaysian cargo vessel to a Hong Kong hospital, a health official told AFP.

The Malaysian vessel entered Hong Kong waters early Sunday escorted by two tug boats and anchored off outlying Lamma Island at 10:20am (0220 GMT), where it has been quarantined.

Six police boats have formed a protective ring around the ship to prevent other boats from approaching it.

Around 20 health care workers and firemen, wearing full protective medical gear, boarded the ship to conduct the medical checks on the 24 crew members.

They emerged after two hours with 10 of the crew who were transferred by rescue boat to the Central Government Pier and onto Princess Margaret Hospital.

"Medical staff took the temperatures of all 24 crew members but none of them were found to have any fever," Assistant Director of Health, Carrie Lai, told reporters.

"However, in the past few days 10 of the crew members had been suffering from symptoms including fever, a dry cough and aching joints and muscles. Right now their condition is satisfactory but they have previously taken antibiotics and medication to reduce their fevers," she added.

Killer Virus Can Live On Common Surface

Meanwhile, scientists found that SARS can apparently survive on common surfaces at room temperature for hours or even days, which could explain how people can catch the deadly lung infection without face-to-face contact with a sick person, reported The Washington Post.

New laboratory studies, being released Sunday, have produced the first scientific data on how long the SARS virus can live in various places and conditions, demonstrating for the first time that the microbe can linger outside an infected person's body.

One study showed the virus survived for at least 24 hours on a plastic surface at room temperature, which suggests it might be possible to become infected from touching a tabletop, doorknob or other objects. Another found the microbe remained viable for as long as four days in human waste, a crucial finding that could clarify how the virus can spread through apartment buildings, hospitals and other facilities.

German scientists found a common detergent failed to kill the virus, indicating that some efforts to sterilize contaminated areas may be ineffective. An experiment conducted in Japan concluded that the virus could live for extended periods in the cold, suggesting it could survive the winter, according to the Post.

The long-awaited findings should be crucial for containing the epidemic, and they could solve one of the most important mysteries about the new disease: how the virus spreads without direct exposure to infected individuals.

"It's the first time we have hard data on the survival of the virus. Before, we were just speculating," Klaus Stohr, the World Health Organization's top SARS scientist, said Saturday. "There has been a lot of speculation that the touching of objects could be involved. This shows that transmission by contaminated hands or contaminated objects in the environment can play a role."

In addition, the findings will help researchers develop better tests for the virus and possible treatments. Now that they know what temperatures kill the virus, researchers can purify serum from sick people for use in calibrating tests and possibly to give other patients as a therapy. Serum contains antibodies that are measured by tests. The antibodies themselves could work as a treatment if they can neutralize the virus.