Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is characterized by fever, headache, diarrhea, shivering, and muscle pain. Those with severe cases may lead to respiratory distress. However, there is no cluster of symptoms which was found out to be specific for SARS diagnosis.

This is caused by SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) which was first identified in 2003. The main route of transmission is contact of the mucous membranes with respiratory droplets. It was theorized that this virus came from bats (just like in the cases of COVID-19 (hyperlink) and MERS (hyperlink)) which later on spread to civet cats (and perhaps other animals). The first human infection occurred in Guangdong, China in November 2002.

In 2003, SARS became an epidemic which affected around 26 countries with more than 8000 cases and around 774 deaths. Most transmissions happened in health care settings and when there were poor infection control practices. The global epidemic ended in July 2003.