Deadly SARS-Like Virus Turns Up in Europe

NCoV case diagnosed in France
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted May 10, 2013 3:37 PM CDT
Deadly SARS-Like Virus Turns Up in Europe
An electron microscope image of a coronavirus, part of a family of viruses that cause ailments including the common cold and SARS, which was first identified last year in the Middle East.   (AP Photo/British Health Protection Agency)

A man in France has been diagnosed with NCoV, a deadly, newly discovered cousin of SARS and the common cold. The case represents a new frontier for NCoV, which until now has been confined to the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia bearing the brunt of it, CNN reports. French officials are trying to figure out how it jumped to their patient, and are seeking anyone who might have come into contact with him. He recently traveled to the United Arab Emirates.

The man has been hospitalized since April, but it took doctors a while to suss out what was wrong with him. NCoV doesn't spread easily, at least so far, but "once it gets you, it's a very serious infection," an infectious disease specialist says. Of the 31 people who have contracted the disease so far, 18 have died. (More coronavirus stories.)

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