3 South Korean tourists test negative for MERS

THE THREE tourists from South Korea who were confined at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) on Monday tested negative for the dreaded Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), according to the Department of Health (DOH).

At a press conference yesterday, DOH spokesperson Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy said the three South Koreans, who arrived in the country sometime this month, all underwent sputum tests to rule out the possibility of infection.

Two of the tourists were showing symptoms of the virus, such as fever, when they sought medical attention at the Manila Doctors’ Hospital the other day. They were promptly transferred to RITM, the hospital designated by the DOH to handle MERS cases.

“They did not have symptoms when they arrived in the country but eventually they felt sick so they immediately sought medical attention,” said Lee Suy.

While they were declared negative for MERS, two of the South Koreans turned out to be sick with another illness, probably the common flu, according to the DOH official. “They remain confined at the RITM for treatment, not for MERS, but for a different illness,” he added.

He declined to divulge the tourists’ travel details to prevent the public from panicking. “But this is a good thing if we can maintain the referral system like this,” he said of the prompt decision of the private hospital to refer the case to RITM.

In a statement, Health Secretary Janette Garin maintained that the Philippines was still free of the virus. “We would like to emphasize that there is nothing to fear as all three Koreans were non-infective but are still for further observation,” said Garin.

The MERS outbreak that started early this month in South Korea was unwittingly triggered by a 68-yearold South Korean man who visited four health facilities shortly following his trip to the Middle East after he developed a cough and fever.