Deadly MERS Virus A 'Threat To Entire World' As Saudi Girl Confirmed Case Of Virus

A 14-year-old Saudi girl is the latest confirmed case of the sometimes deadly MERS virus, the WHO said Wednesday.

People have been killed by a Sars-like virus in Saudi Arabia, described by the World Health Organisation as "a threat to the entire world". To date, the World Health Organization has been informed of 54 cases, including 30 deaths. The Saudi health ministry told the agency that the girl became ill on May 29. She is in stable condition.

The illness, now known as Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, or Mers for short, was identified in September last year. It was formerly known as 'novel coronavirus' or hCoV-EMC. It acts like a cold virus and attacks the respiratory system, the U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said. But symptoms, which include fever and a cough, are severe and can lead to pneumonia and kidney failure.

Coronaviruses cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to SARS, or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, as well as a variety of animal diseases.

Health officials do not yet know much about how the newly discovered virus spreads, which makes it hard for scientists to prevent infections, Chan said. The W.H.O is calling for the world to pull together its resources to study and tackle the virus.

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