The United States and WHO Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have received reports of severe acute respiratory tract syndrome (SARS) in patients from Canada, China, Hong Kong, '' Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The etiology of this disease is unknown and is currently under investigation.

The first manifestations of the disease are flu-like symptoms such as fever, myalgia, headache, sore throat, dry cough, shortness of breath and shortness of breath. In some patients, the disease is accompanied by the development of hypoxia, pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, requiring mechanical ventilation, and can be fatal. Changes in laboratory parameters included thrombocytopenia and leukopenia. Some people who were in close contact with the sick, including health workers, developed the same symptoms. In this regard, the CDC has launched a program to detect cases of SARS in people recently returned from endemic areas or in close contact with sick patients.

Clinicians should pay attention to patients with a disease that developed after February 1, 2003, accompanied by the following symptoms:

Diagnostic measures for suspected SARS should include a chest x-ray, pulse oximetry, bacteriological examination of blood and sputum, microscopy of a native Gram-colored sputum smear, tests to detect pathogens respiratory viral (in particular influenza A and B viruses and respiratory syncytial virus). Clinicians are advised to keep all samples of clinical material received (separate from the airways, blood, etc.) until a final diagnosis is made for possible further studies.

Before establishing the etiology and routes of transmission, epidemiological measures should include:

The etiology of the disease not being currently established, there is no specific treatment. Empirical therapy should include the appointment of antimicrobial agents with a broad spectrum of activity, acting on all of the potential causative agents of community-acquired pneumonia, including "typical" and "atypical" respiratory pathogens. The choice of treatment should be determined based on the severity of the patient's condition. An infection specialist consultation is recommended.

Health workers should inform local health authorities of each case of SARS.