Noted Chinese contagious disease expert Zeng Guang called on
Saturday for continued vigilance and effective anti-SARS efforts
despite the decline or absence of new SARS cases in the past few
days on China's mainland.
Zeng, an infectious disease expert with the Beijing-based National
Center for Disease Prevention and Control, warned that a lack of
vigilance could result in a dangerous situation.
Zeng said the decline of SARS cases is the result of a series of
rigorous measures taken by the Chinese Government. These measures
include efforts to reduce infection rates in hospitals, a
surveillance and quarantine system, strict isolation orders for
SARS patients and for suspect cases, the close monitoring of the
floating population and high public vigilance against SARS.
With the ebb of the SARS epidemic and the gradual return to
normality, ill people are visiting hospitals again, students are
returning to school, migrant workers are flocking back to the
capital and entertainment venues are re-opening.
A
renewed outbreak could therefore occur if the public were to lower
its guard, and transmission were to occur from sources from home
and abroad, Zeng warned.
In
addition, mankind has yet to fully understand the SARS virus, its
transmission mode, and the duration of its survival under normal
circumstances.
Hence, "China should persist in its anti-SARS efforts and pay close
attention to infections within hospitals," said Zeng.
"It is totally unnecessary to lower diagnosis standards of SARS in
order to pursue a zero increase on new SARS case," Zeng said,
referring to the criteria set by the World Health Organization to
lift the travel advisory against SARS-affected places.
The WHO's conditions include: no more than 60 SARS patients in
hospitals, below five new SARS cases per day for five straight
days, all SARS patients in isolation and no exports of infections
to outside areas.
The WHO's final requirement stipulates that only when the SARS-
affected area reports no new cases for 20 consecutive days, can it
consider lifting the travel advisory.
(Xinhua News Agency June 9, 2003)