(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The arab hygiene council has stressed on the need for increased levels of hygiene as a preventative measure against middle east respiratory syndrome-coronavirus (mers-cov).
according to the world health organisation (who) from september 2012 there have been a total of 243 laboratory-confirmed cases of mers-cov infections including 93 deaths globally.
preventive measures
avoid close contact with people with severe respiratory illness-like symptoms — cough shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.
practice good hand-hygiene: wash your hands frequently with an antibacterial soap and water. once washed dry your hands with a single use tissue paper.
practise cough etiquette: sneeze into your elbow rather than your hands to minimise hand contamination.
avoid touching your mouth nose and eyes with your hands.
if soap and water is unavailable use a hand-sanitiser.
regularly disinfect hand contact surfaces such as door handles taps and light switches especially in offices.
who statistics show that the number of cases between march and april 2014 increased by 27.2 per cent. the virus is transmitted through close contact with other people leading to acute respiratory illness fever cough and shortness of breath.
arab hygiene council member dr mohammed halwani said: “following the increased reports of cases of the mers-cov we urge the public to become more vigilant when it comes to their personal hygiene practices.
“we know that good hygiene especially hand washing with a trusted antiseptic soap appropriate respiratory measures and disinfection of commonly touched surfaces can help prevent the spread of coronavirus. practising good hygiene is everyone’s responsibility and something we can do easily for ourselves especially because mers-cov has no cure or vaccine and prevention is the only way to stay healthy.”
this advice is particularly relevant during mass gatherings such as during umrah and hajj when the risk of infection is the highest.
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