Sars

An abbreviation for severe acute respiratory syndrome, SARS is a potentially deadly viral illness caused by a coronavirus.

Former Ontario Chief Coroner James Young and infectious disease expert Dick Zoutman recount their efforts to contain the mysterious new disease. In answer to questions about "lessons from the past," several distinguished historians of epidemics examine how their knowledge of responses to older plagues influenced their perception of SARS. They also reflect on how the advent of SARS alters their views of the past. Finally, policy experts comment on possible changes to health care that the SARS experience suggests should be made.

Will SARS or another pandemic influenza reoccur and, if it does, have we learned how to manage pandemics more effectively? In SARS Unmasked risk communication expert Michael Tyshenko offers answers to this and other questions. Cathy Paterson, who worked as a nurse clinician during the Toronto SARS crisis, adds an important view from the frontlines. Their analysis reveals an out-of-control situation with mixed risk communication messages, a lack of leadership, and an overwhelmed health care system that was unable to both cope with the crisis in Toronto and provide adequate support for their most valuable employees at the time - health care workers.

This exciting book tells the story of the recent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak. Follow the SARS trail from rural China as it spreads to various places in the world. See how seemingly casual contacts help the disease spread like wildfire. Work alongside the many infectious disease specialists from health organizations around the world as they painstakingly trace the disease to its origins and simultaneously work on treatments-all the time knowing that each hour of delay allows the disease to spread even further.

SARS, Governance and the Globalization of Disease provides a comprehensive and original analysis of the historic global SARS outbreak of 2003. David P. Fidler constructs a political pathology of the SARS outbreak, analyzes the government responses to it, places these responses in historical context and assesses the implications of the successful management of the outbreak for handling future pathogenic threats that will arise. The book includes a detailed description of the outbreak and governance responses to it, as well as a focused analysis of China's role in the outbreak.

This is a comprehensive and up-to-date account of the clinical management of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). It covers the various aspects, from diagnosis, clinical presentation and therapeutic modalities to rehabilitation. A multidisciplinary approach is adopted, with inputs from clinicians, radiologists, intensivists, nurses, physiotherapists, and experts in traditional Chinese medicine. The information presented is based on existing knowledge and evidence about the disease, taking the view that things are still evolving. This book is an indispensable guide for frontline healthcare workers, including doctors and nurses, as well as medical students and medical researchers. Contents:A Global Outbreak (J J Y Sung)The Epidemiology of SARS (T W Wong & W-Q Chen)Virology of SARS (P K S Chan)Clinical Diagnosis (D S C Hui)Screening at the Primary Care Setting (T H Rainer)Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in Elderly Patients (T Kwok)Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in Children (T F Fok)Herbal Medicine in the Treatment of SARS (P C Leung)Infection Control of SARS in the Hospital (P Tong et al.)Nosocomial Infections (L Y C Chan & H Fung)Will the SARS Epidemic Recur? (J J Y Sung)and other articles Readership: Undergraduates and graduates of medical and nursing schools; academics and medical practitioners. Keywords:SARS;Coronavirus;Pneumonia;Respiratory Failure

The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in late 2002 and 2003 challenged the global public health community to confront a novel epidemic that spread rapidly from its origins in southern China until it had reached more than 25 other countries within a matter of months. In addition to the number of patients infected with the SARS virus, the disease had profound economic and political repercussions in many of the affected regions. Recent reports of isolated new SARS cases and a fear that the disease could reemerge and spread have put public health officials on high alert for any indications of possible new outbreaks. This report examines the response to SARS by public health systems in individual countries, the biology of the SARS coronavirus and related coronaviruses in animals, the economic and political fallout of the SARS epidemic, quarantine law and other public health measures that apply to combating infectious diseases, and the role of international organizations and scientific cooperation in halting the spread of SARS. The report provides an illuminating survey of findings from the epidemic, along with an assessment of what might be needed in order to contain any future outbreaks of SARS or other emerging infections.