Winning the fight against Sars
2003-06-16 17:27
Kuala Lumpur - The World Health Organisation hopes that within a few months the outbreak of the deadly Sars virus will be completely under control, a spokesperson said on Monday.
The statement came at a news conference ahead of the opening here Tuesday of a global congress on severe acute respiratory syndrome, which has killed hundreds of people worldwide, mainly in Asia.
"Sars is the first major international epidemic of the 21st Century and only due to massive unprecedented international response has Sars come under control in all areas," said Mark Salter, a Geneva-based WHO technical officer.
"We hope in the next few months we are in a position to say the box is now closed.
"What we need to ensure, though, is that the box is closed tight, but to do that we still need a lot more information about the virus, the disease and how the disease spreads among the population."
He said there were still "yawning gaps" in knowledge about the disease and "only by filling those gaps we can say Sars is gone for good."
"We cannot be complacent and we cannot sit back in a few weeks time when there are no more cases and say 'right we are done.'"
Another WHO technical officer, Julie Hall, told reporters that the conference in Malaysia aimed to "give a good understanding on how much we have achieved in tackling Sars and some of the lessons learned on this emerging disease.
"There will be a series of talks by top scientists, including the role animals may possibly play in Sars, vaccine development, clinical diagnosis and environmental issues."
About a thousand delegates, including scientists, doctors and government officials from around the world will attend the conference.
Asked how co-operative China had been over efforts to control the disease, which was first recorded there, Hall said: "China has shown it is a key partner and is working well with the international community and the WHO."