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Yesterday , the media from Italy reported that an additional 10 to 12 individuals were infected with the MERS-CoV, but the individuals were asymptomatic. These individuals reportedly included doctors and nurses. Today, a second round of testing on eight of these individuals produced negative results [1].   Based on the number of confirmed cases to date, MERS-CoV is a deadly disease. The presence or absence of asymptomatic or mild cases of MERS-CoV is an important component in understanding how this disease spreads. Hopefully, the confusion over the number of infected individuals and the MERS-CoV testing results will be cleared up soon by public health officials in Italy. [1] http://firenze.repubblica.it/cronaca/2013/06/04/news/nuova_sars_esami_negativi_resta_soltanto_tre_i_casi-60353834/    h/t Giuseppe

The announcement today of an additional 10-12 asymptomatic MERS cases in Florence, Italy, raises the specter of silent human-to-human transmission.  The map depicts the locations of clusters of confirmed and suspected MERS-CoV cases in Europe and North Africa.

As of yesterday, three confirmed cases of MERS-CoV were reported in Italy.[1] Today, another 10+ asymptomatic cases have been reported by the media in Florence.[2-4] It is difficult to draw a conclusion from these media reports.   Are these individuals actually positive for the MERS-CoV virus? Is this a local coronavirus variant that is spreading from the initial index case in Italy?   Does this indicate that MERS-CoV is actually a wide-spread coronavirus, a coronavirus with less virulence than expected? More questions than answers now until official results are presented. [1] http://www.who.int/csr/don/2013_06_02_ncov/en/index.html [2] http://www.giornalettismo.com/archives/964227/coronavirus-dieci-casi-positivi-di-nuova-sars-in-italia/     h/t tetano [3] http://www.lastampa.it/2013/06/03/italia/cronache/nuova-sars-una-decina-di-pazienti-positivi-ai-controlli-ma-senza-sintomi-urVEjt40bOnIcV5Rn3BBNP/pagina.html h/t Giuseppe [4] http://corrierefiorentino.corri...