Frequently Asked Questions

The Illness

What is Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)?
SARS is a respiratory illness of unknown cause that has recently been reported in Asia, North America and Europe. For additional information, check the World Health Organization’s (WHO) website at www.who.int/en or visit CDC’s website at www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars.

What are the symptoms and signs of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)?
The illness begins generally with a fever greater than 100.4°F [>38.0°C]. The fever is sometimes associated with chills or other symptoms, including headache, malaise, and body aches. Some persons also experience mild respiratory symptoms at the outset.

After 3 to 7 days, the person may develop a dry, nonproductive cough which might be accompanied by or progress to the point where insufficient oxygen is getting to the blood. In 10%--20% of cases, patients will require mechanical ventilation. For more information, see the MMWR dispatch at www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwr_dispatch.html

What is causing SARS? Is it something new?
The cause of SARS is not known at this time. Researchers at CDC and around the world are exploring every possibility to find the cause of SARS. At this early stage of the investigation, it seems more likely that SARS is caused by an organism that we have less experience with rather than a commonly occurring, known organism.

If I were exposed to SARS, how long would it take for me to become sick?
The incubation period for SARS is typically 2--7 days; however, isolated reports have suggested an incubation period as long as 10 days. The illness begins generally with a fever (>100.4°F [>38.0°C]) (see signs and symptoms, above).

How many cases of SARS have been reported so far?
Visit www.who.int/en for daily updates on case reports. Visit the Utah Department of Health website at www.health.utah.gov for updated cases in Utah.

How many people have died from SARS?
Visit www.who.int/en for a daily update of SARS cases and deaths. Visit the Utah Department of Health website at www.health.utah.gov for updated cases in Utah.

How does the disease (SARS) spread?
It is difficult this early in the investigation to say exactly how SARS spreads. Close contacts of cases, including health care workers and family members, have developed similar illnesses. Examples of close contact include having cared for, lived with, or had direct contact with respiratory secretions and body fluids of people with SARS

Can SARS be transmitted in schools or other public settings?
Available data indicate that transmission seems to require direct or close contact. Cases have occurred among health care workers caring for ill patients and close family contacts.

Can SARS be transmitted through contact with an inanimate object?
It is difficult this early in the investigation to say exactly how SARS spreads. What has been seen so far is a pattern of transmission related to direct close contact with a person with SARS. In areas where person-to-person transmission has been documented, cases have occurred almost exclusively in health care workers or in persons in very close contact with patients, such as family members. In a small number of cases, the route of transmission has not yet been fully determined, but there is no clear evidence to date of transmission following casual contact or contact with inanimate objects.

Who is most at risk of contracting SARS?
At this time, cases appear to primarily involve health care workers caring for patients with SARS and close family contacts.

Travel and Quarantine

Which travelers are being given health alerts?
Travelers returning from Hong Kong, Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China and Hanoi, Vietnam are being given printed information (health alert notices) that they may have been exposed to cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Travelers are advised to monitor their health for at least seven days, to contact their physicians if they become ill with a fever accompanied by a cough or difficulty in breathing, and to inform their physician of their recent travel.

What does a quarantine inspector do?
Quarantine inspectors serve as important guardians of health at borders and ports of entry into the United States. They routinely respond to illness in arriving passengers and ensure that the appropriate medical action is taken.

What are quarantine officials doing to prevent and control the spread of SARS?
During the ongoing investigation into SARS, CDC's quarantine inspectors play an important role. Inspectors or their designees provide information to returning air travelers arriving-directly or indirectly-from Hong Kong, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China, and Hanoi, Vietnam. This same information is being provided via the major shipping associations and the International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) to persons traveling on cargo ships and cruise ships.

Inspectors are handing out health alert notices to arriving air travelers alerting them of their possible exposure to SARS. The notices ask travelers to monitor their health for 7 days and see a doctor if they get a fever with a cough or difficulty breathing. Inspectors are also boarding airplanes to check travelers for any symptoms matching the case definition of SARS.

What does it mean to quarantine an ill passenger (or passengers)?
Under foreign quarantine regulations, the master of a ship or captain of an airplane coming into the U.S. from a foreign port is required by law to report certain illnesses among passengers. The illness must be reported to the nearest quarantine official. If possible, the crew of the airplane or ship will try to isolate the ill passenger or crew member from others. Quarantine officials arrange for appropriate medical assistance to be available when the airplane lands or the ship docks. If the passenger is only connecting through a particular port of entry, port health authorities may refer the passenger to a local health authority for assessment and care.

If I’m on board an airplane or ship with someone suspected of having SARS, will I be allowed to continue to my destination?
If a passenger or crew member suspected to have SARS is identified on a ship or airplane and removed by port health authorities, there are currently no indications to restrict the onward travel of the other healthy passengers. All passengers and crew members may be advised by port health authorities to seek medical attention if they develop the symptoms listed above.

What if a quarantine official identifies a passenger as meeting the case definition for suspected SARS and attempts to remove the individual from the airplane, but the individual does not want to go?
CDC developed the list of diseases for which a traveler may be placed under quarantine at a time when diseases such as SARS could not be anticipated. SARS is not currently on the list of quarantinable diseases; however, the policies of individual airlines allow airline officials to refuse boarding to any passenger suspected of having a contagious illness. It is important to note that CDC is not attempting to quarantine travelers for SARS. Quarantine inspectors are attempting to isolate sick passengers for their comfort and care, as well as the protection of other passengers and crew.

What is the risk to individuals who may have shared a plane or boat trip with a suspected SARS patient?
Available data indicate that transmission seems to require direct or close contact. Cases have occurred among health care workers caring for ill patients and close family contacts. CDC is taking locating information from travelers who are on flights with people suspected of having SARS. CDC, with the help of state and local health authorities, is attempting to follow up on these travelers for 7 days to make sure no one develops symptoms consistent with SARS. So far, no cases of SARS have been reported in these travelers.

Once someone on an airplane or ship is suspected of having SARS, for how long are they isolated?
Travelers with suspected cases of SARS are isolated until appropriate medical treatment can be provided.

Recommendations

What should I do if I think I have SARS?
If you are ill with a fever of over 100.4 °F [>38.0°C] that is accompanied by a cough or difficulty breathing, or that progresses to a cough and/or difficulty breathing, you should consult a health care provider. To help your health care provider make a diagnosis, tell them about any recent travel to regions where cases of SARS have been reported and whether you were in contact with someone who had these symptoms.

What should I do if I have recently traveled to a country where cases of SARS have been reported?
You should monitor your own health for 7 to 10 days following your return. If you become ill with a fever of over 100.4 °F [>38.0°C] that is accompanied by a cough or difficulty breathing, or that progresses to a cough and/or difficulty breathing, you should consult a health care provider. To help your health care provider make a diagnosis, tell them about any recent travel to regions where cases of SARS have been reported and whether you were in contact with someone who had these symptoms.

Are there any travel restrictions related to SARS?
At this time there are no travel restrictions in place that are directly related to SARS. However, a CDC travel advisory recommends individuals who are planning nonessential or elective travel to parts of China (Hong Kong, SAR, and Guangdong Province) and Hanoi, Vietnam may wish to postpone their trip until further notice. For additional information about travel advisories, check www.cdc.gov/travel, which will be updated as necessary.

Should potential SARS patients be isolated?
CDC has developed guidelines that address infection control precautions in the health care and community setting. These can be found at CDC’s website at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/ and will be updated as new information about SARS becomes available.

How should a suspected SARS patient be transported to ensure infection control?
To minimize the potential of transmission outside the hospital, case patients should limit interactions outside the home until more is known about transmission of SARS. Placing a surgical mask on case patients in ambulatory health care settings, during transport, and during contact with others at home is recommended.

Other

Is there any reason to think SARS is or is not related to terrorism?
Information currently available about SARS indicates that people who appear to be most at risk are either health care workers taking care of sick people or family members or household contacts of those who are infected with SARS. That pattern of transmission is what would typically be expected in a contagious respiratory or flu-like illness.

Resource link for helping to protect against SARS: http://www.washup.org/