Algeria has announced the first death from the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus infection, the Health Ministry confirmed in a statement on Tuesday. The 59-year-old victim was among the first two cases of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome virus to be discovered in Algeria late last month.
A man died from MERS late on Monday in a hospital in the western province of Tlemcen. The other confirmed MERS patient is still receiving treatment and improving.
Algeria issued a MERS alert last June and has recently raised the alert level. For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page
Globally, 683 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV including 204 related deaths have officially been reported to WHO.
