title: SARS in hospital emergency room.
abstract: Thirty-one cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) occurred after exposure in the emergency room at the National Taiwan University Hospital. The index patient was linked to an outbreak at a nearby municipal hospital. Three clusters were identified over a 3-week period. The first cluster (5 patients) and the second cluster (14 patients) occurred among patients, family members, and nursing aids. The third cluster (12 patients) occurred exclusively among healthcare workers. Six healthcare workers had close contact with SARS patients. Six others, with different working patterns, indicated that they did not have contact with a SARS patient. Environmental surveys found 9 of 119 samples of inanimate objects to be positive for SARS coronavirus RNA. These observations indicate that although transmission by direct contact with known SARS patients was responsible for most cases, environmental contamination with the SARS coronavirus may have lead to infection among healthcare workers without documented contact with known hospitalized SARS patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yee-Chun
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Li-Min
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Chang-Chuan
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Chan-Ping
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Shan-Chwen
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Ying-Ying
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Mei-Ling
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chien-Ching
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Hung
authors.forename: Wen-Jone
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Fang-Yue
authors.initials: FY
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Yuan-Teh
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D021821:Communicable Diseases, Emerging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D016358:Contact Tracing; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D062665:Epidemiological Monitoring; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D017758:Infectious Disease Transmission, Patient-to-Professional; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D045473:Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission* / Q000821:virology; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral