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SARS isolate siblings in Melbourne Hospital

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TWO brothers of a young girl suspected of having SARS have joined her in a Melbourne isolation ward.

TWO brothers of a young girl suspected of having SARS have joined her in a Melbourne isolation ward.The boys, aged 18 months and six years joined the three-year-old girl at Monash Medical Centre overnight. All are now under observation. Other members of the family, Canadians who arrived in Australia last weekend were also under observation but remained at home, Department of Human Services spokesman Bram Alexander said. There are now at least six suspected SARS cases in Australia: two in NSW, one in Queensland, and the three siblings in Victoria. SARS has so far killed 79 people from 2223 cases in 19 countries, according to the latest figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO). “It is more a matter of elimination than diagnosis,” Mr Alexander said of the three children. “There is no specific test for SARS so it is a matter of ruling out what they don’t have, and also testing them against the World Health Organisation’s clinical diagnosis. “SARS can be spread within the family setting because of close contacts.” He said it took time to run tests, and in the meantime doctors were doing their best to treat any SARS symptoms the children were displaying. Earlier this week, a 46-year-old Perth woman who underwent medical tests for the virus was found to be clear of the disease. China, Hong Kong and Canada are among the countries worst hit by the SARS outbreak. (Surce: News.com.au)


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Dates

Posted On: 7 April, 2003
Modified On: 5 December, 2013


Created by: myVMC