A 49-year-old man infected with a respiratory virus believed to be more deadly than Sars has died in Britain, officials have revealed. The Qatari man was being treated for Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-nCV) in an intensive care unit at St Thomas’ Hospital in central London. Hospital officials said that the man, who was 49 when he was admitted, died after his condition deteriorated. There have now been 77 confirmed cases across nine countries with 41 deaths from the virus, which emerged last year and is similar to those that cause Sars and the common cold. Three people have now died in the UK as a result of the infection. Before the latest victim became ill he had travelled to Saudi Arabia where the majority of coronavirus cases have been reported. The patient, who was suffering from acute respiratory syndrome and renal failure, was then admitted to an intensive care unit in Doha, Qatar, on September 7 last year. The man, who has not been named by officials, was transferred to the UK by air ambulance on September 11. A hospital spokeswoman said: ‘Guy’s and St Thomas’ can confirm that the patient with severe respiratory illness due to novel coronavirus (MERS-nCV) sadly died on Friday 28 June, after his condition deteriorated despite every effort and full supportive treatment.’ Despite doctors’ efforts to keep him alive, including connecting him to an artificial lung, he died on Friday last week. This latest death comes after the World Health Organisation (WHO) said in May that Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus – or MERS-CoV – is a ‘threat to the entire world’. In a statement in May the World Health Organization said: ‘The greatest global concern is about the potential for this new virus to spread. ‘This is partly because the virus has already caused severe disease in multiple countries, although in small numbers, and has persisted in the [Middle East] region since 2012.
