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| Tuesday, 25 March 2003 |
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HK hospital chief ill with pneumonia, fears spread HONG KONG, Monday (Reuters) Hong Kong's hospital chief has been hospitalised with symptoms of pneumonia, fuelling fears that a killer respiratory virus could be spreading faster in the territory of nearly seven million people than first thought. William Ho, chief executive of the Hospital Authority, was admitted on Sunday evening, a government spokeswoman said on Monday. "He was warded last night with symptoms of pneumonia," she told Reuters. He was in stable condition. She said it was not yet known if he was suffering from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which has killed 18 people around the world, including eight in Hong Kong, and left hundreds ill. Ho has been working on the outbreak for the past few weeks, visiting hospitals, briefing senior government officials and meeting the press. Health officials say 247 people in Hong Kong have been infected with the highly contagious disease, which is spreading quickly around the world as air travellers return home from parts of Asia. Of those infected in Hong Kong, 242 have developed full-blown pneumonia. Experts believe the disease is caused by a new virus from the paramyxovirus family, a large group of microbes that includes germs that cause measles, mumps and respiratory infections. Though researchers around the world say the virus has been isolated, they are racing against time to pin down its exact identity, which will help them develop a vaccine or cure. Initial symptoms include high fever (over 38 degrees Celsius), dry cough, chills and severe breathing problems. Healthy and athletic adults can end up on a respirator within five days. |
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