CDC

Authors: JoAnn O’Toole RN, BSN

SARS Summary

SARS was an atypical pneumonia first detected in eastern China during the winter of 2002–2003. The organism was found to be a new, highly pathogenic, coronavirus. The outbreak brought back memories of the influenza pandemic of 1918–1919 in which as many as 50 million people died worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) called for immediate action against SARS and directed its Global Outbreak and Response Network in Geneva, Switzerland to coordinate efforts to monitor the spread of SARS throughout the world. (WHO, GOARN, 2005).