CAIRO
An Egyptian woman suspected of infection with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), commonly known as coronavirus, died on Monday, the second such fatality in the Arab world's most populous state.
The woman, in her 50s, passed away in the Nile Delta province of Menoufiya, Health Ministry official Hanaa Sorour said.
Sorour said that the woman had returned from Saudi Arabia one week ago.
Tests, however, did not confirm or deny that coronavirus was behind the fatality, according to Sorour.
Earlier Monday, the Health Ministry said that a 60-year-old woman suspected to have contracted MERS died in the canal city of Port Said.
According to the ministry, the woman had suffered MERS-like symptoms days after returning from Saudi Arabia, where the virus has killed at least 112 people since it first hit the kingdom in late 2012.
Meanwhile, Egyptian health authorities quarantined two people at the eastern Safaga Port on suspicions of contracting the virus upon their arrival from Saudi Arabia.
Along with Saudi Arabia, coronavirus has been reported in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Tunisia, Jordan and Oman.
MERS, for which no known cure is available, destroys the lungs and kidneys.
Symptoms, which include persistent fever and cough, are similar to those associated with the SARS virus.
It is presumed that long-term physical contact can lead to infection.
Egypt reported its first coronavirus infection on April 26 for a 27-year-old engineer coming from Saudi Arabia
By Maissa al-Seidi
englishnews@aa.com.tr
