Objectives Surveillance for Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) has been undertaken in the UK since September 2012. This study describes the surveillance outcomes in England from 2012 to 2018. Study Design This was a descriptive study using surveillance data. Methods Local health protection teams in England report possible MERS cases to the National Infection Service with clinical and laboratory data. Results A total of 1,301 possible MERS cases were identified in the study period. Five cases were laboratory confirmed MERS. The majority of cases had travelled to Saudi Arabia (56.7%) and United Arab Emirates (25.9%). Fifty-four percent of cases were male and 43.7% female. The majority of cases (65.1%) were aged 45 years or over. The number of tests increased in the period following Hajj each year. Laboratory confirmed alternative diagnoses were available for 513 (39.4%) cases; influenza was the most common virus detected (n=255, 52.4%). Conclusions Our study highlights the importance of differential diagnosis of influenza and other respiratory pathogens and early influenza antiviral treatment.
Six-year experience of detection and investigation of possible MERS-CoV cases, England, 2012-2018