Fourth Suspected Case of Mysterious SARS Illness Found in Florida

April 4, 2003
By Coralie Carlson, Associated Press Writer

A 53-year-old Miami-Dade County woman has apparently contracted a mysterious respiratory illness that's popping up worldwide, becoming the fourth suspected case in Florida, officials said Friday.

This is the third suspected case of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, identified in Miami-Dade County, but none of the cases are related, state officials said. The illness has killed nearly 80 people and sickened hundreds more in its spread from eastern Asia.

On Thursday, a 70-year-old Alachua County woman was identified as a suspected case. She was hospitalized after showing symptoms of SARS after arriving from a trip to Asia, said state epidemiologist Dr. Steven Wiersma.

Two other Miami-Dade County residents, a 21-year-old woman and a 36-year-old man, were identified this week as suspected SARS cases. They have not been hospitalized but were asked to stay home to avoid spreading the illness, Wiersma said. None of the Florida cases appear related.

Details about the latest case were not immediately released and a state spokesman did not immediately return a phone message Friday.

"Our citizens and visitors can take comfort in knowing that the public health system for Florida is investigating all potential cases," said Health Secretary John O. Agwunobi in a statement Friday. "In an attempt to prevent the spread of SARS, we are monitoring and working with the families and close contacts of the four suspect cases."

Patients are considered to have a suspected case if they have traveled to China, Hong Kong, Vietnam or Singapore in recent weeks, are running a fever over 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit, and are experiencing a cough, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing.

The illness has killed at least 80 people in Asia and Canada and sickened at least 2,200 in more than a dozen nations. In the United States, there were 85 suspected cases in 27 states.

The spread of the mysterious illness, for which researchers haven't yet proved a cause, has heightened concerns around the country and within the state. Federal officials are distributing SARS advisories to people arriving on flights from Asia, including at Florida's airports.

Meanwhile, a Chinese performance troupe has postponed an upcoming show at a Sarasota theater because of the SARS scare. The Guizhou Folk Dancers, Musicians and Acrobats, had planned to perform at the Players Theatre in two weeks. Now they hope to come in October or November.

"It's a global disaster, and it isn't anything anyone can control," Burton Wolfe, executive director of the theater, told The Bradenton Herald. "It's not a positive time to do this."

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