An Atypical Case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome in a Returning Traveler to Korea from Kuwait, 2018

ABSTRACT

We report a case of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in a 61-year-old businessman returning from Kuwait. The patient arrived there on August 16, 2018, developed watery diarrhea on August 28 (day 0), and came back to Korea on September 7 (day 10) as his condition worsened. Upon arrival, he complained of diarrhea and weakness, but denied any respiratory symptoms, and he directly went to visit an emergency room. Chest radiography revealed interstitial infiltrates in the lungs, and he was immediately transferred to an isolation unit. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of sputum samples taken on day 11 returned positive for MERS-CoV. No secondary MERS-CoV infection was identified among people who had close contact with him. This case underscores the importance of a high index of suspicion of MERS-CoV infection in any febrile patients who present after a trip to the Middle East.