A Major Outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in Hong Kong

Abstract

BACKGROUND: There has been an outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) worldwide. We report the clinical, laboratory, and radiologic features of 138 cases of suspected SARS during a hospital outbreak in Hong Kong. METHODS: From March 11 to 25, 2003, all patients with suspected SARS after exposure to an index patient or ward were admitted to the isolation wards of the Prince of Wales Hospital. Their demographic, clinical, laboratory, and radiologic characteristics were analyzed. Clinical end points included the need for intensive care and death. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed. RESULTS: There were 66 male patients and 72 female patients in this cohort, 69 of whom were health care workers. The most common symptoms included fever (in 100 percent of the pati