Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)

• SARS
• More Information on SARS
• Sars and Your Health - BC Healthfiles
• BC NurseLine
• Health Canada

The last case of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) worldwide was reported in a laboratory worker in China in May 2004. No cases have been reported since then, although all hospitals maintain surveillance on all cases of acute respiratory distress syndrome.

SARS is a respiratory illness. The main symptoms include fever, dry cough, shortness of breath or breathing difficulties. People can also experience headache, muscle aches, sore throat, fatigue and diarrhea.

SARS is spread by close contact with an ill person (i.e. sharing the same living space or coming within three feet of an infected person), the same way a cold is spread. You can protect yourself from SARS the same way you protect yourself from the common cold - with good hygiene practices, including:

• frequent hand-washing - use plain soap and warm water for at least twenty seconds, or waterless hand rinses (alcohol-based);
• immediate disposal of used tissues; and
• avoiding close contact with ill people.

More information on SARS can be found on the following sites:

• Health Canada
• World Health Organization
• SARS Accelerated Vaccine Initiative
• BC Centre for Disease Control
• Centers for Disease Control (USA)

SARS and Your Health - BC HealthFiles

• Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
• Vietnamese (PDF 181Kb)
• Punjabi (PDF 72Kb)
• Simplified Chinese (PDF 595Kb)
• Traditional Chinese (PDF 686Kb)

Contacts

BC NurseLine provides 24-hour, confidential health information and advice. Anywhere in the province, call BC NurseLine to speak to a registered nurse 24-hours or a pharmacist from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. every day. Translation services are available in 130 languages, including Mandarin, Cantonese and Punjabi.

Health Canada SARS Information

For general inquiries about SARS, call Health Canada's SARS information line at
1 800 454-8302. The line is open 8 AM to 8 PM EST, Monday to Friday.

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