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SARS Update (May 2, 2003, Two)

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Program Summary

Just when health officials thought they had SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) by the tail, it wiggled out of their grasp. The baffling disease continues to present scientists with unexpected developments and has incited panic in China, where the new infection and death rates keep rising. The Chinese government admitted that its attempts to cover up the initial outbreak of SARS led directly to the loss of control in containing it.

Twelve recovered patients in Hong Kong had to be readmitted to hospitals on April 30 after suffering relapses, and traces of the virus have been found in other patients who were considered to have recovered. This discovery compounds the mystery of how the disease progresses. Some doctors speculate that the SARS epidemic may be seasonal, like the Spanish flu outbreak of 1918, which appeared in the winter, faded over the summer, and reemerged in the fall.

On the bright side, officials in Vietnam say that the disease has peaked there and is on the decline; health officials in Toronto report that the spread of SARS has been halted, and the World Health Organization has lifted its travel advisory to that city. It was also announced today that the genome sequences for two strains of the virus have been mapped, which will speed the development of a vaccine.

Fifty-three probable cases of SARS have been identified in the United States as of May 1, 2003, and 200 suspected cases are being monitored. No deaths have occurred.

Guests

Related Links and Resources

Center for Disease Control, April 30, 2003: Frequently Asked Questions: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) (updates)
NYTimes.com, May 1, 2003: “With SARS, Initial Recovery May Presage Worst Phase”
NYTimes.com, April 30, 2003: “A New SARS Riddle: How to Know It's Beaten”
World Health Organization: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) (updates)

The discussion questions and activities below are taken from “SARS Outbreak: Anatomy of an Epidemic” (Science Friday Kids Connection, March 28, 2003).

For Discussion:

• What does “epidemic” mean? What does “pandemic” mean? From what language do these terms come?
• What makes an outbreak of disease an epidemic?
• What are the differences between a bacterial disease and a viral one?
• The influenza pandemic of 1918 killed as many as 40 million people worldwide. Why was it so devastating? What changes in public health resulted?
• Why did SARS appear in Canada, a country thousands of miles away from Asia?
• What does an epidemiologist do?
• What mechanisms are in place today to prevent epidemics?

Activities

I get it! Understanding: Viruses at DiscoverySchool.com is an excellent lesson that accompanies the video of the same name. The video explores the nature of viruses and their negative and positive aspects. Included are thoughtful research and discussion topics (such as comparing the work of Edward Jenner and Jonas Salk), vocabulary, and extension activities that address language arts standards. Printed and on-line resources are listed.

I don’t want it, you can have it. EPIDEMIC! A Fred Friendly Seminar: The Natural History Perspective, a joint PBS and Museum project, is a text-only version that can help students get organized before they visit the on-line exhibit.

Cleanliness is next to godliness. At Learning Adventures in Citizenship: Fight for Reform (PBSKids.org), the effects of poverty and overcrowding on public health are examined in this series on the history of New York City. Students become epidemiologists on the Learning Adventures in Citizenship: Epidemic! page, tracking illnesses that have passed through their school. The Lesson Plan provides discussion topics and a worksheet for tracking the illness.

The furious flu. Influenza 1918 was part of Public Broadcasting System’s American Experience series, available on video. This episode recounts the story of the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic and its impact on the United States. Though great strides had been made in the field of vaccines, Spanish influenza was the SARS of that era—baffling, contagious, and deadly, killing 675,000 people in America alone. Timelines, maps, charts, and personal stories sketch the difficulty the government had in dealing with the disease. The teacher’s guide provides discussion questions and research topics. Students can compare and contrast the influenza pandemic with more modern outbreaks of diseases such as polio, hantavirus, or ebola.

Don’t sneeze on me! Thirteen Ed Online: Ah Choo!, a teachers’ guide, uses the Internet to expose students to global epidemiology. A role-playing activity makes the problem of tracking an epidemic more real. Fizzies virus, another lesson plan, is a classroom activity that demonstrates how diseases are spread.

Eye of newt. Home remedies have been used throughout the ages to treat all sorts of ailments. Sometimes they worked, sometimes they didn’t. Have students research the medieval European plague, Victorian cholera outbreaks, and other historical epidemics with more modern ones to assess the differences in popular attitudes towards the illnesses, the variety of treatments and their effectiveness, and methods used to avoid contagion.

Use the search box below to perform a Google search within any of the specifc sites or general domains mentioned in this Activities section.

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