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How to Control the Spread of Severe
Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a new, serious,
pneumonia-like illness that may be caused by a virus. Patients with SARS
can spread the illness to others in their homes and to health care workers
caring for them. No one knows how long someone with SARS can spread the
disease, so it is important that SARS patients and members of their
household follow the steps below to help stop the spread of the illness.
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Limit contact with others. Patients
with SARS should stay home and not go to work, school, day-care, or
other public places until ten days after their temperature has returned
to normal (no fever) and they no longer have a cough. During this time,
a house with a SARS patient should not have visitors.
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Wash your hands often. Carefully and
frequently wash hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand
rub, particularly after taking care of the patient or coming in contact
with the patient’s body fluids (handling used tissues, surgical masks,
changing diapers, etc.) Go to this website for more details on hand
washing:
www.cdc.gov/handhygiene
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Use gloves around body fluids. Use
disposable gloves for contact with body fluids of a SARS patient. Right
after contact with the patient’s body fluids, take off the gloves and
throw them away. Wash or clean hands with an alcohol-based hand rub. Do
not wash or reuse gloves.
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Cover your mouth. Patients with SARS
should cover their mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or
sneezing. To prevention of spreading the illness, a SARS patient should
wear a surgical mask when in contact with anyone who is not sick. When a
SARS patient can’t wear a surgical mask, household members and visitors
should wear surgical masks when in close contact with the patient.
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Do not share personal items. Don’t
share eating utensils, towels, or bedding with someone who has SARS,
although these items can be used after washing with regular soap and hot
water.
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Clean infected areas. Any surfaces
soiled by body fluids of a patient should be cleaned with a household
disinfectant according to instructions on the product label; wear gloves
while cleaning.
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Discard used items. Throw out tissues
and surgical masks and other disposable items used by a SARS patient
with other household trash.
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Watch for symptoms in family and close
contacts. If a household member or other close contact of a SARS
patient gets sick with a fever, cough, or has trouble breathing, they
should see their healthcare provider as soon as possible. Call the
provider before to tell them that there has been contact with a SARS
patient.
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Tips for household members and close
contacts. Household members or other close contacts that get sick
with a fever, cough, or have trouble breathing should follow the same
steps listed above for SARS patients. Household members or other close
contacts of SARS patients do not need to limit their activities outside
the home, if they do not have a fever, cough or trouble breathing.
(This information is
also available in pdf format.) |
