WHO: SARS infections in China appear linked to chlamydia
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HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- The World Health Organization suggested Friday that the common bacteria chlamydia may have teamed up with SARS -- Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome -- at least in the cases in China, where the disease first was recognized late last year.
SARS is "acting with other things and in China it happens to be chlamydia," WHO spokesman Chris Powell said Friday.
The possible connection between the bacterial infection and SARS was first reported in February, when Chinese health officials said they found chlamydia in the lungs of SARS victims. One form of the bacteria can lead to pneumonia and it does not have to be transmitted sexually.
But U.S. health officials said the bacteria probably play no role in SARS.
"So far, we have not found it," said Dr. James Hughes, director of the National Center for Infectious Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Because it is a common bacterium, "it wouldn't be surprising to find it in some patients with that pneumonia," he said. "I don't think it's likely to be playing a role here."
SARS -- characterized by high fever and breathing difficulties -- has infected more than 2,270 people, killing 79, according to the WHO Web site. It has spread to 16 countries, including the United States. No U.S. deaths have been reported.
WHO investigators, who only Thursday were granted access to China's Guangdong Province, have been meeting with "senior provincial health officials" and "health workers at all levels," the site said.
"Discussions focused on patterns of transmission, clinical profiles, and the suspected causative agent," it said.
Researchers say SARS probably began spreading from Guangdong -- where there have been at least 1,000 cases -- to other countries in mid-February.
Victims of SARS typically have a temperature of greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38.0 degrees Celsius) and display other signs of respiratory illness, including cough, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing. Their X-rays sometimes indicate pneumonia.
"With the addition of the first probable case in Brazil, SARS is now being reported on four continents," WHO's Web site said.
-- CNN Correspondent Andrew Brown, CNN Producer Steven Jiang contributed to this report
